Email Article

Printable Page

"Black Enough?" Who Is Obama Running Against?

By Kai Beasley
Black College Wire

Kai Beasley

Welcome back to our show and thank you for staying with us, everybody. This hour, an unprecedented African American voter turnout for Barack Obama might give the United States its first black president. The only thing standing in his way is Florida’s apparent inability to . . . Wait. This just in: Apparently, Obama doesn’t have the support of many African Americans. They argue that he’s just not black enough. I’m sorry, we’re going to interrupt this broadcast to bring you some common sense.

First, let’s take a look at the history of black presidents in America. I’m looking, I’m looking, I’m not finding. OK, there hasn’t been one . . . ever. So for those who argue that Obama isn’t black enough to be the first black president, I must ask: What is that conclusion based on? What criteria are you are using to determine who qualifies to be a black president? Is there not enough bling around his neck? Does he not murder the English language as efficiently as, say, T.I. or Lil Jon?

There is no choice here, people! It’s not like he’s running against Louis Farrakhan (who couldn’t get elected) or Jesse Jackson (who didn’t get elected), or. . . or . . . Eminem! It’s either him or Hillary Clinton, who despite her mad-crazy freestyle skills on the mizy mike, is actually a white woman. Not to vote for Obama because he’s “not black enough” is to say that Hillary Clinton or John Edwards is going to hold the interests of black America closer to heart than a black man, with black kids, who’s married to a black woman. How does that make sense?

I know the circumstances of the past have required us to look to white political leaders to take care of black political interests, but we can’t continue to do that, especially if there is an opportunity to change the balance of political power so it benefits us.

That said, we have to understand that finding a candidate who is going to represent only black America is not going to happen. America isn’t black. It’s a nation chock full of diversity, and it is a nation that needs to be represented on a diverse world stage. A black president can’t represent a singularly black America any more than George Bush can represent the Christian American ideal (or even Christian intelligence). We’re looking for a candidate who can change the way America is perceived, and there is no better way to accomplish that than with a president of color.

I am in no way criticizing those who don’t believe Obama is a good candidate because they don’t agree with his politics. Diversity of opinion is necessary to run a democracy. It’s what makes this country great. I am simply pointing out how ridiculous it is not to vote for the only black presidential candidate because he isn’t black enough. Especially when the rest of the field isn’t black at all!

This nation is undoubtedly in need of change, so why hinder it? Change is good, just ask 50 Cent (his name is a metaphor for change . . . get it? No? Nothin’? Tough crowd.) Obama is not some “Hollywood conception” or the “product of smoke and mirrors,” as TV One chairwoman Cathy Hughes has put it. Wait a minute, Cathy, you founded TV One! Your paycheck is a Hollywood conception! Obama is a real guy; a guy who has the capacity that no other candidate has — to bring change to a country that desperately needs it.

Kai Beasley is a senior at Emory University who writes a weekly column for the Villanovan at Villanova University. To comment, e-mail [email protected]

Posted March 14, 2007

With Community Support, Obama Can Win

To the editor:

I just read Kai Beasley's article and I agree completely. A great read.

I’m also African American. We all need to unite and spread the word about the potential of a Barack Obama presidency. We can’t let negative people (like the Al Sharptons of the world) poison the minds of African Americans against Barack Obama because of professional jealousy.

The chance to get Obama elected is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that we shouldn’t pass up. He’s got a real chance to win this thing. We don’t know when that will happen again. Sure, people like Rev. Jackson or Al Sharpton can run for president, but we all know they aren’t ever going to win. If the community throws its support behind him, Barack CAN win.

I’ve never met Sen Obama, but his speech in Selma was excellent. I encourage everyone to WATCH that speech. They can watch it on www.barackobama.com or C-SPAN.org. An African American president is our best bet to have our concerns addressed.

Spread the word. God bless.

Rose Thompson
Orange, Calif.
March 14, 2007

Was Mr. Spock "Vulcan Enough?"

To the editor:

Those of you who remember the old "Star Trek" series remember Mr. Spock, the science officer and good friend of Captain Kirk of the starship USS Enterprise.

Did you know that Mr. Spock was of a mixed heritage? His father was a full-blooded Vulcan named Sarek, but his mother was a human white woman named Amanda.

There are members of the Vulcan community who say: "Is Mr. Spock Vulcan enough? Can we trust him to be loyal to Vulcan values and to the Vulcan community? He may look like one of us, but that does not mean he is one of us. As a matter of fact, he looks too human. And he was hanging around that human Kirk a lot. Has he lost touch with his own Vulcan heritage? That fact that humans accept him means that is a bad thing for Vulcans."

People on Earth are saying, "That is stupid. Of course, Spock is Vulcan. He is very logical and articulate. If he gets into a pre-owned space shuttle and lives in a neighborhood in a middle-class planetary system, everyone can see those pointed ears and funny eyebrows and everyone would say, 'There is a Vulcan.' Even Romulans, who share a common heritage with Vulcans, all agree without exception that Spock is Vulcan."

But some Vulcans are saying, "Spock is not Vulcan. He is a 'human Vulcan.' We cannot call him just a 'Vulcan.' There is a difference." Other Vulcans say, "We honor Spock as an 'adopted Vulcan.'" Others say that Spock is hanging around too many humans and not Vulcans. Something is wrong with that." "How much logic (their equivalent for love) does he have for the Vulcan community?" others say.

"Human Klingons," people of mixed human/Klingon heritage, say, "We really feel for Spock. We get the same thing from full- blooded Klingons all the time. They say to us, 'You are not really Klingon' or 'You are not Klingon enough.' It makes us want to do the Death Yell to our ancestors. Some of us even try to hide our human heritage and pretend to be full-blooded Klingons just to avoid trouble. They will say things like 'Exterminate all humans,' etc. They don't want to be called in the Klingon language 'TennuS Klarg's' which is the human African-African equivalent of 'Uncle Tom.' And if you have even 1/16th Klingon blood, you are still considered a Klingon to humans." Who is to say who is "authentically Vulcan" or "authentically Klingon"?

If Spock ran for president of the United Federation of Planets, it would be a shame if all the other planets voted for him and not his own planet, which did not consider him "Vulcan enough."

Is he the "Vulcan" Obama?

Is that not logical?

Robert Oliver
San Diego, Calif.
March 20, 2007