Just when I thought I couldn't like Barack Obama any more than I already do, he had to go and tell a bunch of black Texas Christians that if they support equal rights on the basis of race, color, religion, and gender, then they're being hypocritical if they don't also support equal rights for gays and lesbians.
At his rally in Beaumont, Texas yesterday, Obama was speaking to a crowd of mostly black Texans. As usual, the rally was going well - lots of energy, lots of excitement. Then, when asked about gay rights, he seemed at first to take the basic right-winger duck-and-cover of saying "well, there are things that shouldn't be the basis for discrimination." He gave examples: race and gender, both of which got cheers. Then he said sexual orientation, and the crowd did not cheer. They did not boo, either, but they fell silent and uncomfortable.
And he told them: And if you think that's wrong, you're not acting like a Christian. Making "gay" the "new black" isn't Christian.
That was a ballsy thing to do, hands down and no holds barred. Into the total silence that followed his declaration that discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation is no more right than discrimination on the basis of color or gender, he spoke truth to bigotry. He told this crowd: you can't be a dog-in-the-manger about equal rights. And you can't claim you're acting like a Christian if you do.
His response was perfect. He didn't just tell them that it was wrong, he told them why - in their own language, the language of their faith. He didn't trot out those tired old rightwinger chestnuts about being gay being a choice - he recognizes that in America, one's religion is a choice, and it's no less protected for being a choice. He didn't dodge the question with a non-answer or a platitude. He didn't duck and cover, or say "Well, everyone deserves rights, you know" and then quickly change the subject to taxes or the environment.
No.
He called them on it.
He looked them in the eye and said "You want me to support your bigotry? You've got another think coming. It's time to take a good, hard look at yourselves and think about what kind of people you want to be."
He didn't run away from the hard questions. He stayed with the subject, he followed it up, and he made his point clear to this black Texan Christian crowd: it's time to stand up for equal rights again - not just yours, but those of everyone who needs them and is denied them because of bigotry. There's no resting on your laurels, folks. You've won these battles, and it's time for you to back those who are fighting them now. As veterans, it's your duty and your responsibility to get in there with the people who are at the front lines and support them.
This is a person who puts his money where his mouth is. In this country he could face terrific fallout from what he said today. He put his chances for nomination on the line with that response.
He knows that. And he did it anyway. Despite the personal and political cost it might have for him, he did it anyway.
That's the kind of person I want in the White House when push comes to shove. He's the one who I want signing the bills that will give me my rights - and I know he will do exactly that.
Also, by standing up and speaking out on this topic, he's not just standing up for the oppressed. He's reclaiming Christianity from the bigots and the haters. He proves it every day - he's the real thing.
I want the real thing. Don't you?