It's all about race for the White House

It seems there’s a Black and White Movement in America, but unlike in our country, it’s not out to impeach the president. Rather, it is all about race, where the color of one’s skin could determine the results of the Nov. 4 elections in the United States.

With just about three weeks left before the elections, the attacks have become more vicious and personal, with Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin taking on the role of attack dog with her scathing remarks against Barack Obama. Palin has practically branded Obama as untrustworthy, saying he “pals around with terrorists” and that Obama “launched his political career in the living room of a domestic terrorist,” referring to the ’60s radical Bill Ayers.

Obviously, the rhetoric of hate that has crept into the campaign over the last few weeks has caught up with a lot of Republican supporters. At a recent rally in Minnesota, a McCain supporter claimed he was afraid of an Obama presidency, while a woman said she could not trust Obama, calling him an “Arab” – thereby forcing John McCain to defend his opponent, saying Obama is a “decent family man” with whom he just happens to disagree with on certain issues. The Republican candidate called on his supporters to be “respectful,” and for all his efforts to tamp down the hatred, he got booed.

Obama supporters have been quick to take advantage of the issue, condemning McCain and Palin for encouraging the negative tone in the Republican ticket, accusing them of sowing the seeds of hatred and division. John Lewis, a veteran civil rights advocate and one of the three people whom McCain said he would consult in times of crisis, likened the Republican presidential candidate to ’60s segregationist governor George Wallace, whose inflammatory anti-black remarks incited the Ku Klux Klan to bomb a church in Alabama which killed four black girls in 1964.

No matter how much the United States pontificates about equality, its biggest problem continues to be racial discrimination. And although relations between the blacks and the whites have considerably improved since the days of slavery, the gap between these two races continues to exist, causing distrust, division and disparity in almost every aspect of American society – in politics, in education, in business and even healthcare.

In a survey conducted by the Associated Press, almost 75 percent of blacks said whites have too much influence in politics, with many saying that government authorities tend to pay less attention to complaints or requests if they come from a black person or community. Even employment opportunities are still largely determined by race, where white employers have a tendency to assign menial jobs to blacks regardless of the fact that they may have better qualifications than their white counterparts.

On the other hand, whites are resentful of affirmative action calling for fair opportunities to African Americans and legislation like the Equal Employment Opportunity Act because they feel blacks are given undue preferential treatment by prospective employers who are afraid of being branded as racists – a case of reverse discrimination.

Recent polls show Obama leading McCain by as much as 10 percent in numerous states. But still, the road to the White House is much more difficult for Obama because of the color of his skin. Whites make up more than 75 percent of the total population in the US, and whether Americans admit it or not, racial prejudice will continue to color policy and decisions, especially for critical ones like choosing who will be the next president of the United States.

Being the melting pot of all races, almost all kinds of ethnic and racial groups exist in America – Asian, Hispanics, Arabs, Germans, Italians. While discrimination may be displayed against all these “other races,” there is no doubt that the biggest disdain is usually directed against those of African descent.

But then again, racial discrimination is not unique to the US. Even in France where the concept of liberty and equality was born, there has been a growing sentiment of hate against ethnic minorities, particularly those belonging to the Muslim sect. In fact, even Filipinos harbor prejudice against other races, not only against people with dark skin, getting a lot of kick calling them names like “egoy.” It’s rather ironic that Filipinos get all inflamed when they are subjected to racial discrimination in the US, getting branded with terms like “yellow” and yet do not find anything wrong when they themselves indulge in ethnic slurs.

According to reports, a substantial number of the so-called hate groups – both belonging to whites and blacks and even Jewish groups – still exist in the US. The Ku Klux Klan, Aryan Nations, the New Black Panther Party, Nation of Aztlan, Nation of Islam, League of the South, White Order of Thule – these are just a few of the 888 active hate groups said to be operating in the US.

Perhaps Paul Sniderman, a political scientist from Stanford University, may have summed it up when he commented that even today in the US, racial prejudice continues to be a “deep challenge,” and one which most Americans are not ready to acknowledge fully, and that minority candidates like Obama may “pay a penalty for prejudice.” In a country that prides itself on justice, fairness and equality, it would be such a tragedy if in the end, color will determine the outcome of the race to the White House.

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