Politico.com reports that campaign volunteers from Barack Obama's presidential bid asked two women in Muslim headscarves to move out from behind the podium in two separate incidents at a recent rally in Detroit. The volunteers wanted to make sure the headscarves were not in television shots or photographs taken at the event. Given certain events throughout the globe, one volunteer told a Muslim woman that it wouldn't be good " 'for [Aref] to be seen on TV or associated with Obama.' " Aref was one of the women with a hijab.
In another incident, a Muslim woman was told that nobody with any head-coverings would be allowed behind the podium.
This, of course, is made all the more sticky due to the fact that the world's largest Middle Eastern population outside of the Middle East is in southeastern Michigan, where the rally was.
Of course, the campaign (not the candidate) has apoligized to the two women concerned. However, I believe the uproar, had this been the Republican campaign would be considerable. There would be calls to have the candidate replaced, frankly. But there has no such outcry against Obama yet. The volunteers responsible should at least be asked not to help anymore.
Obviously, McCain's campaign has discriminated some - one Hispanic supporter was asked to sit behind the candidate to add "diversity" to the backdrop - but had it been anything as flagrant as what has been done by the Illinois Senator's campaign, McCain would be dismissed as a bigot. Or at least a candidate who allows bigots to participate in important aspects of his campaign.
So will they light the stakes under Obama? No. He's a Democrat.
5 comments:
Oh yeah, because Obama's had a muuuuch easier time with the media criticizing his character than McCain. McCain being portrayed as old (which he is) cannot even compare to the negative stereotypes and racism that Obama has had to combat from the beginning, with stupid people questioning his patriotism, his religious views, and accusing him of being a terrorist. While it's not okay for the campaign people who deal with the press set-up to tell certain people who can or cannot stand behind the podium because of their religious beliefs, it is not a fair comparison nor is it accurate to imply or state that Obama receives less criticism because he is a democrat.
Although it's my opinion that the media is largely favorable toward Democrats - except for talk radio -I'm also talking about a party that thrives on double standards.
One word: Chappaquiddick.
Obama hasn't even personally apologized, and there hasn't even been an outcry from the Democratic party about this. They'd be all over a Republican if he or she did it.
This episode - and Chappaquiddick - are perfect examples of that party's tolerance for transgressions committed by its heavy hitters (and I know this isn't nearly as bad as Chappaquiddick, but that's perhaps the best example of the double standard).
Yes, I know that Republicans haven't always maintained their standards. I'm not saying they have (Mark Foley rings a bell). But at least when they do something stupid, they generally get run out of office (mid-term elections, anyone?). And perhaps Republicans would also try to protect their candidate if he did something like this. In which case, shame on them.
As for the meida...I know that Republican lapdogs in the media have been all over Obama for this...but frankly, I don't think those guys are representative of the media as a whole. Check out a little book called "Bias" by Bernard Goldberg.
The Daily Show, a show often considered pro-liberal and even pro-Obama, even covered this. Now, they defended him a little, but not after mocking him and his slogan: "CHANGE...that Muslimy looking thing on your head."
I still have a hard time believing that the media has a "strong liberal bias" or whatever. As for the Goldberg book, well DUH he's gonna say that it has a liberal bias, him being an uberconservative and all. So that's not exactly a neutral/objective source. And while Fox News has issues of its own, the rest of the media hasnt been friendly to Obama for the majority of the campaign, with their oh-soo-appreciated coverage on Pastor Wright and the whole "is a black man black enough?" crap. When McCain gets endorsed from a nutty pastor, no one jumps all over him and then gives the crazy pastor tons of airtime.
I think it would be safe to say that instead of a political bias, it's more that the vast majority of American news media (in all of its manefestations), doesn't really give a shit about journalistic integrity and instead would rather trivialize or misrepresent just about everything important that happens.
That said, GO BBC and Al-Jezera English (cuz i cant speak arabic) and the gigantic head of Ted Koppel!
"Obama hasn't even personally apologized"
Actually...
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