Thursday, October 30, 2008

Why Race Won’t Hurt Obama on November 4th


Earl Ofari Hutchinson

Republican presidential contender John McCain got one thing right about Democratic rival Barack Obama. He told Larry King that he didn’t think race would be much of an issue in the final vote. As McCain put it only “a tiny, tiny, minority” will vote against Obama because he’s black. McCain was not just campaign bloviating to puff up his oft touted credential as a play it straight on race guy. The notion that because millions of whites passionately back Obama race is permanently off America’s table is more hope and prayer than reality.

Still despite endless and obsessive speculation that race could derail Obama in his slog to the White House it won’t and it probably never would have. Start with McCain and Obama; McCain made the personal and pragmatic choice not to make race an issue either directly or indirectly through code words, snide hints, and racial guilt by association attacks. When the Jeremiah Wright flap cropped up, he could have hammered Obama as a stealth race baiter. He turned thumbs down on that. Later when VP mate Sarah Palin and some others in his campaign were etching to unload on Obama-Wright again, he still said no.

That decision was not totally due to honor and noble intent. A too frontal racial attack would have brought instant screams of foul from Democrats, and millions of voters who demanded that the campaign be a clean, issues focused campaign. McCain read the political leaves correctly and saw the political peril in flipping the race card. The occasions that he slipped and rapped Obama as a socialist and a terrorist fellow traveler brought universal condemnation that he was going negative or worse running a dirty campaign.
Obama helped things even more. The firm message in his signature slogan of hope and change, campaign literature, TV ads, rallies, in pitches to contributors, his core of advisors, and major endorsers was that the Obama presidential campaign and an Obama presidency would be broad, non-racial and issues driven. Anything else would have instantly stirred horrifying visions to many of Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson. His candidacy would have been DOA.

But McCain and Obama’s best efforts to make race a non issue in the campaign would have fallen short without the sea change shift in public attitudes. The decade since the Rodney King beating, the O.J. Simpson trial, and the urban riots, has been a period of relative racial peace in America. During that time polls consistently showed that more whites than ever are genuinely convinced that America is a color-blind society, equal opportunity is a reality, and blacks and whites if not exactly attaining complete social and economic equality, are closer than ever to that goal. Though the figures on income, education and health care still show a colossal gap between poor blacks and whites, the perception nonetheless is that racism is an ugly and nasty byproduct of a long by-gone past.

The passage by huge margins of anti-affirmative action measures in California, Michigan, and Washington, was not simply a case of whites engaging in racial denial or a cover for hidden bias. Many white voters backed the initiatives because they honestly believed that color should never be in the equation in hiring and education, and that race is divisive.
It’s is easy to see why they believe that. "Whites only" signs and redneck Southern cops unleashing police dogs, turning fire hoses on and beating hapless black demonstrators have long been forgotten. Americans turn on their TVs and see legions of black newscasters and talk show hosts, topped by TV's richest and most popular celebrity, Oprah Winfrey.

They see mega-rich black entertainers and athletes pampered and fawned over by a doting media and an adoring public. They see TV commercials that picture blacks living in trendy integrated suburban homes, sending their kids to integrated schools and driving expensive cars. They see blacks such as former Secretary of State Colin Powell and his successor Condoleezza Rice in high-profile policy-making positions in the Bush administration. They see dozens of blacks in Congress, many more in state legislatures and city halls. They see blacks heading corporations and universities. And those blacks who incessantly scream racism about their plight are roundly reviled for feeding racial paranoia.
There is even some talk that the so-called Bradley Effect, the penchant for whites to lie to pollsters about their true racial feelings and vote against a black candidate, may actually turn into a reverse Bradley Effect this election. That’s that many whites will vote for Obama because he’s black. That notion is just as dubious as the Bradley Effect. But to even raise the possibility tells much about changing times and attitudes.

