Eugene Robinson: A Father's Absence and a Son's Message

[FrenchieCat]

Those who say that Obama spoke this father's day on the issue of Black Fathers not taking care of their responsibilities in order to elicit a Sista Soulja moment are lying.

Obama was saying the same thing he said in that speech yesterday, a year ago......when a minority of Black voters were NOT supporting him.

Tuesday, June 19, 2007; Page A17
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/06/18/AR2007061801363.html

The subject is absent fathers. The implications for black America are dire. The fact is that "there are a lot of men out there who need to stop acting like boys; who need to realize that responsibility does not end at conception; who need to know that what makes you a man is not the ability to have a child but the courage to raise one."

The speaker is Barack Obama, for whom fatherhood is a defining issue, both political and personal. Father's Day has come and gone -- new ties have been put away, new golf clubs tried out, new flat-screen televisions mounted -- but Obama says he will continue to talk about black fatherhood in an attempt to change self-destructive attitudes and behaviors.
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You might have heard that Obama is running for president, which makes it impossible to ignore the politics involved. The men-acting-like-boys speech was given in a black church in South Carolina, an early-primary state where half of Democratic voters are African American. It's not at all rare for a black leader to challenge black Americans on issues of personal responsibility -- that same message, phrased in much stronger terms, is delivered every Sunday from pulpits across the country. The political significance is for the scolding to be given in such a way that white America can't help but overhear what's being said.

more.....

[Swamp Rat]

1. k&r

[FrenchieCat]

3. This is how Obama feels about this issue....and as a Black man who's

father was not around, he has that license, imo.

If one has lived it, one can certainly have an opinion about it.

[me b zola]

2. K&R

:kick:

[FrenchieCat]

4. This is a serious issue......

and frankly, I'm glad we are talking about it.

Cause something has to change.

[me b zola]

18. It is, Frenchie. It is.

So much of Obama's story is a parallel to my son's life story, minus conquering the odds and becoming an influential leader.

Please don't eve mistake my lack of words for a deep connection to the article/post that I am kicking. Sometimes I don't have the words, sometimes I do but they are entirely too personal to share.

Anyway, excellent post and much admiration for both Senator Obama and FrenchieCat.:)

[Pirate Smile]

5. "I can't help but think he's talking not just toAmerica,but to his own late father.Who wasn't there"

The end of the column.

[FrenchieCat]

6. of course.....

he lived what he is talking about....that's why he can.

[woolldog]

7. key sentence:

"You might have heard that Obama is running for president, which makes it impossible to ignore the politics involved."

[FrenchieCat]

13. Did you get that? Obama's speech in 2005. Same message.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=6372896&mesg_id=6372977

Now what? :shrug:

[woolldog]

15. fine

there's still something off-putting about these speeches to me. Not sure why.

[FrenchieCat]

16. what about the Children?

Don't you think that deep down inside, they are glad that someone is speaking up for them?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x6372973

[Ichingcarpenter]

8. k&R nt

[TheDonkey]

9. He criticised black people for eating too much fast food haha, not lying, he did that months ago

and AMEN to that. All Americans need to hear that speech but there is nothing wrong with talking straight to African Americans. Diabetes and obesity are high in our community and Obama spoke up. Good for him. It probably didn't make the nightly news but I'm sure it touched those who heard him and got people to think about eating healthy when they otherwise would not bother thinking about it.

He's in a unique position to hopefully communicate with our community as a true leader.

[FrenchieCat]

12. Thank you! Finally a leader for all of the people, who doesn't mind

pinpointing a whole lot of things.

He always says that he goes before audience who don't want to always hear what he has to say.

He says.....I'm not going to tell you what you want to hear, but what you need to hear. So he's keeping that promise.

Amen!

[writes3000]

10. Here's his Father's Day speech from 2005!!! Same message.

http://obama.senate.gov/news/050622-heres_what_it_takes_to_be_a_bo/

[Cha]

11. Obama is trying to help make

a difference in the status quo and we have someone on our board who doesn't believe the primaries are over and is trying to disrupt.

But, that thread got locked for "not constructive criticism".

[mopinko]

14. evolutionarily, long term involvement of fathers was a giant leap.

i find a lot of perspective in looking at the problems of the day through the lens of evolutionary psychology. ie- when bill clinton got a hummer in the white house, i was unfazed- that is why chimps invented politics- to see who was entitled to the most hummers.
or- hero worship is the mechanism by which an individual can give all, without his offspring paying the price. the tribe rallies round, and makes sure the child is cared for.
so, for this issue, too, it is interesting to wonder about the evolution of fatherhood. it is a tremendous risk for a male to take- to father just a few offspring, and nurture them to adulthood, with no way to know for sure if they carry his genes. as a species, when that leap occurred, i think it must have been a revolution. perhaps belonging to a tribe took the edge off that risk, where genes are shared among siblings, and probably more than people would like to admit, by the back door. but still, i think it is huge. and i think that it is so huge, that people today still have to grapple with the thing.
i think that long term involvement is something that is determined to a large extent by the environment. in a harsh and poor environment, i think we are programmed to reject the risk. in a lush and supportive environment, we are programmed to take it.
so, i think that obama will achieve this goal indirectly, by providing a more nurturing environment, and a stronger economy, with more opportunity.
but it would be nice if we could have this discussion at a more rational level. and it would be nice if people started to realize that understanding where we come from might help us understand where we are going. darwin rules.

[NYC_SKP]

17. Thank you for the post.

And for taking on the OP in that other thread.

There is something particularly offensive about playing race against itself as some have tried to do.

It's the worst kind of commentary, trying to take down an individual candidate and an entire race of people at the same time.

Beneath contempt, I was wordless with the OP. I'm glad you weren't and that you followed up with this post.

Thanks, really.

[woolldog]

19. wtf are you talking about?

"trying to take down an individual candidate and an entire race of people at the same time"?

[FrenchieCat]

20. I heart you......

[NYC_SKP]

21. Here ya go:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x6372463

Attempt to belittle the candidate AND potentially alienate voters, including black male voters, foment discord, etc.

Now listen, I'm not going to argue with anyone about this, but I just wanted to direct you to the post to which I referred.

Cheers.

[woolldog]

23. I didn't know posters weren't allowed to take exception

to some of the candidate's positions and speeches. Some of you are really disturbing me with this "Obama can do no wrong" attitude. It's scary. Not healthy.

I see nothing wrong with that OP and agree with it, actually. The assertion that it's designed to "bring down a candidate and an entire race of people" is so melodramatic I'm still not convinced you're serious.

[dkf]

24. I think its ironic that people in that thread were saying that not all black men go to Harvard blah

blah blah.

Well Obama's father did, and he still turned out to be absentee. So what he saw in his life was a Harvard Educated father who skipped out on his kid, vs. Michelle Robinson's father with MS and no college degree who was there for his kids even without that Ivy League education.

[jaysunb]

22. This is the way....

n/t