OBAMA

The Rev. Dana Prom Smith, S.T.D., Ph.D. (3/24/08)

When I heard a television commentator, a member of the chattering class, say that he thought Barack Obama’s speech on race was too deep and philosophical for most Americans, it confirmed my conviction that most commentators and politicians view most Americans with contempt. As I listened more, it confirmed another conviction that most commentators and politicians are ignorant, if not outright stupid.

In the first place, surprise and indignation at expressions and outbursts of black rage from black preachers in black churches indicates a disengagement from the black experience, like they don’t “have a clue.” The sorry tale of the oppression of blacks by whites, especially white-run governments, is evident in nearly all aspects of the American experience. The surprising thing to me is the abiding patriotism and grace of the majority of the black community, just as I am startled at the patriotism of the American Indian. When I see a Navajo family pile into a pickup truck with huge USMC decal on the back windshield, I wonder why they are so patriotic, especially after Kit Carson’s destruction of the farms at Canyon de Chelly and the tragic, forced march, the Long Walk, from Ft. Defiance to Bosque Redondo in eastern New Mexico which nearly destroyed the Navajo people.

I wonder how people, especially the chattering class and the corrupt class, cannot know these things. The black church has been the one place for blacks to express themselves, nearly every other venue having been closed off for them. As far as I am concerned, preachers like the Rev. Jeremiah Wright have been the whites’ best friend, and politicians and commentators had best listen to him and his kindred. He has something to say about contemporary America to which everyone should listen. Our problem is a lack of prophets speaking the truth. We’ve had far too many spin-meisters and mealy mouths.

Sen. Obama has been the first politician to speak to American’s great moral question, the race question, with understanding, without demagoguery, and with grace and truth. It is depressing how many of the alleged elite still don’t get it.

I tried to image either George Bush or Richard Cheney delivering such a speech, and I couldn’t. As a matter of fact, I felt like throwing up. Certainly not John McCain or Hillary Clinton. None of them have the grace, depth, or wit. They all represent the past class of second-class minds who have brought us to our current, sad pass. I’m weary of deceptions and cheap shots. Barack Obama has class and grace. It would be a refreshing change.