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Obama heckled at Florida town hall meeting

The issue of race has swirled it's way to the forefront of this campaign, again. For Senator Obama, in my opinion, it's a distraction that keeps him from expressing his views and to introduce policies on what he hopes would be his presidential duties. The media has pushed race to the forefront and shifted the attention away from political issues to race issues. Analysts, reporters and past campaign staff go head to head on which candidate is playing the race card and who brought it up first.
What Obama should do, and I'm sure that his advisors tell him otherwise, is to just say:

"Look, I am a Black man running for President. Get over it. Let's focus on these national and world issues that affect us and work toward a common goal."

If I'm not mistaken, wasn't Queen Elizabeth beseiged by naysayers? Didn't she reign for something like, forty years?

Don't get me wrong, I believe the issue of race in today's society are highly relevant issues to acknowledge and to have in depth discussions to get people on the same page. For example, here in Myrtle Beach the hotly debated May Bike rallies is a race related issue and let's not forget there's still that Confederate Flag issue in the state capital.

This morning, I'm watching MSNBC and the network switches to the Obama town hall meeting in Florida where a couple of people began raising a ruckus behind the Presidential candidate as he is speaking. He handles the situation well, offers them a chance to voice their views during the Q&A, and he continues his speech.

The hecklers are speaking out, from what I've gathered, about the lack of Obama's voice in regards to the African-American community. MSNBC, then cuts away from this LIVE event and turns its attention to another story. That's acceptable, it's a news organization, but their follow up is highly suspect.

What's my point? Well, recent news reports say that Obama is taking some serious heat because he hasn't addressed African American issues, and this group, The Online Voice of the International African Revolution, brought up those points. After about an hour, the MSNBC follow-up appeared and, as usual, the edited version appeared. The media only pulls the soundbites that fit their spin. If you watched the edited segment, you get a disjointed question from one of the protestors and an edited version of Obama's response which ends with a list of ethnic groups and leads you to believe that Obama hasn't really answered the question. Hence, all of the heat he takes for not addressing African American issues. After a bit of online searching, MSNBC has posted the online excerpt here. Its an edited version also, but it gives you a better idea of the exchange.

The 2008 State of The Black Union

Reclaiming Our Democracy, Deciding Our Future
Tavis Smiley's "State of the Black Union" was held in the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans, LA. The forum was lively as it was educational. Dick Gregory was in top form as his passionate rhetorical skills utilized humor, sadness, anger and enlightenment to the audience of young and old. The panel of activists, intellectual, religious, and political who's who came together in the symposium to enlighten, empower and engage in talks about the pressing issues and events that affect the black community.

The South Carolina Congressional Black Caucus Institute Democratic Primary Presidential Debate

It was U.S. Congressman and House Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-SC) who was instrumental in bringing an international and political spotlight to not only South Carolina, but to the African American voting potential.

“This is our third debate in South Carolina. We opened up this primary season with a historic debate at South Carolina State University, an HBCU (Historically Black College/University) that people thought would not be capable of hosting a debate of this magnitude, and it did extremely well. I’m told by Google that by 10am the morning after the debate, they got 1.3 million hits on South Carolina State University. That was incredible. We followed with a second debate, this time at The Citadel, and it came out magnificently. For our third debate, we approached the Congressional Black Caucus and asked them to help us, the good people of South Carolina, with our number one industry, tourism. Help up get certain issues, contentious issues, behind us, and I went to Congresswoman Kilpatrick, Chair of The Congressional Black Caucus and to Congressman Bennie Thompson, Chair of The Congressional Black Caucus Institute and I said to them, “As the Institute goes forward with it’s planning for a nationally televised debate, whoever you partner with, please consider a site in South Carolina.” "Brad Dean and the leaders here in Myrtle Beach approached me with an idea of hosting the debate here. I told them that I would do my best, but I would have to have the blessings of Kilpatrick and Thompson.”

The South Carolina Congressional Black Caucus Institute Democratic Primary Presidential Debate

South Carolina was host to three Democratic debates; the first was at South Carolina State University in Orangeburg, SC, the second was at The Citadel in Charleston, SC and the third, here in Myrtle Beach.


“A lot of people deserve the credit,” says Brad Dean, President and CEO of the Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce, “and we’re delighted to have The Congressional Black Caucus and The Congressional Black Caucus Institute, they have been tremendous partners. But, the person in particular who deserves a lot of gratitude and has been instrumental in bringing this here is Congressman Jim Clyburn. He has done far more for the Myrtle Beach area than we will ever know. When we needed his support in bringing this debate to Myrtle Beach, he stepped up and said, “I will help make this happen.”

The South Carolina Congressional Black Caucus Institute Democratic Primary Presidential Debate

Myrtle Beach, South Carolina played host to two Presidential debates, and their primaries, in which the power of partnerships played a pivotal role.

“We want to make sure, and in the partnership that’s already been developed, that our debate is second to none,” says U.S. Congresswoman Carolyn C. Kilpatrick, Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus. “We want a change, and all of them (the presidential candidates) are talking about change. So we’re ready to be your partner to build a new America.”

The South Carolina Congressional Black Caucus Institute Democratic Primary Presidential Debate

The 2008 Presidential campaigns must have taken a chapter or two from Congresswoman Chisholm’s handbook. Recent CNN polls suggest that the 18-28 year old voters are having their say and putting their vote to use by participating heavily in this presidential election. Here in South Carolina, the African American vote was extremely crucial to, “test the Presidential candidates in a state where nearly half the voters are African American,” says U.S.Congressman Bennie G. Thompson, Chair of The Congressional Black Caucus Institue.

“To have the debate January 21st was to honor the memory of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. “More significantly, here in South Carolina, from the Institute’s perspective, is that this is an area where a significant number of Democratic voters will be African American.”