Here's a thought ... what if the President of the US did not use divisive language at all? What if instead of acknowledging what makes us different, his speech was entirely about what makes us the same? What if the color of one's skin was irrelevant, but the content of his character was? Isn't that what the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. said in his famous speech?
What if all politicians stopped using the language of division? What if candidates were to reach out to Americans, regardless of race, creed, color, religion, gender ... I'd like to see Race removed from all federal forms, along with gender and religious preference. Our government should be color blind, not color aware. A rainbow is not comprised of alternating stripes of color, it is a natural refraction of light through pure water ... it does not have to try for diversity, it simply is a rainbow.
I recognize that that would be disappointing to many of all colors. No more green history month, or purple awareness day. All that has done is darken the lines of division in our country. I have no issues with Obama's race, but evidently he does, and his campaign would like to exploit that for reelection. I think its shameless to use exploit ones race, and to leverage the opportunity afforded by an event that only serves to highlight difference, and not unity in our nation. Kennedy, Reagan and others spoke a message of America, not hyphenated-americans.
I would sincerely hope that people who are truly against racism ... those who genuinely seek equality and civil rights for all .. would not practice racism by voting for a man because he's the same skin color as they. Rather, consider the content of his character and his track record in office, as Dr. King suggested.
