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My Turn Christine Donnelly |
What does Tiger Woods
have to do with Obama?The truth of Barack Obama's electrifying speech Tuesday at the Democratic Convention could be seen immediately.
Before the crowd's cheers had even died down, the pundits in the PBS NewsHour booth at the convention hall were effusive in their praise of the Illinois state senator's message and delivery.
But their words, no matter how complimentary, showed the deep bias minorities face in U.S. politics.
Obama, more than one said, reminded them of superstar golfer Tiger Woods. Tiger Woods? When did he ever give stirring oratory at a political convention?
Oh, I get it. Tiger Woods is part black and has an engaging smile, just like Barack Obama. They're both unifying racial figures.
But Barack Obama spoke about -- and speaks to -- much more than race.
Illinois state Sen. Barack Obama spoke yesterday at the New Jersey Delegation breakfast in Boston, the day after his keynote address at the Democratic National Convention.
That the white male pundits seemed unable to see past the man's skin color when reaching for an apt comparison was disheartening, especially when they were so clearly impressed by the speech.It was left to Gwen Ifill, reporting from the convention floor, to make the correct connection. Speaking to Obama after his speech, she told him it seemed he had gotten as big a reception as Bill Clinton had the night before. Orator compared to orator. Speech to speech. Not skin color to skin color.
But the racial references resumed when the microphone returned to the pundits' booth for a summary of the night. One historian predicted that Obama's stunning national debut would ignite a long-lasting political career, propelling him to even higher office than the U.S. Senate seat he now seeks. But syndicated columnist Mark Shields asserted that many politicians gave great convention speeches only to fade into relative political obscurity, rattling off a list of names to support his contention.
His central point -- that Obama has a long road ahead of him -- was correct, but his final stinging comment went unanswered as the show ended. Shields joked that Henry Cabot Lodge, one of the politicians he had mentioned, was "purebred."
And that makes Barack Obama what, exactly?
The man wows the crowd and is rewarded with pundits' ill-considered comments playing down his ideas and playing up his racial heritage.
Good luck in national politics, Barack Obama. You're going to need it.
Christine Donnelly is a Star-Bulletin copy editor.
My Turn is a periodic column written by
Star-Bulletin staff members expressing
their personal views.
