Obama's white ancestors owned slaves. So says the research of William Addams Reitwiesner, "who works at the Library of Congress and practices genealogy in his spare time", and who is featured in this morning's edition of the Baltimore Sun.
Many people know that Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama's father was from Kenya and his mother from Kansas.
But an intriguing sliver of his family history has received almost no attention until now: it appears that forebears of his white mother owned slaves, according to genealogical research and Census records.
While reading this, my very first thought had me wondering how well this will sit with the Obama-isn't-black-enough contingent?
It didn't take long in the story to get the issue addressed.
The records could add a new dimension to questions by some who have asked whether Obama -- who was raised in East Asia and Hawaii and educated at Columbia and Harvard -- is attuned to the struggles of American blacks descended from West African slaves.
"..attuned to the struggles"? That's code for the victim mentality we are used to in this debate which will naturally lead to "He isn't one of us"!
The Sun writers also included this quote from Ronald Walters, director of the African-American Leadership Institute at the University of Maryland:
"The twist is very interesting,it deepens his connection with the experience of slavery, even if it deepens it on a different side of the equation."
Talk about a spin! Imagine if this was Strom Thurmond, or Trent Lott we were talking about here? Do you think this professor would have been waxing eloquent over these wonderful "connections" or do you think he would have been breaking out the tar and feathers?
To Professor Walters, at least, Obama is "black enough" to have the slave issue spun to the candidate's favor.
After a discussion on American genealogy the Sun's piece gets back to the "black enough" question once again.
Author and essayist Debra J. Dickerson wrote in a January salon.com article that she had previously refrained from opining about the senator because "I didn't have the heart (or the stomach) to point out the obvious: Obama isn't black."
" 'Black,' in our political and social reality, means those descended from West African slaves," Dickerson said.
..."What people are really asking is, 'Can I trust this guy? Do I have confidence in this guy? Does he understand my situation, and therefore [is he] able to take my issues into the political system?'" Walters said.
No, the real question should be, can we in America ever have a black candidate who breaks the mold of the blacks-as-victims mentality that keeps the Jackson's and Sharpton's of this nation living in the lifestyle to which they have become accustomed -- a lifestyle built on the seething anger of American Blacks, an anger Jackson and Sharpton stir like a witch's cauldron of muck.
It would appear that no is the answer to that question because this Obama-isn't-black-enough issue is being raised more and more as the campaign rolls on and sooner or later, Obama is going to have to address this issue head-on.
And it'll be an interesting debate if ever had.
But it is sure that the MSM will never focus on the more beneficial side of the debate: WHEN can we dispense with the victim mentality in our Black community?
(A welcome to all the readers from Michelle Malkin's daily interactive site, Hotair.com. thanks for the links, guys.)
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Obama
March 2, 2007 - 05:37 ET by DontabGee let me guess, 2 months from now we"ll discover Wi
lliam Addams Reitwiesner is on clintons payroll.
Gorbal warming is a sickness, not a science.
Ha, ha. Hadn't thought of tha
March 2, 2007 - 05:59 ET by Warner Todd HustonHa, ha. Hadn't thought of that one!!
You know, that's the first
March 2, 2007 - 14:24 ET by Tim the EnchanterYou know, that's the first thing that crossed my mind is that HRC's Rapid Response team came up with this nice little tidbit. Welcome to the big leagues Osama Obama! You ain't seen nuthin' yet!
That's too funny. Obama has
March 2, 2007 - 06:01 ET by mostlymoderateThat's too funny. Obama has his hands full with the Clinton camp. Those Clintons can play rough! As for being "victims", I couldn't agree more. Regardless of race, people shouldn't base their entire identity on things that happened more than 150 years ago. If I was black, I would detest Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson and Farrakhan.
who
March 2, 2007 - 09:50 ET by cvgbuckeyeAllow me to apologize in advance, Warner, but who of any substance really cares?
Adding to the two comments ab
March 2, 2007 - 13:23 ET by Chicago RepublicanAdding to the two comments above, I'd like to throw in as well.
WHO THE F*** CARES?
Let me answer my own question, I guess the people that are obsessed with race are. My only real curiousity comes from why the Useful Idiots of the MSM are pointing this out?
