I am feeling a bit down this evening. The Cuomo thing, the Jesse Jackson Jr thing, now the quotes from Rep. Clyburn...that and a whole bunch of other things related to this has really started to get to me and I'm feeling a bit depressed about what should be an amazing, thrilling Democratic primary.
Perhaps this diary is also inspired by some sad news I found out today. My cousin's marriage is falling apart after just one & 1/2 years and divorce seems likely. I bring it up because it is an interracial marriage. I adore them both so much. The wedding was an inspiration to me. This is because, to be honest, a lot of my extended family here in Texas have not-so-subtle racist tendencies. I thought it could really be a turning point. The reception was amazing: black and white families together dancing in celebration of two human souls finding each other. To hear that today was a real downer.
So I just feel like saying something, if you bear with me.
People, as a part of our nature, are sometimes prone to say stupid things. Insensitive things in the heat of the moment or simply with poor choice of words. Antiquated expressions not realizing their decades-old roots in bigotry. Attempts to be funny that end up making the person sound like a dick. You name it. People are flawed beasts, and no one is above it. I am, without a doubt, no exception. But this does not define who we are, and it does not automatically mean there is a diabolical scheme at play.
This media age, with its incredible scrutiny to every word spoken anywhere, followed by endless piling on, can in an instant turn "upstanding citizen" into "racist/sexist bastard part of a scheme to play the race/gender card". Its happened before, it will happen again. I do not mean to suggest that there are no racists or sexists on the national political stage. Far from it. And I don't expect automatic forgiveness whenever something like this happens, either. We just need to be careful when we accuse, lest it tear us apart at the seams.
Look, I will be honest. Jesse Jackson Jr's words on MSNBC yesterday made my heart absolutely sink. After that, I could barely contain my fury that they were choosing to "go there" so blatantly. And I let my feelings be known on this site. But then I read Clyburn's quotes today, and it forced me to confront the true hurt and offense that African-Americans may have felt when President Clinton attacked Obama so harshly in NH and when Hillary said her dumb remarks about MLK and LBJ. I get it now. I do not for one second believe there is racist bone in their bodies, and neither should you. But they did briefly forget the hurtful power that words can have in the midst of a battle to win the primary.
We may be generally more evolved than your average wingnut, true, but we are also human. And there is a harsh truth we all need to confront: In this intense campaign between Hillary and Barack, it is clear that the scars of both racism and sexism can rather easily bubble to the surface. However, we cannot be torn apart by rampant suspicion of sexism and racism. This cannot be the legacy of the Hillary-Barack race. We must rise above it. And so we must, yes....trust each other a little.
Why? Because we are all progressives. We are here for the right reasons. We all want our country to be saved from the brink of disaster. We just have different ideas about who is best to take us there at this stage. And about who can beat the bastards. Thats it. Really.
Ultimately, we must come together. There can be no other option. If we don't, we defeat ourselves and they win once again.