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The Africa in us and the Message of Barack Obama’s Victory By Omoba Oladele Osinuga Dagenham, Essex, UK
November 4 in the year of our Lord 2008 is a landmark date in the history of race relations in the United States in particular and the world in general. This day no doubt marks a day that would stand out as one of days when you would be asked where you were on the day Barack Obama was elected to the office of the President of the United States of America. Just like I ask my parents do they remember the day John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King were assassinated. Or for the present generation where were you when Nelson Mandela was released from prison or when the walls of Berlin came down. I say his victory by a true son of soil, a son of Africa, a son of Kenya, a Luo, the son of Nyangoma-Kogelo expresses and manifests the Africa in us. What does his victory portray for our continent or indeed what does it portray for Nigeria. Reading his book ‘Dreams of My Father’ you feel an affinity with Barack, the soil, the air of Kenya, the sayings, the getting ‘lost’ when he describes his first visit to his father’s land you visualise this image and it reminds you of the man growing up in the streets of Dakar, Accra, Lagos, Kinshasa, Nairobi, Windhoek and Johannesburg.
I must confess that it took me quite a while to support Barack because like other pessimists I did not think the United States could elect an African American as President. However from the moment Senator John Edwards withdrew from the race, I fully endorsed his candidacy. As I expressed this time in November 2004 in my article, ‘United States Democracy in Action and its relevance to Nigeria’ http://nigeriaworld.com/articles/2004/nov/061.html, I said, ‘I am optimistic that the future of the Democratic Party lies in the hands of the young guns of leaders with Edwards at the helm leading people like the young newly elected Illinois Senator Barack Obama’. My faith and belief in his ability, visions, aspiration remains constant. From that time on I registered with BarackObama.Com and with the Nigerian www.obamanigeria.org. Barack Obama is indeed the first president of Internet age.
Obama victory to borrow the words of the great Chief Obafemi Awolowo, African Nationalist, in light of the legacy of the outgoing Bush presidency is aptly captured as, ‘after, the present twilight of democracy, individual freedom and the rule of law, will change or might change into utter darkness. But after darkness – and this is a commonplace – comes a glorious dawn. Page 198 Adventures in Power Book One: My March through Prison by Obafemi Awolowo Macmillan Nigeria Publishers, 1985. Obama’s victory represents a glorious dawn on how America is perceived in the world.
Barack Obama has shown once again that great campaigns in the words of Mario Cuomo, Democratic Governor of New York 1983 - 1994 are run ‘in poetry’ and when you start to govern you that in ‘prose’. Great Campaigns are won on ideas, intellect and hope. This ironic as it seems was how our politics was during the African golden generation age of leaders involved in the struggle against colonialism. Barack’s dad was a product of that age. Esteemed leaders such as Leopold Sedar Senghor, Obafemi Awolowo, Kwame Nkrumah, Nnamdi Azkiwe, Joshua Nkomo, Patrice Lumumba, Amilcar Cabra, Julius Nyerere, Kenneth Kaunda, Govan Mbeki to mention but a few. Of the men I mentioned only the last three are still living. These were giant men of ideas who won the argument against colonialism, imperialism and lately apartheid. These men were in the main, our Philosopher-Kings. Barack Obama is now our contemporary Philosopher-King. His vision, ideas and policies are outlined in three books, Dreams from my father: A Story of Race and Inheritance, Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream and Change we can believe in: Barack Obama’s plan to renew America’s promise. A companion to understanding his philosophy is the brilliant autobiography by David Mendell titled Obama: From Promise to Power. Obama has grabbed our past heroes mantle and actually gone further because he led a coalition of rainbow people, the perfect campaign. His towering intellect was apparent throughout the campaign. The great Martin Luther King said, ‘I revolted against the emotionalism of much Negro religion, the shouting and stamping, I didn’t understand it, and it embarrassed me. I often say that if we, as a people, had as much religion in our hearts and souls as we have in our legs feet, we could change the world’. Page 15 The biography of Martin Luther King JR. Edited by Claybourne Carson, Abacus 1998. Barack Obama has the heart and soul to change the world, MLK envisaged.
The measure of the character and strength of conviction are strong attributes of leader. Obama by his stance against the war in Iraq which was quite a courageous feat for a politician in the United States has passed the test espoused in the words of MLK, ‘the ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of convenience, but where he stands in moments if challenge, moments of challenge, moments of great crises and controversy. And this is where I choose to cast my lot today’. Pages 342 – 343. The biography of Martin Luther King JR.
