If you have been watching television pundits talk about voters in this election, you have been watching a one-sided conversation. White voters are always described as Church Going Folk, Gun Toting Folk, Soccer Moms, Blue Collar Workers, Wine Sipping Elitists, White Woman Baby Boomers and NASCAR Fans. Black voters are described simply as..... well.......um.......ah...... Black Voters? Blacks are viewed as a monolithic race that spends a bulk of their time in Churches, Barbershops, Beauty Salons and any store that sells Barack Obama, Malcolm X, and Martin Luther King Jr t-shirts. Why do we only get the "barbershop vote" category, when white folks get so many to choose from. One of my childhood buddies played soccer back in the day. He was light skinned but still qualified as black. I have black folks at my church that hunt wild animals. They even asked my wife to come out with them sometime to hunt. She has a problem deer hunting, but geese and ducks are okay. Bambi touched her heart but Daffy and Donald get no love. There are plenty of black folks that have blue collar jobs. The list would be too plentiful to name if I sat here thinking about it. Don't get me started on wine drinkers either. Black folks drink more than just Thunderbird and Olde English.
Why can't we get some diverse categories too? Why do I have to be lumped in with 45 year old Tyrone, who is a first time voter because he thinks there will be a BBQ on the White House lawn if Obama wins. I have been voting ever since I was old enough to vote. I'm not trying to sound like I'm bragging, but all black folks don't look alike (except between the hours of 6pm and 6:15pm on the local news) and we don't all act alike (except on Def Comedy Jam). You have blue collar blacks, white collar blacks, church going blacks and ones that go to Bedside Baptist with Rev A. Larm Clock.
The media and the Hillary Clinton Campaign have dismissed us as Jim Jones-ish followers who have drunk from the Thelma Evans kool-aid and will follow Barack Obama to the end of the earth. Clinton will tell you that white folks are only voting for her because she is a rooting tooting, drinking, gun carrying, good ole girl. Laura Bush is from Texas and even she doesn't walk around like Calamity Jane 2008. Now you have Calamity Jane 2008 and Pecos Bill (formerly known as the 1st black President) running from state to state giving white folks the wink and nod about voting for the "big black man". He's not going to win, he is not "your" kind of people, he doesn't relate to how "you" live. Basically giving people permission to not vote for a black guy because well - he's black. Then they will tell you that blacks only vote for him because he is black. Also that black folks and uppity white folks are not a strong enough coalition to send a Democrat into the White House. That's really funny because black folks helped put Pecos Bill in office. He didn't even get a large percentage of white male votes when he was running for office (not that many Democrats running for President, do but they don't talk about that though).
After all these many years of standing by the Democrats in record numbers this is how black folks get repaid by getting played. This is another example of why we need an independent media view from a minority stand point. Sorry BET, but having Lil’ Jon interviewing skrippers at The Players Club on Middle Eastern Affairs won't cut it. We need a news program that can ask the questions that the "mainstream" media won't.
1) Why isn't the Republican Party attempting to reach out to blacks? This is the perfect time for the Republicans to reach out to black folks in order to change their image. Why won't they use the abuse and neglect by the Clintons as an example of why blacks should give them a look. They seem content of being the party of "white" men instead of a "multicultural" party. The world is changing and those that can't adapt will be left behind.
2) Why does Barack Obama need to pay off Hillary's debt? This is a dumb concept that must have been thought up by a crazed Hillary supporter. If Hillary Clinton is broke that is her own fault. She was the favorite to win this whole thing, but now she is the underdog. Voting on the war, feeling they were entitled, and poor planning is the reason why she is behind and almost broke. Hillary reminds me of a punch drunk fighter that doesn't know when to quit. She keeps calling herself Rocky but she isn't the Italian Stallion. She reminds me of Apollo Creed when he tried to fight Ivan Drago. Remember what happened to Apollo Creed......
3) How will the Democrats put all the broken pieces back together? I'm tired of all these pundits that want this campaign to go on. Are you people stupid??? This has been a very destructive process that has worn down both candidates. Hillary has looked more like a racist as the days go on and Obama looks like he has been rode wet and put up hard. After Obama won in the majority white states, Hillary has put the word out that white folks don't vote for Obama. The sad part is that some white folks are buying what she is selling. When Hillary is not drinking with the locals, she is crying that the media is sexist. White women have united behind Hillary's war cry and they are ANGRY! I haven't seen white women this upset since Ally McBeal went off the air. White women are looking at Obama as if he was O.J. Simpson with the knife and those Isotoners.
I was listening to a reporter talking to an African American minister and I could not believe what I heard. The minister said if Bill Clinton was on fire he wouldn't even give him a glass of water. A minister!!! When a man of God won't show you love, you are in trouble. My mother (a self claimed #1 Obama supporter) who was a Clinton fan back when he was in office has changed sides. I come from a family of Democrats that have supported the party since JFK was in office. In the living room, we have an autographed picture of my parents with Former Governor Chuck Robb. Usually when black folks have a picture of a white person it’s the one with the "white Jesus". My mother, who is upset with the way the Clintons are running the campaign is fighting back. She sent an email containing a letter for us to send to the Democratic National Convention complaining about the Clintons. It actually involved a court case that the Clintons are involved in that no one is talking about. I've seen my mother go head to head with a white woman before and it wasn't pretty. I don't worry about the Clinton supporters hurting her but I do worry about her hurting them.
Do you really think black folks will come out in large numbers if Hillary steals this election? Our voting record is already spotty at best. The younger voters of all nationalities (1st timers) will feel like they have been robbed as well. They might not come out to vote either. Black folks have been the backbone of the Democratic Party. When white men and women have voted against their best interests, blacks have stood by the party religiously. Don't dismiss us because you think we are small in number. Remember that they have local elections as well.
