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Published: November 3rd 2008
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I'm sitting here in Streatham Hill, London, England, a few thousand miles from Yeehaw Junction, Florida, Cut and Shoot, Texas and even further from Truth and Consequences, New Mexico. I've come to realise that i've a bubbling sense of nervous anticipation, butterflies almost, about the upcoming US elections.
Why? Well there's an African-American man within a hop, skip and a jump, not of an Olympic medal, but of the Oval office. What the fuck. Has America (fuck you) lost its mind? In a good way of course. Maybe it's as Chris Rock said when asked if America was ready for an African-American president "It's ready for a retarded president, why wouldn't it be ready for an African American president?"
Have the small minded folk that form the stereotypical majority of the You Ass Ay, really seen beyond Obama's skin colour to the man. Is it policy and presentation that's brought him to the precipice or is there something else at work here? For a man who, 50 years ago, would have been barred from using a lunch counter or men's room on account of his skin to be close to being the leader of the 'free' world is miraculous.
Is it a big shout out and big up to the American dream? Should we be applauding such a turn around or just saying, 'too fucking right'!
Is the fact Obama is a black man promoting 'Change' just what a country, disillusioned by economic woes and ongoing blood letting in foreign lands, needs? Thinking about it, the tagline 'Change' seems obvious but at the same time it's genius. A slick neuro-linguistic programming trick where 'Change' covers any platform or point of view that's not what went before. Anything that isn't the bullish attitude and policy that has led to America's loss of ascendency. 'Change' is the fruit borne of seeds of doubt sown in the American psyche by 9/11 and Eye-rak. 'Change', however big or small, is everything, if it appears that god might have moved on to bless some other 'worthy' nation.
It seems to me that race hasn't been as much a discussion point as it might have been over and above the Reverend Wright fuss. I wonder if the lack, or avoidance of focus, is political correctness or simply because it isn't an issue. I suspect the former. On the conservative side is it a
desire not to be seen to be campaigning on or, of making the choice about race. On the liberal side it's not wanting awaken the racism of the just-below-the-surface-bigots: the mainstream conservatives don't say anything for fear of being called racists and the mainstream liberals don't say anything for fear of alerting racists to the elephant in the room.
For both the closet and outed racists, does the fact his father was African give him a pass. Is not being the descendent of a former slave an advantage: not being part of america's twisted racial history? Is the fact his mother is white of benefit? There's at least two sides to that coin. Being 'half' white means he's not 'too black' and scary to small town mentalities. Conversly the 'old' slaveholding mentality was forged by notion of the threatening, base, physical, black man corrupting the purity and innocence of the white woman. As a child of an 'interracial union', is Barack's candidacy a sign that the majority no longer baulk at the idea or at least have forgotten to baulk about it. It's more likely, I think, that his mixed heritage is a non-issue given that 1+1 in this
case equals 3. That's to say black+white=black. This shines a light on another 'given'. That of society kind of defaulting mixed-race individuals to their non-white racial heritage. Why is Obama, potentially the first African-American president and not the potential next white president?
Back to my butterflies. Really, if Obama does get in, I fear my nervous aniticipation, of what can only be called a momentus occasion for America (fuck you), will be for nought. Can one man who talks of change, actually change much in reality? Perception, perhaps. But can he address the inequality in the 'greatest nation in the world'? Will 'god' bless America with an outward facing attitude that encourages inclusion, collaboration, tolerance, consensus? Is the notion of America (fuck you) as the world police/bully, one which the country under Obama can leave behind and replace with something else? Could he lead the march from 'might is right' to 'might is insight'? Could a more pensive, cerebral, dove-ish administration marshal the necessary elements of the power structure? In a status quo where nations perceive America to have wealth, resources, influence and military might these nations will of necessity, be fighting their corner for a sliver of America's
pie. A pie that America, under any president, likes the taste of.
Here's hoping that, come Wednesday morning, the prospect of 'Change' will rise with the sunshine. Let's then hope that change materialises into something more than anticipation of better things, into something tangible for America's future and the many futures tied up with it.
p.s. Fuck Bush, fuck gun-toting wild-west attitudes, fuck ignorance, fuck self interest to the detriment of everyone else. Viva la evolucion! Long live success and uplift for all people. Hopefully we can soon start barracking Obama instead of Bush!
Quotes from Chris Rock:
"..George Bush has fucked up so bad, he made it hard for a white man to run for president! People are like "give me a black man, a white woman, a giraffe, a zebra...anything but another white man! That last one fucked up my roof!""
"...We're not just voting for him 'cause he's black, we're voting for him 'cause he's black and qualified. That's why we're voting for the motherfucker. Yeah. That's why we behind him. It's not like we're voting for Flavor Flav. "Yeeeeah, boooooy! Flavor Flaaaav!" Hey, I love Flavor. Lovin' him for 20 years. I love the "Flavor of Love" show; I think it's quite entertainin'. But Flavor Flav must be killed. In order for black people to truly reach the promised land, Flavor Flav has to be shot. These are important times! We got a black man runnin' for President! We don't need a nigger runnin' around with a fuckin' clock around his neck and a Viking hat on his head! "Not this year, Flav, put a suit on! Nigga, put a suit on!""
"..Barack Obama! A black man! With a black name! I know that ain't that black here, but in America that's about as black as a name could get. Barack Obama! That's right next to Dikembe Mutombo. That's right. Barack, man, he don't let his blackness sneak up on you. Y'know, if his name was Bob Jones or something, it might take you two or three weeks to realize he black. But as soon as you hear "Barack Obama"...you expect to see a brother with a spear! Just standin' on top of a dead lion! Barack Obama!"
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