Assalamu alaikum / greetings, when I listened to Obama’s speech on race a couple days ago, a phrase struck me, which I’d wanted to blog about (yeah I know that sounds convenient now), however, sometimes I need time to process things, and at that moment, I was focused on “race”. And so I didn’t mention it then, besides, I just thought I was being a bit oversensitive, as I’m wont to do at times.
But it was his use of the “radical Islam” phrase, I mean, it just hit me like a ton of bricks. I think, perhaps?, though I can’t remember now, he was talking about Israel? I don’t know, and I’d have to go back and read or listen to the speech and truthfully, I just don’t feel like doing that now. Besides, the phrase “radical Islam” just made me forget about everything else surrounding it, and I just thought “oh it’s radical Islam again”, never mind all of the other stuff, the bombing of innocent civilians, the oppression of people, the taking away of their land (oh we can’t talk about that). It’s those darn “radical Muslims” if they’d just go away everything would be fine. I just couldn’t believe he even put that in a speech dealing with America’s racial issues.
Anyway, Umm Zaid said it better than me anyway.
I’m thinking that while Obama is uring us to look our (meaning America’s) race problem squarely in the face and come to terms with it, perhaps he should apply that same strategy to the Palestinians, I mean, it ain’t all because “them there Palestinians” are just a bunch of “radical Moo-slims”. Maybe they have some actual grievances, perhaps the Israelis commit atrocities too (oh shudder the thought). I mean, human rights abuses aren’t just committed by “a-rabs” or “moo-slims” or whoever it is we (meaning the American government) don’t like today. I mean, we knew Saddam was gassing his own people, we knew that the Taliban was oppressing women, and what about the African dictators America was either propping up or assassinating (or at least was aware of other countries’ assassination of African dictators). Reminds me of an HBO movie I saw a few years ago about Patrese Lumumba and the scene where the Belgians are plotting his assassination, and there was this American CIA guy there, and they bleeped out his name (ya know ’cause someone in the government didn’t want his name mentioned, and I gotta see if I can find the article I read that talks about that). But anyway, when I saw that scene, I literally screamed! And started to cry, because right there, for me in living, er, well, right there on TV, was a depiction of the US government’s complicity in the assassination of a duly elected leader of a sovereign nation, who we didn’t like because he called in the Russians to help him with a dispute he was having.
And yet, many want to become upset at what Jeremiah Wright was saying? Well, what, in actuality did he realy say?
Is it really so bad to say that, yes, we love our country, but some really horrible things have been done in our name? And I know why Obama can’t be all pro-Palestinian, and I can understand why he has to distance himself from Jeremiah Wright’s comments right now, but, uh, well, I get the feeling that he’s hatin’ on a fright right now, and he’s doing it for political expediency. I’ve often wondered to myself how the ReverendWright is feeling, to seemingly be thrown under the bus for political expediency?
Perhaps it’s not that bad, however, at least Obama is trying to have it both ways, to distance himself from Wright’s comments, on one hand, but still call him “just like family” at the same time.
This doesn’t take away from Obama’s speech, because IMHO, this was a “conversation” that we as Americans have been needing to have for a long time. However, if we’re going to be honest about one thing, let’s be honest about everything.
Obama, imho, the lesser of evils among the three candidates running for President right now, but as long as he keeps referring to “radical Islam”, every chance he can, it gives me pause when I decide to vote for him. The same for how he talks of the Palestinians, like everything is all their fault and the Israelis are all just sweetness and light.
As I’ve said before, I really like Obama and want to support him, yet these nagging issues with him won’t let me go. And him slipping in that “radical Muslim” phrase just made it worse for me. I wondered what his Muslim family/friends thought of that? I wondered if he embraces his Muslim family members the way he embraces his family members of differing races? And then I thought, “what does he mean by radical Islam/Muslims”?
And I’m going to ramble again, so I think I’ll stop. I’m just writing now. Oh and btw, maybe I’m a radical but when I listened to Reverend Wrights comments in context and in their entirety, I find myself agreeing with many of them. So what exactly was it that Obama *didn’t* agree with? Can someone tell me again?