[lbo-talk] Obama & the white guys

[John Thornton]

I don't think this is hallucinatory.
I have heard this exact sentiment expressed by white male Republicans 
and conservative Democrats that I know.
I gather Glen Ford has also heard this from like minded white men.
Why is it difficult for Obama fans to believe that many white males vote 
for Obama because he reinforces their racist ideas about inequality as 
well as the idea that the "right" type of thinking is all that is 
required of minorities for them to get ahead? In a less than subtly 
coded way many of these white males will tell you this is so. Explain to 
me again why this is to be called progress?
Get large numbers of white males to vote for John Conyers, John Lewis, 
Barbara Lee or Maxine Waters and I'll go along with the idea that this 
demonstrates a lessening of bigotry.
I don't see a vote for Obama as demonstrating this lessening of bigotry 
however. Not as a lessening in bigotry from 25 or 30 years ago anyway. 
If the best you can demonstrate is that this is good news compared to 
the ways things were before 1973 why is this worth celebrating? We can't 
continue to celebrate the same victory for 30 years. It's time to show 
real progress or quit calling it even a small victory.

John Thornton

Max B. Sawicky wrote:
> Hallucinatory.
>
>
>   
>> Obama’s White Men: Do They Hear Something Blacks Don’t?	 
>> Wednesday, 20 February 2008
>> by BAR executive editor Glen Ford