Reply #26: I'm not saying that two wrongs make a right - not at all [View All]

[EffieBlack]

I AM saying that it is disingenuous for anyone to suggest that the fact that Obama's race or Clinton's gender may be one of the criteria that some people are considering as a positive factor in their decision to vote for Obama or Clinton is not some kind anomoly or horrid aberration from normal procedure in presidential elections. People make their choices for president based on all sorts of reasons - many or even most of which have nothing to do with universally accepted objective "qualifications." We look at all sorts of things - where they were born, what state they grew up in, where they live, whom they married, what they look like, how much hair they have, where they went to school, whether they inspire us, whether they can give a good speech, in what generation they were born, whether they seem "cool," whether they appear to be a "grownup," etc.

In this instance, given the history of racism, sexism and exclusion in this country, it is perfectly appropriate, in my view, for someone to include as one of their subjective criteria the fact that a candidate is a minority or a woman. I find it very odd to hear people who apparently have never had a problem with the many other subjective criteria used to select a candidate, when faced with the possibility that a positive consideration of a minority's race or a woman's gender might be factored in with other criteria, suddenly insist that the ONLY acceptable criteria is the "content of their character."

I would never vote for a candidate solely because they are black or a woman. But if all other things are equal and I find more than one person to be otherwise qualified and acceptable to me, I will have no problem considering what positive effects on the country and the world would ensue with the election of a black or female president, along with many other subjective factors when making my decision.

Considering race or gender as a positive factor, when considered in light of our history and political structure, is not the same as voting FOR someone because of their race or gender and it is not even close to being comparable to voting AGAINST someone because of those characteristics.