Another Tim Wise Article

The debate is raging about what Obama will be able to do and there's quite a bit of hating on him before he even gets to the White House. I've said from day one that this election was about much more than Obama, in the vein of Dead Prez' It's Bigger than Hip Hop.

Some of my colleagues have been having this same debate, and I agree with Tim Wise here. Many would rather be against than for something....and that's the problem.

Read article here:

Are Words (and History) Really That Hard to Understand?....
A Final Response to the More-Radical-Than-Thou Critique of Obama Supporters
By Tim Wise
November 11, 2008

RE: criticisms, I offer part of this"final" note i give to my classes:

I once heard Iyanla Vanzant say "Be against nothing...just be clear what you are for"... I think this really is a motto to live by...when we concentrate on what we are against (racism, sexism, white supremacy, capitalism, fascism, homophobia, etc.), we frame the struggle in terms of negatives and sooner or later can lose the true purpose of the struggle...LIFE...


"Life is your right..so we can't give up the fight..get up stand up"...Bob Marley...

...If we frame the struggle in terms of life affirming principles - peace, justice, love, sustenance...our eyez remain on the prize...

...do you want justice or do we want to end white supremacy? how you answer that question is key to victory.

Many enslaved Africans were able to keep a spirit that their slaveholders could neither understand nor possess due to iniquity (lack of righteousness). so who really is free and who really is in bondage?

...so while I want justice for all oppressed people, my pity is saved for those that believe living a lie gets them anything. I have no worries because I know truth and righteousness bring freedom that no money or power can ever buy or demand and no shackles can ever keep in bondage.

We must fight...but fight FOR us, not AGAINST anyone or anything.

The Truth.

Talking to my classes this morning, I was glad to hear the excitement in their voices coupled with the realism of the situation. They honored the magnitude of the history just made. They understood they made it happen. Their expectations were realistic and no one expected any real change to come from top to bottom. They understood Obama will not change the world. I just hope they know, they can.

This article by Tim Wise is a MUST read. It is the truth.


Good, and Now Back to Work:
Avoiding Both Cynicism and Overconfidence in the Age of Obama
By Tim Wise
November 5, 2008