| By Ali M Latifi - Jan 24th, 2008 at 10:25 am EST |
I am in no way denying this man the right to set the record straight on his background, but I can't help to find his constant re-assertion of his Christianity as slightly disconcerting.
Yes, Barack Obama is a Christian man who deserves the right to be represented correctly in the media and campaign trail, but by constantly re-asserting his Christianity without a preface equally asserting that Islam and the extremist ideals that have been attributed to him in the EMails are non synonymous, Barack is doing very little to dispel that very stereotype.
Statements like "Barack has never been a Muslim or practiced any other faith besides Christianity," do not do enough to clear his name and to assert that Islam is not inherently evil, anarchist, or destructive - it is an easy way out, not the correct one.
In the EMails it states that Barack "was sworn into the U.S. Senate on his family Bible," again, its fine on the surface as a statement, but a rumor that he was sworn into the U.S. Senate in January of 2005 with a Qur'an could have been a perfect opportunity for him to re-enforce the idea that anyone of any faith (or no faith) can hold U.S. political office and that they have the right to be sworn in with the text of their faith, whatever that may be. This simple statement would go very far in advancing his rhetoric of hope and change to many people who feel they cannot hold political office because of their race, religion, or the general inaccessibility of the exact kind of Washington politics Obama and Edwards both claim to stand against.
Barack Obama has no obligation to be the poster child or adamant defender of Islam (especially since he is a Christian), but as someone who espouses hope and change throughout his campaign Obama can use these false rumors to try and change the discourse surrounding Islam.
By not stating that even if he were to be a practicing Muslim it would not make him a diabolical and evil man or that Islam and a refusal to pledge your nation's flag are not inherently tied, he can be seen to be helping to perpetuate that stereotype - even if it is entirely inadvertenet and unintentional.
Also, as some have stated such a strong statement which he has re-iterated in this mailer to South Carolina voters, against these rumors can be taken as stating that Obama has something to hide and may in fact be what the EMails claim.
Either way, the man is treading very dangerous waters.
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Secondly, I really disagree with your argument. I do see your point that Obama is in the position to take a stand against religious intolerance and to extend his message of "hope" and "unity" to people of many faiths. That said, he's a candidate for a primary race right now. He's also trailing in some key states. His window of opportunity is closing, and he has limited opportunities to get his ideas and his message out.
On top of that, there is a concerted effort from various parties, on both the left and the right. to put out disinformation about him to the public. In addition to getting out his positive campaign themes, he has to combat misinformation including everything from things he didn't say, exaggerated affiliations with crooks in Chicago, and, yes, rumors that he's Muslim. The site/page you refer to in your article wasn't put up to respond to rumors about his faith, it was put up to respond to a full slate of lies, distortions, and rumors that are dogging his candidacy. I think it responds to the Muslim rumors in a respectful, factual way. It does the same with various other distortions and lies that are being put out to hurt his campaign.
If he was already in office, I'd expect he could respond to such rumors in a better, more embracing way that refutes them but challenges the implication that being Muslim is something Americans should be ashamed of... But Obama doesn't have that luxury. His words and ideas during crunch time in a close primary get distilled down to soundbites and quick headlines. More than anything else, he needs, as best he can, to stay on the messages that will win him the nomination. In short, he can' afford to get bogged down right now trying to "change the discourse surrounding Islam." If he were to win the nomination, and the Presidency, I'd hope and expect that he would try change the discourse on many issues that plague this country, including religious intolerance. But for now, he's got 99 other problems...