Tuesday, September 02, 2008

Hold Up!

If Governor Palin was Black and her daughter was pregnant outside of wedlock the debate about her fitness to be the vice president of the US would be entirely different.

Black teenage pregnancy (Latino too) is often described in terms that ascribe racial dysfunction. The roots of Black teenage pregnancy, for example, is often blamed on the break-up of the family, absent fathers and, of course, thuggish brothers who are inherently irresponsible.

In the case of Palin's daughter there is hardly any of this kind of nonsensical assertions. Sharp shooter Palin is white and the white family is not described with such pathological concern.

Instead, her pregnant daughter made a 'personal mistake' for which she will take responsibility by getting married and raising the child.

No white person, anywhere, is implicated by her mistake. Palin and her husband's parenting skills are not questioned. The face of the father is not even known.

There is also not a word about the detrimental effects of Rap music or the fact that Palin's daughter dropped out of high school since becoming pregnant.

I agree that this pregnancy should not be the stuff of politics but Obama should hardly be applauded for taking this stance. It is, afterall, Obama who launched an attack on the Black family, and Black men in particular, in terms that support the racist imagery above.

I expect that Palin will face tough questions about her Christian values and her parenting values in the days to come.

Still, you know the fallout would be so different if Palin was Black.

Onward!

Picture Credit

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hey Ridwan,
Today the comments in the press were that these family issues show that Palin can connect with average americans. She has five kids, is a working mother, has a child with down syndrom and a pregnant teenager.
I don't see these as issues that connect her to all average americans. Will the right wing pundents hit her as hard as they have Michelle Obama?

Jon Stewart had a great line on his show where he poked fun at the press, they were demanding that she prove her love for america and in her speech she said several times how much she loved this country.

Jon said, So democrats have to prove that they love america and as for republicans, we all know how much they love this country, they just hate half the people living here!!

I thought that was brillant.

Later,
Kimberly

Dade Cariaga said...

Excellent calling out of the hypocrisies. All so very true!

Thanks, Ridwan.

Ridwan said...

*Hi Kimberly. Thanks for your comment. Thanks to Jon Stewart for calling the conservatives out.

I would think that they would be more worried about her role in an organization that seeks to seperate Alaska from the US. Is this a conservative value now?

I just heard snippets of Joe Lieberman speaking at the republican convention.

I can't believe that the democrats will allow him to campaign against his own party.

I'm down with freedom of speech, but the party should move to kick him out.

Peace Kim.

**Hey Dade. Thanks for your comment. Someone should ask them why they are so quick to look past the issue.

Is Palin fit to represent conservative values when she did not even know what was going on in her own house?

I have also read some speculation that the father of the child is not a teenager (24 years old). Don't know if that is true but it is amazing how his face is hardly known.

What a circus hey?

Peace Dade,
Ridwan

Anonymous said...

Joe Liberman is no longer a democract he switched parties to an independent. So he left the dems before they could throw him overboard. I think Joe has spent too much time with Bush and become hypnotized by his...what i am not sure. Ha ha!

Kimberly

Ridwan said...

Kimberly thanks for catching me up on Lieberman. I remember him as a democrat and not being impressed by him.

I did all I could to stomach his speech.

What did you think about Palin's speech?

Be well Kimberly.

Peace,
Ridwan

Anonymous said...

Ok, Palin scares the crap out of me see the article about her interview and that she basically says that if Russia invades Georgia then we should go to war with Russia. I am so sickened by her words and the incompetence behind them. She does not have the education of international relations to be vp.

http://news.yahoo.com/story//ap/20080911/ap_on_el_pr/palin_interview
Tell me what you think,
Kimberly

Ridwan said...

Kimberly you are right about the "scary" part. She has very little depth on matters of international relations.

I find it quite interesting that she thinks/thought that "Our national leaders are sending U.S. soldiers on a task that is from God" ...

And now says "I would never presume to know God's will or to speak God's words."

It is ironic that the architecture of her previous statement is not very different than the so called evil "Islamic Fundamentalists" McSame and company refer to.

What is most "scary" to me Kimberly is that McSame/Palin are in with a very good chance (better with each day it seems).

Obama is showing signs of stress. It is almost as if he cannot understand how he is losing voters to Palin (ABC poll shows white women moving to support Palin over Obama).

A big part of Obama's problem is that he started to believe the spin on democracy and America he has been selling for years now.

McSame/Palin are proving that many Americans relate to fear and race when it comes to who is the next president.

I trust you are well.

Peace,
Ridwan