Men and Women.
Blacks, Whites, Brown, Yellow, and what have you.
Gay and Straight.
They are all human beings, and are therefore equal.
It is the guiding principle of my life.
For I view all human beings as just that: You are a human being.
And that means that not only can whites and men be President, but also that an Asian can be President, an African American can be President, a Hispanic can be President, and a Woman can be President.
Indeed, I reserve my most severe animus towards those that deny the equality of any human being. I do literally hate those who preach bigotry, whether it is racism, sexism, or discrimination against homosexuals. For I view them to be literally evil. I believe in God, and I believe he created all of us, and he (or she or it) did not give it a second's thought as to the color of our skin, or to our gender, or to our sexual orientation. God put us all on this Earth together, and we are all his children. And thus, if you deny that basic equality, you deny God, in my view.
Now, whether you believe in a God or a Creator or not, you understand my basic point. We are put here equal. And if you deny that, you deny humanity. You deny a basic morality that exists innate in all of us. A humanity that exists when you watch children of different backgrounds and races and status play with one another, unaware of their parents' prejudices.
There has been a lot of talk recently about how we should not devalue West Virginia or any state, like Indiana or Pennsylvania wherein a pronounced racial animus was voiced by some against one of our candidates, in this case, Barack Obama.
You have all heard the quotes.
"Hang that darky from the tree."
"I will never vote for that black man."
Screams of "N*gger" at Obama supporters.
And earlier in the campaign, we experienced overt signs of sexism in New Hampshire, where some where screaming at a Hillary event for her to iron their shirts. Indeed, there are some who would never vote for that woman, simply because she is a woman.
Yes, we should not devalue whole states or the populations of those states because some of their citizens voice these evil sentiments.
But I will sure as hell devalue those citizens because of their sentiments.
Yes, if you are a racist or a sexist, or a bigot, if you degrade and devalue another human being simply because of the color of the person's skin, their gender, their sexual orientation, or their ethnic origin, then I will devalue you. I will disrespect you. And until you reform, I will not forgive you.
Racism and intolerance is not a problem that needs to be pandered or catered to.
It is a problem that must be both ignored and destroyed.
Those voting their prejudices deserve no respect, no quarter, and no place in the Democratic Party.
Yes, West Virginia does have a place in the Democratic Party.
So too do Indiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Tennessee, New York, Massachusetts, California, Georgia, Oregon, Montana, Delaware and all the rest of the united States.
All states, all cities, all towns, and all people have a place in the Democratic Party.
All people, regardless of their gender, their race, their orientation, or their religion (or lack thereof) have a place in the Democratic Party.
Bigots have no place. Not only in the Democratic Party, but on this planet.
I will never excuse prejudice. And I will not accept the support garnered as a result of their prejudices, whether in part or not. Nor should any supporter of Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton. No supporter of either candidate should be proud of the support of those prejudiced. Instead, they should be ashamed.
For to accept that support means you surrender a basic principle of equality and humanity. You surrender a part of yourself. Since you are accepting the support of a person who considers another to be unequal, not because of anything a person has done, but because of who that person is, then you embrace inequality.
Yes, just as Obama cannot be impugned by his associations with the Rev. Wright or Bill Ayers, so too supporters cannot be impugned by those who support their candidate because of their prejudices. But they cannot celebrate it either. They cannot use it as a talking point. They cannot argue for the nomination based upon it. You cannot speak about a racial divide being a reason FOR your candidate to win. This applies to both Obama and Clinton supporters.
And you cannot complain in racial or gender terms. Already, I am hearing that some Clinton supporters will be energized because of the Edwards endorsement of Obama, because it brings back the notion of two men ganging up on a woman. But if you complain in those terms, you give legitimacy to the notion that women can be ganged up upon. You devalue Hillary Clinton as just a victim, when the truth is, as a person, she is quite impressive and strong. She is far more courageous and energentic than I can ever hope to be. She is a leader, and it has nothing to do with the fact that she is a woman.
The same applies to the Obama supporters who complain about racist voters not voting for the black candidate. For when we do that, we not only give voice to those racists, and allow catering towards them to take place, but we also devalue a courageous man, who has been an inspiration to millions yearning for change and hope, into nothing more than a victim and a black man as well.
We all know that Hillary Clinton is much more than a white woman, and that Barack Obama is much more than a black man. Why reduce them to that by complaining about racism and sexism?
And why give legitimacy to those who must forever and always be considered illegitimate and evil.
Equality is all of our responsibilities. It is a principle that needs constant nourishment.
It is time we give it.