With near certainty now that Barack Obama will be the Democratic nominee, even doubters should accept that there is a fundamental current of change within the US to overcome the dark chapters of its history of racial discrimination.
If he defeats John McCain in November, the message American voters will send to the world will echo Martin Luther King’s dream of having a country where a person is judged by his character and worth rather than skin color or origin. This should be cause for satisfaction because no country today puts more value on the quality of the person than on social class, ethnic origin and similar elements.
This could be the start of a new era of American soft power in the world after the disastrous years of George Bush, during which the US lost the trust of the world’s people as a country wedded to universal values rather than political expediency.
Support for Obama is attributed to the desire of ordinary Americans for real change instead of politics as usual. Ordinary Democrats have brought him to this point of triumph after their initial disdain less than a year ago when Hilary Clinton was seen as a shoo-in for the nomination.
The mystery now is whether the majority of American voters will choose him as the most credible agent of genuine change or turn to McCain for more of the same spiced with a touch of change.
Whatever the degree of blood-letting between Obama and Clinton through to the summer, we stand at a momentous point in American and world history. Obama’s swearing in as President will not be a magic wand that removes the scars of the injustices done to black people over time on all continents. But it will be a symbol of new hope that the world’s people, not just Americans, are more ready to deal with each person on the basis of his or her character rather than as “the other”.
This is the audacity of hope. A hope not just of American voters fed up with back room pork barrel politics but of a world exhausted by the hypocrisy and platitudes used to disguise America’s raw pursuit of power in recent decades.
All of us are now aware that flawed processes bring flawed results. Processes based on “winning at any cost” cannot bring the kind of results capable of delivering change we can all believe in. To bring a genuine end to politics as usual, the election process between now and November must be principles-based rather than pandering to the lowest common denominator. This is necessary both for the remaining process of Democratic Primaries and the contest with McCain after that.
There is nothing pointy headed about this contention. The process can be either fear-based, meaning that it is guided by the fears of people about jobs and benefits etc. Or it can be hope-based, meaning it resolutely focuses on building a better future free from the negative psychology of the past. It cannot have one foot in each camp. The fight and flight of fear and the innocence of hope do not mix well.
How the process works in practical terms depends on the behavior of American voters, not that of the candidates or media. Both the latter respond to what they perceive as the concerns of ordinary voters, especially those that comprise the electorate’s bulk including the blue-collar and less educated “masses”.
Blaming politicians and media is undeserved if less-educated white working class voters mistrust Obama simply because they mistrust African Americans or Hispanics or Asians. Don’t scold the politicians. They will do whatever they think will win votes. Thus, Clinton swallows beer and Obama goes to bowling alleys.
Are the coming months capable of triggering a start to real change? Absolutely yes. But only if American voters treat the election process with respect and think about their responsibility as individuals to improve the terrain upon which their families, communities, country and the world rely for progress.
There is an African saying that “Character is like smoke, it cannot be hidden.” This fairly accurately describes Obama’s ascension from a “Who’s that?” to a change agent of history.
The issue now is whether American voters deserve a better future for their country. If so, what are they willing to do about it? Albert Einstein had a nice bit of advice: “Try not to become a man of success but rather try to become a man of value.” This is something white blue-collar voters might remember in coming weeks.