Apart from being handed a country that was a mess, President Obama is facing challenges that range from questions about his citizenship to rallies with placards that make sure that he’s painted as an Muslim outsider who has single-handily remade America (e.g. “I want my country back”).
Others simply portray him in Joker-White dust - reminiscent of face paintings in tribal ceremonies.
Ultimately, the goal of many of his opponents is to delegitimize President Obama by marginalizing and isolating him. To do this his opponents need to believe that he is not a citizen, and an outsider. This is necessary to cast him as an illegal alien (the Holy Grail of outsiders for those on the right).
These developments might be amusing if they weren’t so serious. Like Major League Baseball’s Jackie Robinson, who broke baseball’s color barrier in 1947, President Obama is being derided by many of his opponents because of the color of his skin and what he represents. The images they use are telling because of how they seek to cast him as a scary outsider, with scary policies, from Africa.
I bring all of this up for two reasons. First, because of former President Jimmy Carter's remarks today.I'm also bringing all of this up because of how all of this is so reminiscent of what has happened in America's past whenever change has knocked on our collective doorsteps. Like when Jackie Robinson was asked to play baseball for the Brooklyn Dodgers.
Recall, at the time, teams rebelled, with the St. Louis Cardinals even threatening to go on strike if Robinson played against them. Today, we find a not so dissimilar development.
Republican members of Congress have, in many respects, decided to go on strike too. Rather than legitimize President Obama’s policy efforts, they are taking their political ball and going home. They are simply saying ‘no” to everything of substance that President Obama proposes.
Jackie Robinson also became the target of rough physical play that all could see (especially when he received a 7 inch gash to his leg). In fact, Phillies’ manager Ben Chapman told his pitchers that whenever they had a 3-0 count against Robinson that they were to deliberately throw the ball at him rather than to legitimately walk him. Today, death threats against President Obama are up 400%.Then there was the game when Phillies’ players (and the manager) called Robinson a “nigger.” Today, Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC) felt it was appropriate to call President Obama a liar during a joint session of Congress (for a speech that he had read in advance). Worse, Congressman Wilson has no problem validating his actions - and stripping his apology of any meaning - by soliciting and accepting money because of what he said. My friends, any genuine act of contrition does not involve profiting from the stupid act, and then basking in the "support" that comes from said stupidity.
Others who played against Robinson yelled out that he should "go back to the cotton fields," among other slurs about his origins. Today, apart from calling President Obama a Muslim, many of his opponents also call for him to return to Kenya.
Look, there’s more to the Robinson-Obama parallel, but the fact is - as former President Jimmy Carter put it - outbursts like Congressman Joe Wilson’s are part of a larger and more disturbing reality in America. People are using very real issues to supercharge their anger, and taking it out on a man they genuinely want to discredit and delegitimize because of who he is. Jackie Robinson confronted the same challenges.
While anger at the "change" President Obama wants to bring has it's roots in an economy that was left in shambles by President Bush, many of those who oppose President Obama today are now concerned about what he represents. If it were otherwise, those who say they oppose President Obama on matters of policy and current events would have rebelled and hit the streets long ago during President Bush’s term, when he doubled our nation’s debt, wrecked our economy, and embarked on a Blundering Wars Project that will take years - if not several administrations - to resolve.
While President Carter's comments may not be welcome by the White House, they do remind us about our past, and about how far we still need to go. Still, if Jackie Robinson's experience is any indication, there is hope.
- Mark
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