Rev. Wright (left), Sen. Obama (right)

If anybody can solve the issue of race and hate in America, Sen. Barack Obama has the background to do it. His candidacy for the Democratic Presidential nomination has thrust him into the limelight of possibility.

Obama’s presence in the race has generated a level of conversation about things that have been in the nation’s closet. From such conversations, new things can occur.

Many speculate that Obama’s candidacy will be hurt by the recent unfolding of events surrounding his former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright. I don’t think so – not if you look at it in this context:

In America, everyone grows up on one side or the other of the so-called racial divide. It begins at birth. There is no choice. The divide is embedded in the culture.

Most of us never take the opportunity to distance ourselves from the divide. Obama was faced with that opportunity in a very public setting. He met the challenge and in so doing has presented the country with an opportunity to grow along with him.

As a young man, there is no way normally to escape the institutions in the “backyard” of America where all African Americans live psychosocially. The events of recent days provide an opportunity to get away from this abnormal American culture and build a new one.

Obama should not be judged by the abnormalcy of the backyard. Everyone exposed to this culture is dirty. The only way you can clean up is when you have the opportunity to do so. Again, he met the challenge.

Some will say it was political expediency. I don’t think so. Obama was not reared in the type of stuff Rev. Wright was reared in. Wright – like all of us – is the product of a split culture that he cannot get out of unless a platform is built to overcome the divisiveness that is in the culture.

This divisiveness was absolutely necessary for slavery to exist. We had to stay away from each other and could not talk. Staying away creates friction and gossip.

Obviously, a nation conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all babies are the same cannot measure up to that standard in a culture of division.

Rev. Wright could contribute greatly to the creation of the new American culture that most evolve if he would come to some objective position with Obama as a human being so that Obama can lead us all out of this inherited mess.

At this point in time, we have no one other than Obama to help us move beyond our troublesome past. This mainly is because he was not raised over here where sides are chosen for you. Historically, a fraction of African blood put you in a class apart from so-called “white” people.

The country must go through a debriefing. Conversation is fundamental. Good things can pop out from such exchanges.

When Kwame Ture (Stokely Carmichael) opened the door for the conversation about “black power” something good popped out beyond him. There was a release of energy that brought out natural hair and a fresh, much-needed concept of beauty.

In much the same way that Thomas Paine’s objective view of America helped the colonists redefine themselves, Obama’s view (which draws upon a vantage point outside of this country) can do the same.

Let’s be appreciative of the opportunity that is before us and take advantage of it.

(Dr. Karanja A. Ajanaku is executive editor of the Tri-State Defender.)

	“I could never stay at home and not vote. That would never be an option for me. Even if we don’t like something about the process, we have to always participate. We surrender our power when we choose not to vote for whatever reason.” Barbara Roberts
	“Whichever one  gets the Democratic nomination, whether its Sen. Obama or Sen. Clinton, I am committed to supporting that candidate.” Susan Springfield
	“I was planning to vote for Hillary Clinton if Sen. Obama lost the nomination. But now that all of this commotion has been going on, I’m just not going to vote at all if Sen. Obama does not get the nomination. If he gets a majority, he should get the nomination.” Juliet Johnson
	“Well, I’ve been a Democrat all my life. I support Sen. Obama, but whoever gets the nomination will get my support. The first presidential election I voted in was for John F. Kennedy. I’ve always voted, and I’ve always voted Democrat.” Don Carter
	“I have supported Sen. Obama during these run-off elections, but if Hillary Clinton gets the Democratic nomination, I will throw my support behind her.” Kenneth Daniels
	“Although I am supporting Sen. Obama, if Sen. Clinton gets the Democratic nomination, I will support her with my vote. She has, I believe, some good morals, plans, ideas, and strategies. I believe she would make a great president as well.” Erin Thorpe