**************
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I agree. I DON’T care if hi
March 2, 2007 - 22:46 ET by Warner Todd HustonI agree. I DON’T care if his past family owned slaves. The “news” about his family’s past is of no real interest to me. However, if it leads to a tearing down of the victim mentality for America’s blacks, I am all FOR this discussion!
fun fact
March 2, 2007 - 06:39 ET by Tim GrahamBy the way, Debra Dickerson -- the one who thinks Obama isn't "black" -- was a writer for U.S. News & World Report for a while. I was never reluctant to point out the obvious: she wasn't "objective."
"The twist is very int
March 2, 2007 - 07:32 ET by motherbelt"The twist is very interesting,it deepens his connection with the
experience of slavery, even if it deepens it on a different side of the
equation."
In light of this reaction, how long do you think it will be before Hillary Clinton discovers that her Jewish ancestor also owned a few slaves?
... and don't forget that the
March 2, 2007 - 07:35 ET by Warner Todd Huston... and don't forget that they were ALWAYS Yankee fans!!
"And you know what I'm t
March 2, 2007 - 08:11 ET by fossten"And you know what I'm talking about!"
Here's another take on the
March 2, 2007 - 08:22 ET by motherbeltHere's another take on "deepening the connections" from another
side: What if a descendant of Bull Connor were running? Would it be spun as a positive? Would they say that it deepens his connection with the experience of segregation, even if it were on a different side of the equation?
Welcome to the world of polit
March 2, 2007 - 07:37 ET by Johnnyboy792Welcome to the world of politics Obama ! How does it feel ?
Hillary war room in action
March 2, 2007 - 08:42 ET by Right2thePointHillary war room in action is the impression.
Of course hard to prove probably due to three degrees or more of seperation.
Descendants
March 2, 2007 - 09:07 ET by PawpawNAren't we all descended from GOD? Oh, but that would mean all would have to believe in God. Guess some of Libs must be descended from, wait a minute, what were they descended from...Hollywood was invented when!
MLK's dream not fulfilled in Dems
March 2, 2007 - 10:25 ET by nkviking75The Democrats like to hold themselves up as the party carrying out Martin Luther King's dream. If King's views really prevailed, nobody would even mention Obama's race. He'd be judged on his character, not his skin color or his geneology. We certainly wouldn't be dwelling on the actions of his ancestors from centuries ago, something for which no reasonable person ought to hold him responsible.
... and he'd be judged a neo-
March 2, 2007 - 10:35 ET by Warner Todd Huston... and he'd be judged a neo-socialist! I LONG for the days of the color blind politics.
Who is Obama really?
March 2, 2007 - 10:43 ET by nkviking75Exactly! I'm not sure Obama would even be a candidate except for the fact that he's black (or looks black or whatever the heck they're saying now). His views are too far out and his experience is far too meager. But if he gets the nomination, the Dems will be labelling anyone who votes against Obama a racist.
To add to that: If people r
March 2, 2007 - 10:49 ET by DyneTo add to that: If people really believed in upholding King's views, then not only would Obama not be judged by his genology and race, Mitt Romney wouldn't be judged by his genology or religious beliefs. Dr. King referred to both sides of the political party coin. Will the liberals figure that out?
"And [Moroni] called it the Title of Liberty" - Alma 46:13
but strangely enough
March 2, 2007 - 13:13 ET by tumbler_2007I think some time back, black people and mormons didn't mix. What was that all about?
It took a new prophet over in Salt Lake City to upgrade members of black ethnicity to full human beings, or that equivalent. So that we can see, even those saints are now politically correct. (At last.)
Tumbler, I may be able to she
March 2, 2007 - 16:51 ET by ChuchulainnTumbler, I may be able to shed some light on the Black/Mormon thing. I graduated from Cleafield High School in Clearfield Utah in the sixties. My family was Irish Catholic from New York, but my dad was transferred to Hill Field as a civilian employee of the Air Force. In the sixties African Americans were not allowed to become priests in the Mormon Church. A Mormon friend explained to me that it was their belief that God had punished all decendents of Cain by making them Black; hence they could not be priests in their religion. I believe that policy has changed since then.
there is the crux of the matter
March 2, 2007 - 17:21 ET by tumbler_2007In fact you place your finger on one proof Mormonism teaches false doctrines. We cannot render God's Will obsolete by taking a PC turn to the center. These were racial supremacists who "tweaked" the older doctrine to suit the changing times. They also did that with polygamy. If that tenet had been a real commandment from God, it would continue to exist openly. Today it's surreptitious; just as if God willed it. But mostly it's lost its credibility.
