Column:

Obama might make King's dreams come true

By Trevor Turner

Published Oct. 24, 2008

On Aug. 28, 1963, one of the greatest pro-America men gave a speech at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. This man had a dream, that one day all Americans, regardless of race, sex or creed will have equal rights and opportunity. He had a dream that Americans would not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.

I believe we are very close to realizing Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s dream. Never before has a black man been able to get this close to the presidency without quickly being rejected because of his race.

I believe most Americans are truly judging Barack Obama by the content of his character and not the color of his skin.

However, we still have some kinks to work out. I believe after our major accomplishment in civil rights in the 1960s, America was quickly willing to label those gains as sufficient and Dr. King's dream accomplished. Obama's historic bid for the presidency has jumpstarted a national conversation about race, religion and how Americans really see each other. This conversation has revealed that Americans still hold unfair prejudices and the only way we can tackle this problem is to talk about it.

I bring this issue up because I am disturbed to see all the divisive language that has come up in this race. I came across a YouTube video of a man giving out bumper stickers at a McCain event that said "Obama for Change" but the 'C' was changed to an Islamic crescent moon and the 'G' into the hammer and sickle, which is associated with the former USSR. Now, it is ridiculous to call Obama a socialist, because if he's a socialist, America has been a socialist country for a very long time.

The real issue though is calling Obama a Muslim in a derogatory way. First of all, every sane American knows Obama is not a Muslim, but who cares if he were? Why did McCain have to quickly counter charges of Obama being an Arab with "no, he's a good person"?

Let them think he is a Muslim or an Arab. It shouldn't matter. Being a Christian is not a requirement to be president nor should it be a consideration. Being a good leader should be. I would vote for a gay Pakistani atheist if I knew she was a great leader and a good person. The only thing that should matter when electing an official to office is the person's record, stances on the issues and the ability to unite the country.

I am not voting for Barack Obama because of his race, I am voting for him because I believe he will move America beyond race. Electing him as our president will open more doors for all Americans and bring down the barriers that prevent us from moving forward. America isn't just the small towns with apple pie and Christmas. America is also downtown New York with lattes and Hanukkah. America is San Antonio with enchiladas and fiestas. America is Chicago with hummus and Ramadan. It is this fusion of culture that makes us American, and we should be proud of all of it.

Trevor Turner is a member of the MU College Democrats. He can be reached at tturner@themaneater.com.