President Carter's opinion on Obama or when it is best to not state the truth

[Elizabeth Ross]

Last year, when the field of Democrat candidates for the presidency thinned to Obama and Clinton, I immediately went into panic mode. "It is too soon!" kept running through my head like a manic mantra. Like Edwin Yoder - Pulitzer Prize winning columnist from the now defunct Washington Star - pointed out in his memoirs, it is never a good thing when significant social change is forced before its time. He and I are in agreement that the civil rights movement pushed the issue of racial equality too far too fast. It not that either of us believe that racism is appropriate on any level - we just realize that forcing social change too quickly results in backlash, often of the violent sort.

And that brings me back to the presidential campaign of 2008. Bluntly, the U.S. is not ready for a black man or white woman in the White House. I knew that Bush & Co. had spent too much of America's good will toward the GOP, and that change was in the air. So when it came down to Obama and Clinton, all I could think was "ready or not, here it comes."

Now, unfortunately, my predictions seem to be coming true. The race card is coming up again, thanks to President Carter, and he is right. But that doesn't necessarily mean that he should have said it.

This is beyond being politically incorrect. It is stating the obvious when no one needs it to be said. Bringing up the fact that there is still a great deal of racism in America right now is back pedaling. Over the years I have often steered candidates for office away from various battles on the campaign trail. Invariably, it was because the candidate was dead set on fighting a battle that wasn't worth fighting, or simply couldn't be won. Carter pointed out one of the latter.

Eradicating racism in America will not happen in my lifetime. We may come close, and my children may see it, but I know I won't. It isn't anyone's fault, and there isn't a quick solution out there. The bottom line is that our society needs more time to move beyond the attitudes of the past and present. Change rarely happens in quick leaps, and when it does, continued change moves much more slowly. We have already interrupted the natural evolution of our society from one that proclaimed that blacks were subhuman to one that considers blacks as equal to whites more than once. Expecting the people to change more quickly is naive at best.

[Elizabeth Ross]

On this one, it is more about "right comment, right person, wrong time, and wrong context" than anything else. Honestly, I hated saying that impatience for action is inappropriate right now, and personally, I'm of the opinion that Rep. Wilson should have been censured (calls for resignation wouldn't have been out of the question either.) But, saying this now implies that there should be a reply from President Obama (and undoubtedly he'll make one at some point in the near future.) What President Carter failed to remember when he said this was that the job of President is busy enough without getting into all of this, and he is encouraging activists to expect real action from President Obama when they shouldn't. President Obama has not come out saying that he is going to "fix" racism in this country, and rightfully so. Against his wishes, he is continually being anointed as the messiah for the cause. The best thing that individuals seeking to put an end to racism in America should do at this point is to take cues from President Obama when it comes to forcing his involvement in the cause. He is letting things lie because he quite bluntly doesn't have time to deal with it. This post isn't a rationalization of racism - it is a statement of truth. There is no magic instant cure for racism, and President Obama isn't going to stop it. It will take hard work, and many years. I was asked elsewhere how I know this, and the simple answer is that it will take changing the attitudes of the children and grandchildren of today's racists. I can't claim that I understand fully the plight of any non-white people, but I do understand fully the strength of hatred. I've received threats on my life, my home, and my children in the past for putting material out in the public eye that implied that it is wrong to be closed-minded and bigoted. There have been circumstances where I have been attacked physically for stating that racism, sexism, and other "-isms" are wrong. That is why I said what I did in this post. I know of no quick way to stop that kind of hatred - no amount of rational and logical argumentation will reach people who are of that state of mind. The best I can do is keep putting material out there in the hope that the children and grandchildren of those people will see it, and think for themselves. It is fighting the good fight, but it is a fight that I won't win - neither will anyone else from my generation. But we can make it easier for the next generation to continue. I have a sneaking suspicion that is what President Obama is thinking right about now as well. He has done his part, and no one should be forcing him to do more than he is willing to do. He has a big enough job right now.

[Pamela Lyn]

As soon as I read the title of this post three quotes by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. immediately came to mind.

"In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends."

"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter."

and

"The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy. " Martin Luther King Jr., Strength to Love, 1963

Former President Carter not only spoke the truth but said what needed to be said by a man with his background and experience. So often when an African American points out racism, many people just chalk it up to being "overly sensitive". However, when Pres. Carter, a white, male, pre-baby boom, Southerner calls racism for what it is it can't be casually ignored.

I also feel that your premise that "we have already interrupted the natural evolution of our society" is clearly a biased view. After all, if you are Native American you believe that the natural order of society was destroyed when the first white settlers stepped on the shores of the Americas. If you are of African American descent, the order of your society was destroyed when your ancestors were dragged from Africa in chains. If you are British the natural order of things was destroyed when the colonies revolted. And if you are of Mexican heritage, your society was disrupted when white settlers moved to Texas and California.

I agree that change rarely happens in quick leaps. But it never happens if people just sit back and wait for it.