2008 Woodie Awards
USA: Have We Passed Our Past?
Gregory Lyon, Contributing Writer
Issue date: 3/10/08 Section: Op-Eds
Following a third place finish in the Florida primary elections, Democrat John Edwards withdrew himself from the presidential race. This comes after Edwards, a South Carolina native running on an anti-poverty populist platform, finished behind front-runners Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton in every state that has held a primary thus far, including South Carolina.
With Edwards, a white male, withdrawing from the race, the two leading Democratic nominees are for the first time in over 200 years of American politics, an African-American and a female. The cause as to why we have two minorities front-running the race is open for discussion but there are some possible answers. One answer may be that our country has realized that "white male" is not a presidential requirement. Another answer may be that following a tumultuous eight years of an administration hardly worthy of praise people want dramatic changes. Significantly, the answer may be that these are the two most qualified candidates for the job. This does not mean that decisions should be based on their race or gender, but for some reason the public has chosen to make that the focal point of the election.
Common questions of our contemporary society concerning this year's politics are whether or not we are "ready" for a black president or a female president. However, many citizens that do not feel the need to ponder these questions wonder why they are so prevalent among others. Why, after coming so far from the Civil War, Women's Suffrage, and Civil Rights movements is our social spectrum still looming with questions about the race and gender of a leader? The unnecessary emphasis that has been placed upon these two non-issues in the presidential race of 2008 is not only fueling digression from these candidate's actual platforms but is also displaying the intellectual immaturity of America by judging human beings cosmetically; something America has supposedly long since defeated.
Discussions about these candidates should be about their intellect, valor, ability, leadership, credentials, and personal statements about their platforms; race and gender should not even be considered, much less emphasized. This election serves as an assessment of just how far our country has come in the maturation process of universal humanism and social equality…values America was founded on. The assessment is not about who emerges the victor, whether it is a Democrat or a Republican, but more so how we as a country and a society treat and perceive our candidates. Will America show its true colors and judge based on ability or will we revert back to the days of our embarrassing past by using the labels "black" and "woman" (two words that should be eliminated from our political vocabulary when discussing our choices for the election) when evaluating the candidates? Have we as Americans passed our past? You decide.
With Edwards, a white male, withdrawing from the race, the two leading Democratic nominees are for the first time in over 200 years of American politics, an African-American and a female. The cause as to why we have two minorities front-running the race is open for discussion but there are some possible answers. One answer may be that our country has realized that "white male" is not a presidential requirement. Another answer may be that following a tumultuous eight years of an administration hardly worthy of praise people want dramatic changes. Significantly, the answer may be that these are the two most qualified candidates for the job. This does not mean that decisions should be based on their race or gender, but for some reason the public has chosen to make that the focal point of the election.
Common questions of our contemporary society concerning this year's politics are whether or not we are "ready" for a black president or a female president. However, many citizens that do not feel the need to ponder these questions wonder why they are so prevalent among others. Why, after coming so far from the Civil War, Women's Suffrage, and Civil Rights movements is our social spectrum still looming with questions about the race and gender of a leader? The unnecessary emphasis that has been placed upon these two non-issues in the presidential race of 2008 is not only fueling digression from these candidate's actual platforms but is also displaying the intellectual immaturity of America by judging human beings cosmetically; something America has supposedly long since defeated.
Discussions about these candidates should be about their intellect, valor, ability, leadership, credentials, and personal statements about their platforms; race and gender should not even be considered, much less emphasized. This election serves as an assessment of just how far our country has come in the maturation process of universal humanism and social equality…values America was founded on. The assessment is not about who emerges the victor, whether it is a Democrat or a Republican, but more so how we as a country and a society treat and perceive our candidates. Will America show its true colors and judge based on ability or will we revert back to the days of our embarrassing past by using the labels "black" and "woman" (two words that should be eliminated from our political vocabulary when discussing our choices for the election) when evaluating the candidates? Have we as Americans passed our past? You decide.
Be the first to comment on this story