Plainfield, as much as any town in America, has the kind of history of which Barack Obama spoke in his speech on race in America given in Philadelphia Tuesday morning.
That history includes the owning of slaves by some of its founding families for the first 150 years of the community's existence.
That history includes patterns of residential segregation that used to include covenants forbidding the sale of homes to Blacks or Jews, only finally formally done away with in living memory -- though one may wonder if it is gone completely.
That history includes patterns of segregation in the public schools to end which Charles Booker, the NAACP, and many, many people had to struggle.
That history includes the riot of 1967.
Yes, Plainfield is part of the shameful racial history of this country. To a great extent, the glories of the 'Queen City' were built on the shabby base of race, class and caste.
But Plainfield has moved on, as Barack Obama hopes that America can.
And I think that all people of goodwill in Plainfield share the same hope.
If Barack thought we would not have to have this conversation, he was mistaken. But he shows he is up to having it -- and leading it.
If, as I suspect, the Clinton campaign has been behind the sudden surge of stories in the media about Barack's former pastor, the now-retired Rev. Jeremiah Wright of Trinity UCC in Chicago, they may well be surprised by the outcome. If there was the thought that the endless looping of sound bites from Wright's sermons would deny Barack a foothold among 'blue-collar Democrats' (Clintonspeak for the Archie Bunker vote), this may well blow up in their faces.
The media have been busy trying to report the news and impact of Tuesday's speech. I have gathered a sampling at the end of this post.
Of the many observations recorded, two have caught my eye --
Covering the reaction to the speech in Obama's hometown, Chicago, the New York Times stopped in at a barbershop near downtown Chicago ('The Loop' to Chicagoans),I think Barack is right, it IS time for the past to stop happening over and over again.
[where] Manny Koop, a barber working just west of the downtown Loop, credited Mr. Obama with taking a political risk. Mr. Koop watched the speech while he cut hair. “It’s touchy stuff, it’s barbershop stuff,” he said. “A lot of people don’t want to address that kind of thing on national television, but he did and he did it well.”Maureen Dowd (I am partial to Irish redheads), writing in her regular OpEd column caught an Irish resonance --Obama’s warning about race in America was redolent of Eugene O’Neill’s observation about Ireland: “There is no present or future,” O’Neill said, “only the past happening over and over again.”
Plainfield -- though far from perfect -- is living proof that it can be done and that it is worth doing -- that "people can come together and say, 'Not this time.'"
America should thank Barack Obama for the courage to take on this conversation.
We will all be better for it.
Transcripts: NYTimes (as prepared) | WashPost (as delivered) |
Video: WashPost | Obama Campaign |
Star-Ledger:Washington Post:
- John Farmer: "Obama pleads for end to 'racial stalemate'"
- Editorial: "Obama's rare candor on race"
New York Times:
- News: "Obama Urges U.S.: 'Move Beyond Our Old Racial Wounds'"
- Analysis: "A Sensitive Topic at a Sensitive Moment, for Disparate Audiences"
- Analysis: "Speech Aimed at Diverse Audiences Draws Some Comparisons to JFK"
- Eugene Robinson: "Obama's Road Map on Race"
- Editorial: "Moment of Truth" -- "Barack Obama squarely addresses the issue of race."
- News: "Obama Urges U.S. to Grapple With Race Issue"
- Analysis: "Obama Chooses Reconciliation Over Rancor"
- Analysis: "An Effort to Bridge a Divide"
- Maureen Dowd: "Black, White & Gray"
- Trinity UCC, Chicago: "In Chicago, More Talk About Race After Speech"
- Editorial: "Mr. Obama’s Profile in Courage"
--Dan Damon
View today's CLIPS here. Not getting your own CLIPS email daily? Click here to subscribe.
Posts
0 comments:
Post a Comment