by Toye Gillman

Created on: October 24, 2008

The answer to this question is yes. Senator McCain is provoking racism at his rallies. However, this is being done in such a covert way, that it leaves this question open for discussion. I say this because the subtle phrases he uses sometimes make me wonder, "What did he mean by that?" After I spend a little time pondering these quotes, I understand exactly what he meant.

The fact the most of the "Joe the Plumbers" out there will not recognize the comments as racist does not make them any less racist. The people John McCain speaks to in this racist "code" know what he means. I have been privy to discussions surrounding a comment that Senator McCain made at a rally shortly before the last presidential debate. Speaking of Senator Obama, he proclaimed that he was going to "whip his you know what." The discussions regarding this comment have amazed me.

At work, as the office was bustling, I was working, yet hearing the usual office banter in the background. I heard a man that I have always considered to be honest, fair, and intelligent say, "If you think that comment is racist, you are being a little too sensitive." In a call-in discussion on a radio program, a caller accused the host of purposely looking for racism in Senator McCain's stump speeches. The caller asserted that this is just a "saying" and that it shouldn't offend anyone and certainly did not offend him. Why would it? He is a white male.

When I think about whether the comment was offensive to me, personally, I come to the conclusion that it really doesn't matter. I am not one of the people Senator McCain meant to offend when making that statement. I am part of "White America." Think about whether this would be offensive to you, if your ancestors had been "whipped," literally by men like John McCain-men of power-white men. It puts a different spin on things, doesn't it?

At one of his town hall forums, Senator McCain amazed me once again. A woman stated that she believed Senator Obama was a terrorist and a Muslim. Senator McCain answered back that Obama was not a Muslim, but a "decent" person. I was astonished that John McCain had no idea of the implications of that statement. The appropriate answer, in my humble opinion, would be that it doesn't matter if Senator Obama is a Muslim. That doesn't mean he is not American. We do, after all, have Muslims who are American citizens, and I'm sure they are "decent" people. McCain's racism is instilled in himself so deeply that he can't even see that his own statements

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