Here are the percentages of the Black Vote that Democrats received in a few past elections:

2000 Al Gore 90%

1996 Bill Clinton 84%

1992 Bill Clinton 83%

1988 Michael Dukakis 90%

1984 Walter Mondale 90%

it looks to me that ALL Democratic candidates received about the same support from Black people that Obama is getting. True enough, we weren’t as vocal and passionate about them as we are Obama, but they still got our votes.

Just as many people are going to vote for McCain because he’s white. Don’t paint this as a one way scenario here.

“I bet a vast majority of his black supporters are ignorant inner city trash and lazy people that have this pipe dream that a black man will kick white people in the junk and change the country so white folks bow and kiss every black persons back side.”

Now my friend, that’s just what we’d call using racist language. Check that!

And once again, stop with the “smear campaign” of a) saying Obama is Muslim, or that b) being Muslim is a bad thing by putting in that Quran comment.

And Walter I respect you not wanting to say it, but I’ma say something because it’s important when it comes to assumptions about Jewish people. Just an fyi Daniel, Walter is Black, so yes, he’s all too familiar with what a Black person thinks about the issue, since he’s speaking from personal experience. That’s the thing about JVoices — our contributors represent a range of Jewish voices — meaning we don’t succumb to the stereotype that all Jews are white or Ashkenazi.

I gotta say, when Lieberman ran for VP, people wouldn’t stop talking about him being Jewish. I’m not getting how you’re saying barely anyone mentioned it.

And sorry, but air time, political speeches do matter, as much as, and sometimes even more than the “facts” as you like to call them. That’s why thousands of millions of dollars are spent in the arena of public relations, advertisements, speech writers, and more. Facts, statistics don’t reach people as deeply as stories, do. Speeches rooted in personal experience reach people. To say that it doesn’t matter is to turn away, or try to act is if, there aren’t massive swell of millions of people who have come out of the woodworks in support of Obama’s campaign. And that well, that’s a fact. Whether you like it or not, air time, speeches, they matter. They impact people tremendously.

And you misunderstood my Joe Lieberman argument. Its about double standards. There have been numerous arguments, debates etc about Obama being black and how it will effect the election. When Lieberman ran for vp, barely anyone mentioned that he was jewish.

What you see politicians saying on tv is, on many occasions, not what they truly believe. First Obama didn’t support money coming in from people because that was popular. Then when he realized that he would make more money, he quickly changed his mind. If anything, look at John Kerry’s campaign. He had more flip flops than a waffle house.

Air time, political speeches, etc don’t matter. What matters are facts.

Let’s leave my background out of this and stick to the article. But I’m glad you feel the need to engage this topic with so much passion–even to the degree of personal insults. I like that.

First of all, I never stated that Obama being black does not factor into why he gets the majority of the black/hispanic vote… in fact, i never posed any reason why he gets the black & latino/a vote. Rather, my entire point was simply that voting for Obama because he’s black is a relevant, and therefore legitimate, political reason to vote for him. Despite your assertion about blacks’ and Latinos’ identifications with Obama, the fact is that publicly, those same views are despised by many other Americans who consider them to be– as you’ve described me, ignorant and racist.

You have a number of erroneous assertions in your article, most of which are not worth my time. But the basic general thrust of your argument is not something, I believe, would be far from my position. However, I hope you do acknowledge that in the “real world,” statements such as yours, that “the reason I do not support Obama is because of his views, not the color of his skin,” are popular ones, sanctioned by the dominant discourse in this country.

But there are other discourses, and they are not, again–ignorant and racist.

People who say they’re voting for Obama simply because he’s an immigrant, or because he’s black, usually do not get much air time–even within the Obama campaign itself–but that doesn’t mean their discourse is irrational, racist or without foundation in the issues. But this is what many people contend. I mean, let’s be honest. What would people say about Obama’s campaign if he stood up and said, “Okay folks, you all should vote for me because I’m not white!”

If he did that–despite his having a valid political argument embedded in that reasoning–white America would drop him like a hot potato.

So there is nothing you’ve said in your response that addresses this fundamental problem I’ve mentioned here. And the problem grows out of an American tradition of electing officials, in rhetoric, on the basis of issues but, in practice, on the basis of race. (Your point about Lieberman only strengthens my argument about the relationship between silence and our nation’s racial polity.)

So again, I think you need to calm down and re-read what is actually being argued in my piece. I like your passion, but I think you need to stop being so reactionary in your responses. In the future, it will inhibit you from observing subtleties of intelligent conversation. I don’t make these assertions about dominant political discourses on the basis of whim and stupidity. In turn, I respectfully suggest that you not do so either.

Lets start off with your opinion that Obama being black does not factor into why he gets the majority of the black/hispanic vote. That is the exact reason why they vote for him. I don’t know where you were raised and where you live, but have you actually talked to a black or latino about why they support Obama? Have you asked them: “Why do you support Obama?”. I’m guessing you haven’t. I have. And do you want to know what answers I heard? Here is one:

From a Dominican lady at my work: “I support Obama because he is and immigrant and so am I. He’s black so he know how hard it is to grow in povery and in the ghettho.”

When I informed her that he was in fact half white, grew up rich and that immigrants cannot run for president, she was shocked. She “supports” Obama and she didn’t even know who his vice president is.

And that is just one of the tons of minorities that i have talked to.

Not to mention, that a very popular thing for Democrats to say to a non-Obama supporter is “You don’t like him because he is black”. And don’t even tell me that you don’t hear that all time. Cause that would be total bull.

The funniest thing is that when i am confronted with the line “You won’t vote for Obama because he is black”, i immediately tell them that i would vote for Secretarty of State Rice in a heartbeat and she is a BLACK WOMAN! 90% of the time they don’t know who she is, but thats a different story.

I like how you mention that Obama getting the nomination for president is “historic” and we should make a big deal about it. Well, i think you missed out, or maybe forgot about the 2000 election.

Joe Lieberman, in 2000 got the vice president ticket for the Democrats. As you correctly and incorrectly pointed, all the presidents and vice presidents before have been “White CHRISTIAN males”. Lieberman, as you and i both are, is a jew. And this wonderful country of America, Jews are much more of a minority than African-Americans.

So why wasn’t that made a big deal? Why wasn’t that “historic”? Double standards….?

The reason I do not support Obama is because of his views, not the color of his skin. I’m against abortions, i’m against an immediate withdrawl from Iraq, im pro-torture, I’m pro drilling, im against same-sex marriages (not for the reason that i dislike gay people, but because i have a problem with them adopoting children) and many many more reasons.

The problem with America and its politics is ignorance. There are too many ignorant people voting. People who don’t know anything about the candidate other than the color of his skin. People who do not read the news, follow politics or don’t even bother to do a simple background check on their politicians.

I hope i have enlightened you a bit and brought you down to the real world.

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