As seems to be the case lately, I'm writing as I fly home from somewhere. This time it was the south. Well, not TRULY the south, but a small town in northern coastal Florida called Titusville. (it's not like I was in Alabama or anything). If there's anything I've come to learn about small towns (southern or otherwise) it's that they're usually filled with sweet, genuine people who would give you the shirt off their backs. Those same people, however, are often deathly afraid of change...not to mention the unfamiliar. Now, before anyone who's from a small town starts firing off hate mail, I know that what I've said is a generalization that isn't necessarily true of everyone in said bergs.
But one startling example of this was brought to the fore when I made the mistake of talking politics with someone I thought was somewhat progressive in his world view. After all, he's more than ok with gay folks, and seems to have a live-and-let-live attitude for the most part.
Anyway, I started out by asking him what he thought about the upcoming election. He mentioned favoring McCain, which made me ask what would make him a good candidate. He wasn't really able to come up with any true positives...and then paused to ask me
"Well, you're not gonna vote for that ni**er, are you?"
After I'd collected my jaw off the floor, I explained that, yes, I was going to vote for the most viable and intelligent candidate...which in my opinion is Obama. He went on to spew rediculous vitriol about how "they" were gonna be blasting rap music in the white house and trying to take everything from the wealthy white folks and give it to the black folks. (Can you tell he's a republican?)
I found myself raising my voice and getting angry when he started blaming the democratic congress for our current economic quagmire. I explained that if his buddies in the white house, and the previous republican congress, hadn't de-regulated the banking industry then we wouldn't have had the sub-prime loan quagmire that led us here.
It only got worse from there, especially when his girlfriend joined in with even less informed wild ideas about a black president...who she still thinks is muslim. I tapered off the conversation, and made a mental note to NEVER discuss politics with said individuals again. EVER.
More than anything, all this showed me that those of us who consider ourselves progressives, and want to see Obama elected, have a VERY uphill battle to fight to het him there. I had hoped that most of our country might be ready to move on and put someone of color in the white house, but I'm still a bit unsure of that.
Monday, June 16, 2008
Why I'm scared about the upcoming election
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7 comments:
Ouch! I've so been there.
They are sweet until you cross their limited view of existence.
I still think Obama has a good chance of winning but as you said, we need to all get off our asses and vote.
You were much more civil than I would be.
Well, Homer, it helped that I was staying in his house that night...LOL
After moving to a suburb outside Chicago, it took my two older sisters almost five years of constant dinner-table nagging to get my Oklahoma-born parents to stop using that word. People still hate each other because of skin color, amazing. What could possibly be more tired? Oh right - hating gays. I almost forgot.
it's so sad that people still think in terms of race. and then to make it worse, generalize and compartementalize the race issue (e.g., rap in the white house etc).
you were far kinder than i would have been.
wow.
Saying the "N" word is still very common in the South. I don't say it, but I hear that at work in an office full of white country folk.
Of course, my Boss (Dad) loves to call anyone he can't stand a "cocksucker". Hey, that's a slap at me! I just shake my head.
I am scared because I have to just stand back and watch it all unfold and offer what support I can to those that are fighting that "up hill climb!"
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