' WHEN can we dispense with
March 2, 2007 - 12:01 ET by bigtimer' WHEN can we dispense with the victim mentality in our Black community?'
I have been past fed up with it...the media keeps this going endlessly.
I hope to live to see the day it back-fires on them...enough is enough, this has been crammed down our throats until it is past time to expel it.
All it is is a detriment to some of the black community who bottom feed off of it...pathetic.
And, just how is behavior of
March 2, 2007 - 12:07 ET by MikeBAnd, just how is behavior of Obama's mother's great-great-grandparents relevant to his Presidential campaign? Like I said on the thread about Al Sharpton's "discovery" that one of his ancestors was owned by one of Strom Thurmond's ancestors: no one has been or owned slaves for at least 140 years. It happened, its end was brought about by whites, get over it. The only thing these "news"papers should be concerned about is Obama's positions on the issues, not something that happened a century or more before he was conceived.
Ah, but this is the age when the death of a stupid drugged out bimbo, and another bimbo shaving her head is national news worthy of 24/7 coverage. Perhaps Mr. Hand was right.
"A communist is someone who reads Marx. An anti-communist is someone who understands Marx." Ronald Reagan
I'm not interested if he is B
March 2, 2007 - 13:00 ET by JayTeeI'm not interested if he is BLACK enough....I'm interested if he's "experienced" enough, which translates into I'm not interested. As Andy Rooney said, My Great, Great, Great, Great Grandfather was Born in Europe, but I don't call myself an "European American". As far as "apoligizing" for owning Slaves......the People that WERE slaves, won't hear the Apology....E.G., it will fall on Deaf Ears.
At Times like these, it becomes more than just a Moral Obligation to express ones opinion, it becomes a Pleasure.
I gotta hand it to Obama, I t
March 2, 2007 - 16:38 ET by BruzillaI gotta hand it to Obama, I think his people handled this just right...
"An Obama spokesman did not dispute the information and said that the senator's ancestors "are representative of America."
"While a relative owned slaves, another fought for the Union in the Civil War," campaign spokesman Bill Burton said last night. "And it is a true measure of progress that the descendant of a slave owner would come to marry a student from Kenya and produce a son who would grow up to be a candidate for president of the United States."
That's exactly the right way to respond to this situation. No yelling about personal attacks or vast conspiracies, or playing race cards, just acknowledging the facts, putting them in perspective, and taking the higher road.
Oh Bro, someone should have g
March 2, 2007 - 20:57 ET by Airforce_5_OOh Bro, someone should have gave you a heads up on the Clintons. This Dem race is going to be great to watch.
The new world order is in power. God help us all. Airforce_5_O, 2330, November 7, 2006
Does this mean Barry O'Bama
March 2, 2007 - 23:21 ET by Bob McDoes this mean Barry O'Bama owes himself reparations?
I have kind of a different ta
March 4, 2007 - 22:05 ET by KimberlyI have kind of a different take on all of this. Let's see the things we "know" about each of the candidates if all we did was depend on the MSM for info:
What we're not hearing: Stuff that actually matters. Right now it's just the beauty queen posturing stuff, and in the long run, none of that is actually important. What is important--Obama's overwhelmingly liberal voting record and beliefs; Romney's conversion from a "Liberal Republican" to "the best-known conservative out there"; whether Rudy's "Rockefeller Republicanism" can pass a nationwide litmus test; what Hillary's real, honest-to-[deity] plans are to overcome her really negative image problems--isn't getting mentioned at all.
Is Obama "black enough"? Did his family own slaves? WHO CARES?
God Bless America, the MSM makes me just want to throw something at my TV every time I inadvertently catch their "news" shows or burn something every time I catch a glimpse of a MSM newspaper's fishwrap-worthy "news". Thank God for cable TV, FNC, and blogs.
Kimberly,I think you wrapped
March 4, 2007 - 22:10 ET by BlondeKimberly,
I think you wrapped that up rather nicely and put a big fat bow on it.
Nicely done.