If Obama wins and that seems likely, race will be, as McCain says, only a tiny, tiny factor. That’s a tribute to him, Obama and the millions of America voters that were determined to make sure that race did not hurt Obama on November 4th

Earl Ofari Hutchinson is an author and political analyst. His latest book is The Ethnic Presidency: How Race Decides the Race to the White House (Middle Passage Press, February 2008).

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

U suc. Racist.

Anonymous said...

Jason Fullam
US Law Enforcement Park Ranger
Dept. Of The Interior
National Park Service
made these comments about President Obama in the policelink.com website

"I dont think it should come as any surprise to anyone that the POTUS will turn his back on Israel. Remember ALL muslims must answer the Jihad.
Just saying........"

http://policelink.monster.com/topics/81961-obama-tells-israel-to-go-back-to-1967-borders/posts?page=1This

梁爵 said...

戲劇《華燈初上》引發條通酒店打工熱潮,但酒店公關生活卻是 2021年未來大人物胡筠筠 真實版人生。解密真華燈人生系列,邀來胡筠筠與其創立的「娛樂公關經紀職業工會」理事、也是條通日式酒店媽媽桑席耶娜,帶著我們闖條通,揭開下海或上岸的神秘面紗。
19歲那年,胡筠筠開始在條通日式酒店上班,別人看似沈淪的「酒店小姐」
酒店工作、卻是解決筠筠北漂生活經濟與照護生病母親的出口。爾後的日子經歷台式酒店、經紀人、甚至成立了「酒與妹仔的日常」酒店應徵粉絲頁,還在疫情急迫下成立「酒店小姐經紀職業工會」,她靠酒店工作、卻不懼怕大聲說,筠筠努力對外發聲,希望真有那麼一天,社會能更多一點平等眼光來看酒店行業。
點亮的條通華燈酒店消費,是北漂無助的接口
影集《華燈初上》裡,承接酒店上班的蘇媽媽與剛出獄的Rose媽媽、帶著四處求職碰壁的更生人花子,為了求生計在條通酒店展開新的人生。世俗眼光裡,被視為的墮落、卻是他們的重生!
林森北路、條通,在台北繁華都市裡自成一格的神秘地區,是過往日本客人的異國溫柔鄉、是男性商務談生意滾紅塵之處,酒店工作在這短短的一條街、幾條巷弄中隱晦地流轉著。
那年18歲的胡筠筠,職科畢業後從中壢北上求職求學,學習廣告設計專業的她一方面要承擔學業學費、一方面也一肩擔起患有思覺失調症母親的經濟來源,在被沈重經濟壓垮自己前,筠筠透過朋友介紹,一腳踏入林森北路花花世界,在日式酒店工作當起酒店公關。
