Dear Editor,
There is something I thought about when Nelson Mandela died, but there was something that occurred during his memorial which I think I should first get out the way. I’m talking about that Castro-Obama hand-shake.
Look, there’s a time and place for everything, so why then was there all this brouhaha over Barack Obama shaking the hand of Raul Castro as if it was one of the most repugnant and sinful things ever done. Just reflect on some of the dotish comments that were made, as if these two men are not human beings.
Imagine being at the funeral of a great statesman, one who stood tall; who was beyond prejudice and beyond reproach; one who saw beyond the colour of skin; possessed the power of forgiveness; embraced human virtues and much more. Yet they expected Obama, the President of the greatest country on earth as they like to boast, at such a historic and momentous occasion to belittle himself, reduce his humanity, his standing by behaving meanly, and slighting another head of state. Lo and behold, some of them have shaken hands with some of the most depraved individuals, including cold-blooded murderers, but they wanted him to satisfy their baser desires, behave in a silly way and look small in the eyes of the world. But he confounded them all, and for that they got mad.
Obama was bold enough to make strong statements at that memorial that even the USA is a past master at. In any event what gives them the right to believe that they are more decent and smarter than he is? It’s funny that the things so many people believe in are hardly in accordance with the things they do.
Most presidents/leaders in their final term, tend to be less cautious or cagey, becoming more bold and open. Thus they often reveal things bottled up that have been nagging them, and Barack Obama is not going to be any different, as we have seen on CNN. The gloves are coming off – “Some don’t like me because I’m a black President,” which many of us knew long ago. He is not the kind of man to say things he has never experienced as a President; no matter how subtle, he is too wise not to spot it.
In any event he knew very well like most of us that the election of a black President in no way would have lessened racism in the USA. As one white man wrote: “He saw it every day from the time he announced his candidacy; he saw it within his own party during the primaries; in all ugliness during the general elections… and no matter how smart, decent, refined, how positive and optimistic his vision, how patriotic he was they all don’t matter because at the end of the day he was still black.
“And still he is expected to perform three times better than any other president in history, while they disdain him and thinks he has no right to litter the Oval Office with his skin colour.” Yet for all that they had the temerity to gloat over a handshake.
Yours faithfully,
Frank Fyffe
