Obama's Speech on Race: How It Plays

Note: If you haven't seen Obama's speech, you can access it through the Obama News gadget I've added to the left side column. That should also link you to the text, but if not, it's here.

The praise for Barack Obama's speech in Philadelphia on the subject of race is almost universal. But the tough talking pundits on cable news channels--who are basically the ones who fed the frenzy that made the speech necessary--now say yeah, we think it's great, but what will that white working class guy in Pennsylvania think?

It happens that within the white working class (or lower middle to middle middle class) in western Pennsylvania is where I grew up. It seemed to me immediately that there were several parts of the speech that will resonate, including one I haven't seen commented on in terms of how it will play with this group: Obama condemned those selected statements of Rev. Wright but he refused to disown his former preacher, in very strong terms. He was loyal, and that resonates. Loyalty is a prized virtue, especially within families and within communities, including "faith communities."

My testimony however is not the only possible evidence that this will resonate. In another and mostly more local controversy--his relationship and dealings with Chicago real estater Tony Rezko--Obama spent hours recently with reporters of the two Chicago dailies, answering literally every one of their questions. He explained to their satisfaction that he'd done nothing wrong or illegal, although he probably should have anticipated the appearance of conflict of interest earlier. He revealed also that his relationship with Rezko was closer than previously known--that they'd been friends.

The Chicago Tribune concluded that Obama's candor set a standard by which other politicians will be judged. But the columnist for the Sun-Times had an additional thought:

The second thing that struck me Friday had to do with loyalty. This could not be a more intense time for Obama as he slugs it out with Sen. Hillary Clinton for the Democratic nomination. And it arguably would be a fine time to throw Tony Rezko under the bus.

But Obama remains grateful that Rezko supported him in his failed congressional race against Bobby Rush when, given a relationship with Rush, it wasn’t easy. “That was loyalty that I appreciated,” the senator said.
And so Obama still calls Rezko “a friend, with the caveat that if it turns out the allegations are true, then he’s not who I thought he was, and I’d be very disappointed with that.”

So, candor — though delayed — gives us a clearer view. And friendship — tested but not abandoned — looks more like a virtue than a fault.

By speaking of white working class grievances as well as black, by talking candidly about all of these issues in relationship to his own life, background and experiences, by being calm and direct, and with that hint of emotion when he ended his speech with the story of Ashley, the young white woman who inspired an old black man, Obama connected. But perhaps the most direct connection was this loyalty. Every working class family I know of has had to deal with the frailties or bad acts or mistakes of family members or even views or "lifestyles" they don't agree with, and whether or not to "disown." Mostly nobody gets disowned, even if things aren't ever the same again. Families can't exist otherwise. This extends beyond the family in certain cases, like churches. Even when people can't themselves live up to the ideal, they prize loyalty like this.

The message is about more than loyalty, of course. It is about coming together despite our differences. It is a profoundly Christian message, though not exclusive to that faith or philosophy. It is a profoundly American message. It is an immensely practical message. It is Obama's message, which he embodies.


The question was also raised whether Obama's speech was too complex for the non-elites. Obama talked about what people talk about around the kitchen table. It's elitist to think that non-elites can't handle complexity, especially when it affects their own lives. My last time back home last spring, I sat at the table with family and neighbors and people related in a variety of ways, gathered to celebrate the graduation of one of my nieces from college. They were talking about alternative energy, especially as it bears on the problem of high gasoline prices, with great practicality and interest--without the sort of political slant that's inevitable when such subjects are aired in the media.

Obama's speech was framed inside a very practical message: we have to confront these racial issues to get beyond them, because ultimately we must all work together to concentrate on getting done what needs to be done for everyone. That's something everyone at the kitchen table can understand these days.

Obama hinted that it is among the young that race (like gender and sexual preferences) is no longer a powerful divider. He gave today's public--and the media-- the choice of continuing to dwell on fear-mongering distractions, or getting beyond them to confronting the crucial problems of now. If we don't confront them, and solve them together, we will be destroying the future of those young people, and their children and grandchildren.

If we elect this man as our President, we have a chance to confront the consequences of our own mistakes, misunderstandings and failures. If we don't, we will compound the failures of the past by failing to take advantage of this rare opportunity. And we will have failed the future--the future of my nieces and their children.