Obama Should Repudiate and Cancel His Gay Bash Tour, and Do It Now

[NMMNG]

Democratic Presidential candidate Barack Obama ripped a page straight from the Bush campaign playbook with his announced upcoming three date barnstorm tour through South Carolina with notorious gay basher, gospel singer Donnie McClurkin. The Grammy winning black gospel singer's last effort on the political scene was his song and shill for Bush's reelection at the Republican National Convention in 2004. Obama has hitched his string to McClurkin's high flying gay bash kite in part out of religious belief (he purports to be somewhat of an evangelical), in bigger part because he's falling further and further behind Hillary Clinton with the black vote in South Carolina and everywhere else, and in the biggest part of all because he hopes that what worked for Bush's reelection will work for him.

<snip>

Bush masterfully tapped that homophobic sentiment in 2000 in part with McClurkin and even more masterfully in 2004 again with McClurkin and the top gun mega black preachers in Ohio and Florida. He tapped it so masterfully that Bush's naked pander to gay bashing with the GOP spawned anti-gay marriage initiative in Ohio did much to win over a big chunk of black evangelical leaning voter to Bush.

<snip>

This lesson isn't lost on Obama. Desperate to snatch back some of the political ground with black voters that are slipping away from him and to Hillary; Bush's black evangelical card seems like the perfect play. Obama wouldn't dare go down the knock gay path, and risk drawing the inevitable heat for it, if he didn't think as Bush that anti-gay sentiment is still wide and deep among many blacks.

<snip>

Obama has spent months telling everyone that he's everything that Bush isn't. He can proof it by saying a resounding no to McClurkin and to gay bashing. He can cancel and repudiate the South Carolina "gospel" tour, and do it now.

<snip>

Full Text

[fenriswolf]

1. is it just me

or does he make more obvious mistakes then a green senator should I mean i don't follow him to much but my drawing point was when he advocated liquid coal as a greener solution to oil, now this?

almost like systamatic destruction if you ask me.

[scarletwoman]

2. All I know is that I never thought he was "all that". I was glad he won the Illinois Senate election

I mean, hell yeah -- better him than that nutball Keynes. But other than that, besides a pretty face, I've never figured out what he has to offer.

I watched him on Leno last December, and I just didn't get what the hype was about. He was certainly lively and enthusiastic when it came to talking about himself, but anything else -- not so much. I just don't see any "there" there.

So, if he self-destructs, I don't think it's any great loss. In fact, I hope he sticks by his homophobic huckster, maybe it will give Edwards a better shot.

sw

[fenriswolf]

6. well right i never thought much either

just thinking aloud that its interesting that hillaries closest rival is starting to make errors a green senator would not make. and so close to primaries too.

[scarletwoman]

7. Maybe he's making these errors because he's ALWAYS been all surface & no substance.

I think he came to believe his own hype, and now he's getting boxed in by it.

sw

[bbgrunt]

19. I feel the same. I have never understood what

people are so enamored of. He blathers and says nothing of substance. He has shown very little leadership in the Senate. Why is he not supporting Dodd in the hold on FISA and immunity for telcoms?

[question everything]

26. Still sad. I thought that he has the potential

perhaps still does.

No, I never thought he is ready for the White House, but I was hoping that he can go back to Illinois, perhaps win the governorship and then, in 4 (if we lose in 2008) or 8 years - can have more executive experience to run for President. And win.

[MethuenProgressive]

3. Earl Ofari Hutchinson is an excellent writer, and spot on here.

Thanks for the link, k&r
:kick:

[Captain_Nemo]

4. First Obama dissed the women by courting the anti-women crowd. Now the gays. Who's next? Liberal?

[NMMNG]

5. Good question.

He seems to be throwing more and more minorities under the bus in his attempt to pander to certain groups. It makes me wonder just how many people are going to be left with tire tracks on them by the end of his campaign.

[emilyg]

8. Is his manager stupid or what?

[Karenina]

9. . .

:popcorn:

[mnhtnbb]

10. Obama is a pragmatist. He obviously thinks there are more votes

with the way he's going. After reading his book, I felt principles were less important to him than 'getting along'.

[NMMNG]

11. A president without principles is frightening

We've had that for the past 7 years and look where we are. :scared:

[Maven]

16. Exactly. Which is why his supporters' claims that he's such a principled alternative to Hillary

who is the ultimate calculating politician, is a joke.

Which makes Obama look like even more of a phony.

[Captain_Nemo]

18. Hillary has not dissed women voters. And it seems she has been good with LBGT voters.

[varkam]

12. K&R

:thumbsup:

[MethuenProgressive]

13. DU Double Standard: If this was Clinton, DU would be ON FIRE condemning her.

But it's Barack, so it's OK with DU...
:eyes:

[Olney Blue]

14. Has Barack given an explanation for including McClurkin?

[Enrique]

15. this might be more principled than Hutchinson is saying

and anyway, if Obama was going to abandon this campaign he wouldn't have started it in the first place. This isn't a blunder, Obama isn't going to be surprised he's getting this kind of criticism.

[NMMNG]

17. I don't think Obama is ignorant of the McClurkin's hateful attitudes

Which means he likely doesn't give a damn if he offends the LGBT voters. That says a lot.

