Why shouldn't we look at race?
Bruce Easley
Issue date: 10/31/08 Section: Ed-Op
Any brown man, let alone a black man, has been stigmatized as a source of fear by the media; and fear leads to hatred, and hatred leads to anger and anger - unless stopped at the origin - leads directly to violence. And no matter how eloquently and clearly Obama pleads his case, many people will see Barack as nothing but a threat and will do what they can to protect themselves. For some, that's voting for McCain; for others, that's buying guns and plotting mass murders. Genocide.
Now let me step back a minute and try to put you in a black person's shoes. I will try to show you why we would and, for some, need to vote for Obama. Now I'm not saying that this is every black person's experience, but I am sure that it is shared by a lot of us. First, imagine going through life knowing that people hate you. Imagine knowing, every day, that people hate you and may hate you enough to end your life. Now, you've done nothing to those people and have no intention of doing anything, but for some reason, they still hate you. Now, you may be saying to yourself, this is a little extreme; but if you live with something your entire life, it becomes static to you, you get used to it. And imagine being bothered, but you know, no matter what you do, no matter how well you dress or how many degrees you have or how much money you make, you can't fight it. You might be able to ignore it or try to buy your way far away from it, but it's always there. Imagine hating yourself. Imagine hating yourself and the people that look like you. Imagine seeing your people being destroyed and destroying themselves every day on the news. Imagine living like that every day and not crying. Not because you don't care, but because you don't realize it, you've become complacent, or because you've simply lost hope or had none to begin with. Maybe it's all of those things. Imagine swallowing that every day of your life. Imagine seeing someone who has to do that every day and is in a position to do something about it. Not only for himself or herself, but for your entire people. Imagine seeing a light where previously there was darkness, and then that glimmer of real change being taken from you in cold blood. After a lifetime of self-hatred, fear, hopelessness…try to imagine hope. Hope not just for you, but also for your family, your community, your city and your people. Imagine being told you can't, you won't, you will never, boy, girl, nigger. Imagine finally seeing someone that will prove that not all of us are the same. But if we all must be the same, we want to be that guy. We want to be Barack Obama.
Now let me step back a minute and try to put you in a black person's shoes. I will try to show you why we would and, for some, need to vote for Obama. Now I'm not saying that this is every black person's experience, but I am sure that it is shared by a lot of us. First, imagine going through life knowing that people hate you. Imagine knowing, every day, that people hate you and may hate you enough to end your life. Now, you've done nothing to those people and have no intention of doing anything, but for some reason, they still hate you. Now, you may be saying to yourself, this is a little extreme; but if you live with something your entire life, it becomes static to you, you get used to it. And imagine being bothered, but you know, no matter what you do, no matter how well you dress or how many degrees you have or how much money you make, you can't fight it. You might be able to ignore it or try to buy your way far away from it, but it's always there. Imagine hating yourself. Imagine hating yourself and the people that look like you. Imagine seeing your people being destroyed and destroying themselves every day on the news. Imagine living like that every day and not crying. Not because you don't care, but because you don't realize it, you've become complacent, or because you've simply lost hope or had none to begin with. Maybe it's all of those things. Imagine swallowing that every day of your life. Imagine seeing someone who has to do that every day and is in a position to do something about it. Not only for himself or herself, but for your entire people. Imagine seeing a light where previously there was darkness, and then that glimmer of real change being taken from you in cold blood. After a lifetime of self-hatred, fear, hopelessness…try to imagine hope. Hope not just for you, but also for your family, your community, your city and your people. Imagine being told you can't, you won't, you will never, boy, girl, nigger. Imagine finally seeing someone that will prove that not all of us are the same. But if we all must be the same, we want to be that guy. We want to be Barack Obama.
Viewing Comments 1 - 2 of 2
Jim Jones
posted 11/04/08 @ 6:48 PM EST
Bruce,
Obama is biracial. He is as much black and he is white. So I dont know why you are claiming that he is black and shares the same experiences as you, or similar. (Continued…)
Marion Teague
posted 11/21/08 @ 6:11 PM EST
I am a "white" female. It is refreshing to read that the time has come when being honest about race is ok. I wouldn't care if our next president was purple so long as he was qualified for the job and was who the American people elected. (Continued…)
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