Face the truth and honor it!

By Dr. E. Faye Williams
TriceEdneyWire.com Columnist

Anyone unwilling to face the fact that RACE is the 2000-lb. gorilla in the room of America’s psyche is either a fool or plays one. There, I said it, and all of us who wish to see this country live up to its full potential must deal honestly with that fact. RACE is central to our national dysfunction. We must do this before we lose the opportunity to finally come together for our collective good.

The November 4th election is a focal point for our willingness to confront our common dilemma. It would be dishonest for me to recommend a starting point for this confrontation at a place other than the respect and treatment afforded President Obama. It would be a travesty to attempt closure to our national nightmare without making a sincere effort to compare and contrast the fact and the vision of the President and his legislative supporters with the goals and objectives of the “disloyal opposition.”

Any president — yes, white president — who’d realized the same successes and achievements as President Obama would be lauded as one of the best presidents in the nation’s history. If for no other reason than his leadership through the threat of the worst economic crisis the nation has faced since “The Great Depression,” he should receive such acclaim. BUT, there is more!

Other than the unreasonable, reactionary right minority that clings to the mantra of “Tea Party,” what rational person would condemn a fellow-citizen to illness and disease solely by virtue of his or her bank balance? President Obama’s Affordable Care Act has eliminated that fate for millions of Americans who are too impoverished to afford medical care or who have pre-existing conditions. Even young adults who’re in the earliest stages of employment can receive medical insurance coverage with their parents’ plan until they can get on their feet.

President Obama has refused to sit idly by and watch our nation’s military mindlessly shuffled into one international conflict after another. He has withdrawn our forces from harm’s way over the protests of politicians whose ulterior motive appears to be the enrichment of their corporate cronies.

The Wall Street wealthy should be ashamed of allowing their less literate brethren in the general population to criticize President Obama’s management of the economy. These folks have seen record growth in the stock market and have realized record profits. To their discredit, they’ve not reinvested these profits into growth opportunities for the economy.

In the spirit of full disclosure, I‘m sure Black voters will support the President and those legislators who support his agenda. I’m willing to step out on faith that Black people and other voters of color will again vote in record numbers as they did in 2008 and 2012. I know the majority of people of color and whites who mobilized for CHANGE will not willingly surrender the fight to the forces of repression and regression.

The challenge in this election is to get white voters who, for no other reason than the color of his skin, reject the advantages the President’s policies now afford them.

White women, who’re 51% of the population must honestly reflect and assess the future that Republican policies will bring to them. Much like they were when Africans were chattel, the Republican agenda would bring women and their reproductive autonomy under the benevolent dictates of their spouses or other males.

The recent denouncement of the minimum wage by Gov. Chris Christie should serve as a warning for all who struggle from paycheck to paycheck.

In the above circumstances, the reluctant must decide if they’ll choose to let their hatred of one man or of a group of people to push them over the brink of survival into personal oblivion.

This article originally published in the November 3, 2014 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.