Obama Says “Yes, We Can!” But Among Hispanic Voters: Can He?
His rallying cry echoes the late César Chávez, the Latino activist who inspired legions with three simple words, “Si, se puede!”
4 Responses to “Obama Says “Yes, We Can!” But Among Hispanic Voters: Can He?”
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February 12th, 2008 at 2:12 pm
Does anyone else see the irony here? Two liberal politicians working hard to win voters along racial and gender lines. Liberals accuse everyone else of being racist and sexist but doesn’t targeting voters along these lines point to racism and sexism within the ranks of liberals? Liberals have high-jacked the Democratic party and conservatives have high-jacked the Republicans. Maybe people with clear minds and good reasoning skills will see past the extremist groups and stand up to their parties. We’ll see if the American people choose the middle road in John McCain or choose an ultra-liberal or neo-conservative in the coming months.
February 12th, 2008 at 4:50 pm
Good article with a lot of excellent points especially with respect to the tradition from which most Latinos come-the one of color and race. From my twenty years in Latin America and from the many Latino friends I have here, I get the impression from a lot of them that they still regard “whites” only as the true “Americans.” It’s still difficult for a lot of Latinos to accept darker Americans as such and I believe that the colonized mentality of many former colonial peoples (Latinos included) still cause them to pause when they see a black person in a position of power or aspiring to one such as in the current presidential primaries. Of course many European Americans share that attitude which, of course, spring from another type of socialization. Cheers!
February 12th, 2008 at 7:31 pm
There is something I do not understand from the comments of my Latino brothers and sisters with respect to Senator Obama. Why do you think a White woman will represent your interests better than a man of color?
This so called friction between and among Latinos is something I grew up with in NYC. I am Puerto Rican. And I know first hand of the racism and color issues within the Latino community. These issues are the 800 pound monsters in the room that we refuse to talk about.
I am sad and glad that these issues are coming to forefront now. Maybe our community will finally begin to face itself.
Senator Obama is not the one playing the race card in this election. It is the Clintons. How can you trust anyone that plays race to win? How can a Latino with his or her brown skin trust a White woman that plays race against an African American? If she does that to Obama, what do you think she will do to you?
February 13th, 2008 at 3:07 pm
“Why do you think a White woman will represent your interests better than a man of color?”
What makes you think that the race or gender of a candidate dictates how they treat other groups? Are you conceding that Democrats can’t see past race and color lines? If you aren’t willing to make those assertions, I will. I don’t vote for or against anyone based on their race or gender and with such a philosophy, I find it impossible to vote for Obama or Clinton over McCain based on ideology, experience and ethics. Americans are expected to vote for the next president, not their favorite diversity profile.