The statements made and recorded by Pastor Jeremiah Wright, friend of Presidential hopeful, Senator Barak Obama are now the subject of intense public debate and serious concern. It is clear that Pastor Wright has serious issues against White America. And these issues and the statements he made cannot be ignored. Not by Senator Obama and certainly not by the voting public.
There is no doubt that Senator Obama is a voice for change. He is a talented, forward thinking, and highly intelligent man. He knows (as we all do) that this nation is in dire need of a new vision. And it is my solid conviction that he could be an excellent President.
In our hearts we all want to trust him. However, in trusting him, we want to make sure that his vision for change, includes all people. Two months ago I was in a Doctor’s office for a routine checkup. There was a TV in the waiting area. There were about six people in the waiting room. All except for me were White Americans. We were all watching Barak Obama doing a televised interview. I was amazed to hear everyone in the waiting area (all white people) support the Senator. One woman stated that “she might vote for him.” There was a man who told me that, “Barak reminded him of Bobby Kennedy.” I wonder how these same people feel now.
As a black man, I am not happy with the statements made by Pastor Jeremiah Wright. And if those statements are the views held by Senator Obama, then he is certainly not the President we need and I will not and cannot vote for him.
Certainly racism is not dead. But it has been mortally wounded. Just look at the incredible success black people enjoy in almost every field. The highest paid entertainers and sports figures in the world are black! One of the top scientists in the world (the brilliant Neil Degrasse Tyson) is black.
We have great military and political leaders like Colon Powell and Connie Rice. And we should be proud of the efforts of white Americans, who fought and struggled to make sure that people of color enjoy the freedoms and prosperity so evident in our modern society.