[DeSwiss]

20. Personally,

I've never understood why so many religious black people have a problem with gays. Way back in the day in the 60s & 70s when I was a church-goer (my father was a Church of God minister), gay people were everywhere in the church. The irony here of course, is that black people themselves have been subject to discrimination and hate for centuries, including having that discrimination codified into laws. Now it would appear that they are campaigning to have gays replace themselves in the national lexicon as the most discriminated group through the use of legal sanction and social ostracism. And they want to help. What scumbags!

Back when civil rights activism was more prominent, blacks accepted anyone's help and assistance in getting and keeping the issues of equality in the forefront of public view. Including gay people. But now they find themselves doing the same thing to another minority group that they argued the white system of oppression was and is still doing to us. And I have yet to have any of these so-called religious folks explain to me, why it is that they should have equal rights and not gay people. They are as hypocritical as James Dobson and all those other Fundie nutjobs as far as I'm concerned.

My grampa used to tell me, "the pot can't call the skillet black, boy." But apparently the pot can call the skillet gay and get away with it.

These people, including Obama just make me sick.....

K&R!!!

P.S. - I knew I was right about Obama all along.

[NMMNG]

21. Misapplication of religion and the Bible, in a nutshell

That's what it is.

Here's a great explanation from a black, gay blogger:

I'd have written about it yesterday, but sometimes when they're angry people say things they either don't mean or that are said in a manner more inflammatory than constructive. For example, yesterday I probably would have written some things pretty inflammatory things about Black folks and religion. Would have meant them too, as much as the students who heard Keith's speech meant everything they said in response.


One of the thing I might have said about religion if I'd posted yesterday is that it can sometimes cause people to divorce themselves from reason and any ability to think critically about what they're told.

When the subject turned to religion, a few students in the audience starting shouting at me to express their disagreement. I discussed the story of Adam and Eve from the Book of Genesis. I talked about Leviticus 18 (man shall not lie with man) and put it in context with Leviticus 19:19 (not to wear mixed fabrics), Leviticus 19:27 (not to shave or get hair cuts), Leviticus 19:28 (not to wear tattoos), and other passages of the Bible that are selectively ignored. I even reminded the audience how white slave owners had used religion to justify the oppression of black slaves. But only a few people in the audience seemed to pay attention. Many of the rest were on their feet, moving about and protesting.

When an audience member shouted out something about Jesus, I reminded him that Jesus never discusses homosexuality anywhere in the Bible. "Noooo!" they shouted. "You're misinterpreting the Bible," another yelled. "Not in my Bible," I heard someone say in the distance. Then I posed a challenge. "I have $100 in my wallet," I said. "I will be happy to give it to anyone if you can find a single passage in the Bible where Jesus talks about homosexuality." The audience exploded in outrage. It took another 60 seconds to get them to calm down again.

<snip>

The audience didn't buy it. That's because many of them have never studied the Bible. Unfortunately, they've been taught simply to repeat the homophobic rhetoric recited by their pastors and their parents. Anyone who challenges that rhetoric must be the devil. Even if the concerned Christians in the audience can't prove their arguments, they feel morally superior enough to repudiate mine without any real knowledge or facts.

<snip>

If the students at Central State knew their own history or journeyed deeper into their faith than the stories they heard in sunday school, the sermons they heard in church, and the condemnations carefully selected from legalistic scriptures that damn them as much as anyone else, and have been used to dehumanize them in the same way they use them to dehumanize others, then they might see the same thing I see. They'd see their people hurting because of them. They'd see my people, hurting because of them, and reach out with healing and acceptance instead of hatred and condemnation. Then to me, they'd be my people.

But they can't and they won't so they aren't. And probably never will be. Period.

Much more and well worth the full read : Historically Black Homophobia

[DeSwiss]

24. Buffy,

I have but one response to that thread: Is our children learning?

Considering the state of public education in America these days, it doesn't surprise me that many young people in church haven't read the bible. Who reads? People assume that only the "good folk" go to church all the time. And good folks read, right? But reading and its comprehension was one of the first things to go when they began to "improve" education. All the reading they do now, is for tests. And its worse in schools particularly in traditional black communities in the South where I live.

So for that kind of reaction to come from such an audience, should be expected. When you think about it, we're almost now at the same point where the original religious believers were. Back when most of them weren't literate either. That's how religion got its hold on everything after writing was invented. So when all trust and belief is centered into a single tome purported to be from god, then its importance is paramount. As long as you can read it.

Otherwise, you just believe what they tell you.....

on edit: Thanks for the link, bookmarking.... :D

[MasonJar]

22. I am disappointed in him and for him. He is a great orator, but if this

is a pragmatist at work to win the election at any cost, I do not admire it.

[cyr330]

23. He's lost my vote

for good.

[stevenleser]

25. Obama must have lost his mind...

Gay rights is much too important to way too many Democrats. Last big assault the Rethugs made against gays caused me (among other things, of course) to permanently change my icon here at DU until complete equal rights for the GLBT community have been achieved.

That said, Obama will not even get my vote if he is the Democratic nominee if he proceeds as planned in this campaign tour. He should pull out, or convince McClurkin to pull our and not attend.