儘管沒有人教導、儘管規矩只能慢慢學,筠筠卻在當時的阿姨(媽媽桑)與姊姊(同事)之間學到日式酒店的規矩與明哲保身的方法。後來因為經濟需求、也因為日式酒店逐漸式微,筠筠又再兼職到台式酒店上班,從日式酒店學到優雅談話技巧、溫柔體貼客人的款待;再到台式酒店的閃酒與避掉酒客「手來腳來」的鹹豬手。
一開始還能以體力與賺錢精力支撐天天醉茫的生活,下午2、3點在台式酒店酒店兼差到晚上8點,接著再到條通上班到凌晨2點,台式一週3天、日式則是天天上班,休假永遠是補眠不夠、醒來永遠在解決宿醉……兩年下來筠筠身體終究也不堪負荷胃出了狀況,逼迫她要停下腳步休息一年。被迫停下腳步那年,筠筠的人生起了一些化學變化,她嘗試一面接設計案、一面考上保險執照後開始擔任保險員,但經濟壓力仍在,「我吃得飽嗎?媽媽吃得飽嗎?」的迫切需求依然日日緊追。有沒有能夠好好接住這些姐妹更安全的做法在酒店工作第二年,筠筠開設了「酒與妹仔的日常」粉絲專頁,一開始是為了讓酒店工作不再被污名化而設,但卻因為工作日日酒醉關係疏於管理發文。恰巧休息這一年筠筠有了契機重新開始發文,也讓她在書寫的逐字逐句間思考著。回頭望向這幾年的酒店人生,因為自己的警覺性高、防備心強,幸運地沒發生什麼遺憾與不好的事情,但其他姐妹、公關們面臨到百百款問題,酒店工作的危險、複雜、自身還債、想創業、到處找不到工作、未婚媽媽求職無方等,卻慢慢地讓筠筠心想,是不是能夠有另一種除了在網上發聲的方式,更能保護與幫助以及「接住」小姐們的方法?停下酒店小姐工作,她卻想著的是,好想捍衛這些不得已的人生。於是筠筠決定轉往酒店經紀人角色,過去自己與姐妹被無助對待、在酒店經歷的那一切風風雨雨、如何應對進退、如何能好好教導保護自己安全的訓練、經紀人與小姐之間經費的剝削化,這些都成了筠筠想解決與保護自己「直屬」小姐的課題。理念就是不想他們被騙、不想他們被坑、被欺負、給他們好一點的待遇、試著把工作正常化,上班時一有不對勁就會趕場「救」小姐,下班後小姐情緒沒有出口,還要擔任聆聽與抒發的角色,筠筠自己笑說,擔任經紀人,根本就是就是酒店公關「男朋友」的角色!除此之外,「酒與妹仔的日常」在志同道合的好姐妹一起努力下,開始對外發聲,第一場在輔仁大學公開的「真酒店文化」的演講,筠筠與6個酒店公關一字排開登場接受學生與老師的眼光,不是為了耍酷、也並不是因為酒店工作多好多值得驕傲,她們用自己的角色立場,說明每個人進入這個「工作」都是有原因與理由。與其他工作一樣,這就是一份勞動,打扮得宜、以溫柔與笑容與貼心來給予客人溫暖,如此而已。勇敢面對第一線聽眾,酒妹的講座開始大受歡迎,至今已經辦了近90場。後續更有以「酒聞不如一件」的酒店公關服裝設計秀,斜槓的酒店公關們創作17套服裝,衣服概念從小姐正常上班的禮服、小姐心情、小姐職場傷害、如何抵禦傷害等議題,依照自己生命故事做創作而展出的服裝,是衣服、也是刻在公關心裡的聲音。接著更有「酒聞不如二見」的活動,邀請民眾來擔任公關與客人的沈浸式體驗,活動內設有暗樁,許多劇情、意外之戲就在觀眾不知道之時爆出來,很多人甚至在當了一小時後就喊著好累好想放棄,直呼公關工作真的辛苦!
疫情下催生工會起而行向體制抗爭
除了軟性的「酒與妹仔的日常」對社會大眾除汙名化活動外,2020年疫情再度來襲、酒店又再度被停業時,筠筠邀集條通內更多元化聲音,如男公關、日式酒店媽媽桑等成員,短期內組成了「娛樂公關經紀職業工會」。工會的誕生讓他們更能有組織性地發起幫忙與請求社會協助,也在這群妹仔的努力之下有了反饋的效果,透過各方捐贈的物資,工會幹部們陸續把奶粉、尿布送到每個需要姐妹的手中,少量的金錢應援,也避免了時時刻刻擔心隨時要被趕出屋子的家庭免於受風雨受寒。那段疫情期間,儘管筠筠與幹部們流程也都不懂,卻還是努力搞清楚紓困程序,一個人一個人地專案解決,幫助了70幾個同樣被停業困住的人。條通的酒吧空間裡堆成小山的物資、工會成員們拉著露營推車穿梭在條通冷清的街道上,適時地送上一碗熱湯與物資、尿布奶粉,這是條通疫情第一線的寫實樣貌。