Mr. Earl Ofari Hutchinson has written an impressive article at The Christian Science Monitor about why Black voters won't necessarily support Barack Obama's campaign for POTUS. Below is an excerpt. I think he brings up some good points and starts a dialouge about Black voters and Obama that isn't dealing with Sen. Obama's "Blackness"
Why blacks won't necessarily back Obama
As recent history proves, political interests trump race.
By Earl Ofari Hutchinson
LOS ANGELES - Political interests trump race. That's the hard lesson likely 2008 presidential candidate Barack Obama will soon learn. Those who think black voters will automatically support one of their own need to think again. Recent history proves that point.
A survey in January 1996 showed that the so-called black president, Bill Clinton, nosed out Jesse Jackson and Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan in popularity among blacks. Eight years later, when Al Sharpton made his presidential foray in the South Carolina Democratic primary, he barely nudged out eventual Democratic presidential contender John Kerry among black voters. State and national black leaders put their muscle behind Senator Kerry or John Edwards.
In the 2006 midterm elections, Ohio Secretary of State Ken Blackwell, pro football great Lynn Swann in Pennsylvania, and Maryland Lt. Gov. Michael Steele – all Republicans – banked heavily on getting black voter support to beat their white Democratic opponents in state races. They failed miserably.
Blacks were enraptured with President Clinton and have supported white Democrats for good reason. They believed these seasoned politicians would deliver on their promise to fight for jobs, education, and healthcare. And they either held office or were good bets to win. Interests and electability trumped color.
The same rules apply to Senator Obama. Blacks may puff their chests with pride at the prospect of him breaking racial barriers, but they'll shttp://www2.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=9820158till judge him on two crucial questions. Can he deliver on bread and butter issues? And can he win?
(Click Here for the Entire Article)
2 comments:
Good catch. I'm so glad to see you posting again. You were away too long!
Thank you for bringing this up. From the moment the story started swirling I was wondering if this wasn't a media created football.
Black, not Black? Blah, blah, blah,
I don't think the so-called Black Community is going to fall for this, one way or the other.
I may be wrong though.
Was it only the media who named Clinton to be "the first Black President"?
You know, the President who did what no Republican President could do no matter how hard they tried, Clinton destroyed what little we had of a welfare state. Little kids, you can go die now. You time is up.
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