Barack Obama Faces Racism We Are All Afraid to Face

The speech Barack Obama delivered today matters. It matters for history, for this election, and for race relations in this country. And most importantly, in light of questions of experience, leadership and direction for America, the speech demonstrates hat Obama’s candidacy is different.Here is a presidential candidate that takes on an issue instead of hoping it goes away. To directly tackle the issue of racism, and the remarks made by his pastor, Jeremiah Wright, and to defend his choice not to disown the minister when it would have been easy to disown him — this speaks volumes.

Think of 2002.Think of the fervor leading up to the Iraq War.

In 2002 the best political suicide could have been to be against the perceived fight against Iraq’s plot against the US, where American’s had been scared into thinking that Iraq and Saddam Hussein had been involved in 9/11 and the specter of a mushroom cloud coincided with the latest stories on yellow cake uranium.And no ths isn’t the kind of cake you put candles in.

Think 2002, then watch the speech again.

This is the same man who gave a speech against the war in Iraq. And this is likely the same man who’d deliver a speech against going into Iran, or North Korea, unprovoked.Some would want discount the 2002 speech and claim that he wasn’t in the Senate at the time so his position doesn’t really count. True he could not vote. However it’s not a large leap of faith to see that he wouldn’t have backed away from a no vote on the Iraq war, that he wouldn’t have been persuaded into going along with Bush and Cheney, just as he isn’t going along with the safe route in dealing with the issue of race.

A speech on race in the 2008 election as a Black man looking to become the first African American president of the United States, during a time where racism is rearing it’s ugly head - that’s not a safe speech to give.

Yet Obama delivered it.Now of course a political cartoon blog - and most times I try to be funny, or at least shocking, and to fill the posts with images instead of words.And so I apologize. This isn’t an issue that makes itself into funny lines and satire.

But I’m also hopeful that come November I’ll be able to pack up my pencils and paper, and put my energies to better use, once we elect Barack as the next President

And if we don’t, if we find the choice is between a Clinton or McClinton - take out futures on wood, lead and paper, because this cartoonist will be busy…very busy.

Best.

P.S. I must say, embedding a YouTube video into a Wordpress Blog has got to be the absolute biggest nightmare outside of certain politicians being elected. Incase anyone else has this problem, after turning off all visual code editors, remember, every single space has to be removed from anything surrounding your YouTube code or it’ll break apart in FireFox. AKKK!