Racism in the Presidential race

There are a number of articles and opinions flying around on how race plays into the race. A couple of the more interesting blogs that have been tracking this issue are these from the BBC that track Obama and McCain on the campaign trail. They are fascinating blogs, even if you are not interested in the race question.

Here are some interesting excerpts from the blog following Obama on the campaign trail:

So no-one on the road gets into the detail of McCain's or Obama's plans. What they do talk about are the "low blows" of the campaign.

In Pennsylvania at the weekend, I was at two events with Barack Obama. When he mentioned John McCain's name, the crowd booed. It was instant, immediate. It seemed to me the "boo" of a ball game, tinged with a little irony. I did not detect any hatred. Obama immediately told the crowd that he respected John McCain's service to his country but that he disagreed on the economy and on other issues. He added that we can disagree and still respect each other.

Last week at a Sarah Palin rally in Ohio, the feelings were different. Many of the people there detested Barack Obama. "Detest" is a strong word, but I felt their dislike of the Illinois senator was visceral. Nearly everyone I spoke to doubted his patriotism.

One conversation went like this: "Do you think Barack Obama is a patriotic American?" "No. No, nothing in his background indicates that." The man went on: "I think he's got too much Marxism and black power in his background."

The man, on camera, added a bit of analysis; he thought Obama was angry because he had some white blood in him.

Another woman told me: "I just believe he is not an American. I just think he's angry."

A younger woman had a poster with a picture of Adolf Hitler on it. Hitler's face had been replaced with that of Obama. We did not use this in our coverage because we did not think it was in any way typical of the Republican crowds.

Yet the people around her did not challenge her.

An older man was explicit in that he thought "race" was an issue. But what caught my attention was "patriotism".

In our conversations, many of which were on camera, I struggled to find someone who felt Barack Obama was "patriotic".

I tried to nail down what lay behind this. Many people were disturbed by Obama's associations with the radical William Ayers and with his former pastor, the Rev Jeremiah Wright.

Yet I felt the concerns ran deeper than that. It was the fears of "otherness". Many of those we spoke to just felt he was not like them, he did not share their values. They spoke about lapel badges, saluting the flag and, above all, about the military. For some, being patriotic was about supporting the military.

I asked a question as to whether it was "patriotic" to oppose the invasion of Iraq. Some agreed - reluctantly, I thought.

These may be superficial encounters but the "boos" in Pennsylvania seemed different to the comments in Ohio.

…

The other fear concerns race, that some working class Democrats won't vote for a black candidate. The issue is openly discussed and no-one knows what part it will play in the silence of the voting booth.

This afternoon we were in Scranton, where Bill and Hillary Clinton appeared with Joe Biden and his wife Jill. There are still people who voted for Hillary in the primaries but are resisting voting for Barack Obama. We met a biker called Joe who was precisely in that position. He said he'd supported Hillary but was worried about Obama's background. …

The signs are, however, that the economic crisis is driving doubters into the Obama camp. The pollsters are noting a sharp increase in support for Obama and most of that is due to a feeling "that the country is on the wrong track".

…

Asheville, North Carolina: The first deep shades of autumn have descended on North Carolina. The crowds at the local high school memorial stadium were still filing in when Barack Obama started speaking.

It looked impressive, but a young man said to me: "Go 10 miles up the road into the mountains and you'll hear a different story. "Race is still an issue here."

So, later, we drove up I-63 and the Leicester Highway and turned on to a road that ran through the hills.

We were looking for interviews when we saw a man working a plot in the late afternoon sun. He was in his 50s and wore dark overalls.

He drew out his words as he thought about the election.

"I'm a Southerner," he told me, putting tomatoes into a wicker basket. "My grandfather owned slaves, but I'm thinking of voting for a black man."

I looked at him. The comment seemed to surprise him even as he made it.

He thought about it for a while and added: "It was the Wall Street bail-out that has done it."

He was disgusted that the reckless bankers were being helped - he didn't agree with debt. He was sick of Washington and was prepared to give Mr Obama a chance.

"Something is wrong with America," he said.

I asked him to go on camera but he refused. "I see how TV chops you up," he said, without meaning offence.

But he confirmed that in these rural areas race is still an issue.

For men like himself, electing a black president is still a big step. The young man at the rally had been right.

But this brief meeting confirmed something else: that the economic turmoil is challenging old certainties and prejudices.