Reply #42: I don't think it's racism, it's religious brainwashing.

[Lucky 13]

See I don't think they would ever vote for ANY democrat EVER for ANYTHING. The main thing that disqualifies him is that he's a Democrat and he's "liberal".

Now that's not to say they don't have underlying racist sentiments. It's right there, beneath the surface if you look for it.

If you asked them straight up if they are racist they would be really offended and will vehemently deny it. They "have black friends". There's some black fundie preacher they are all into. Two of their favorite politicians: Alan Keyes and JC Watts. They have said they would love to see JC Watts eventually run for President. So at least under certain circumstances they would not have a fundamental problem with electing a black president.

I've considered that some small voice in the back of their head may be whispering, "Maybe Barack Hussein Obama is a Muslim!" And man do they hate Muslims. To them Islam is in inherently violent and evil and must be stopped. But I don't think they believe he's a muslim. They admit that many other Christians know him to be Christian, that he professes to be Christian, etc. And they very much acknowledge and respect people from other cultures who "come to Christ". They would consider it morally reprehensible to reject a Christian based on their skin color. Once you are born again, you are a brother in Christ. Period.

But to them IF Barack is a Christian, he ain't really living it, because if you are REALLY a Christian you are pro-life, pro-"traditional marriage", etc.

You see, it's ALL about the religion for them. It has trumped racism, classism, logic, and their relationship with their daughter. It's my fault for expecting more from them in this case, but I guess subconsciously I'm always hoping that they wake up one day.