Senator John McCain, Barack’s opponent fought a valiant campaign, in his concession speech he told Americans not to, ‘despair’….but believe in the promise and greatness of America…in making history’. This is a lesson that African and indeed Nigerian politicians need to emulate. John McCain who had traded on his long service experience, strong qualities in national security and prisoner of war status in Vietnam was always like a boxer on the ropes against the eloquence, intellect and likeability of Obama. Jeffrey Toobin, CNN Analyst summed it up when he said John McCain came across like an angry man and Americans do not vote for an angry man. In all the three presidential debates, Obama report card is akin to that of the words of a member of the Leipzig’s humanist fraternity during the debate in June – July 1519 between Martin Luther and Johann Maier Von Eck was, ‘still in vigour of manhood. His voice rings clear and distinct…in his manner and social intercourse he cultivated and affable, not at all gloomy and arrogant, always in a good humour, in company agreeable, cheerful and jocose. No matter how hard his opponent threatens him, he is always confident and joyous.’ Page 124 Out of Storm by The Life and Legacy of Martin Luther by Derek Wilson, Hutchinson.
This election has defied all expectations - the highest turnout of over 65% in over a century of voting age population. It also put to bed the so called Bradley effect, so called because some pollsters and analysts were of the view that poll ratings of African American are artificially high when compared to the actual voting returns. The Bradley effect has as those close the action and have been involved in similar election campaigns have told us, was over stated. Douglas Wilder the first elected US African American Governor of Virginia 1990 – 1994 and now Mayor of Richmond, Virginia since 2005, the recent Stanford University polling survey in September and V. Lance Tarrance, Jr the Pollster of George Deukmejian who defeated Bradley in 1982 and 1986 actually stated that the Bradley effect was defective due to flawed data analysis and actually understated Obama’s lead as evidenced in the election results. Wilder has on record when interviewed this week on UK’s Channel 4 television said that he never for one minute when he contested the election believed his lead was as high as it was in the opinion polls.
Whilst other experts were cautious only Professor Larry J. Sabato, Director, University of Virginia, Center for Politics correctly predicted that Obama would by the Electoral College margin of over 300 Electoral College votes. Similarly President Clinton a man with a great political antenna like there is on other correctly predicted in September when Barack Obama paid him a courtesy visit in his Harlem office that, Obama “will win and win pretty handily”.
Great African American martyrs Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, Medgar Evers and illustrious pacesetters academic W.E.B DuBois, leading Civil Rights Lawyer later Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, Lawyer and Commerce Secretary Harold H Brown have now handed the touch of change to Barack Obama. In essence the election of Obama is a poignant piece of history. Where this is totally absent in political campaigns in Nigeria, Obama was able to wield the true like story of Ann Nixon Cooper, an African America woman community activist who is 106 years old. In 1980, Cooper received a community service award for her activism from Atlanta's WXIA-TV. In 2002, she was awarded the Annie L. McPheeters Medallion for community service from the Auburn Avenue Research Library on African American Culture and History. As a centenarian, Cooper is the oldest member of the Atlanta Chapter of the Links, Inc. and has been a member of the Utopian Literary Club since 1948. http://www.thehistorymakers.com/biography/biography.asp?bioindex=739
Obama in his acceptance taking us through a vivid century of American history, travails and triumphs, said of Ann Nixon Cooper,
“She was born just a generation past slavery; a time when there were no cars on the road or planes in the sky; when someone like her couldn't vote for two reasons — because she was a woman and because of the color of her skin.
And tonight, I think about all that she's seen throughout her century in America — the heartache and the hope; the struggle and the progress; the times we were told that we can't and the people who pressed on with that American creed: Yes, we can.
At a time when women's voices were silenced and their hopes dismissed, she lived to see them stand up and speak out and reach for the ballot. Yes, we can.
When there was despair in the Dust Bowl and depression across the land, she saw a nation conquer fear itself with a New Deal, new jobs and a new sense of common purpose. Yes, we can.
When the bombs fell on our harbor and tyranny threatened the world, she was there to witness a generation rise to greatness and a democracy was saved. Yes, we can.
She was there for the buses in Montgomery, the hoses in Birmingham, a bridge in Selma and a preacher from Atlanta who told a people that "We Shall Overcome." Yes, we can.
A man touched down on the moon, a wall came down in Berlin, a world was connected by our own science and imagination. And this year, in this election, she touched her finger to a screen and cast her vote, because after 106 years in America, through the best of times and the darkest of hours, she knows how America can change. Yes, we can.
America, we have come so far. We have seen so much. But there is so much more to do. So tonight, let us ask ourselves: If our children should live to see the next century; if my daughters should be so lucky to live as long as Ann Nixon Cooper, what change will they see? What progress will we have made? “.
President Clinton campaigning for Barack Obama in Toledo Ohio Friday, 31 October 2008 again drew on the lesson in history about how different the Republican party of Abraham Lincoln was now to the present Republican party and how the Democratic Party from Franklin Delano Roosevelt New Deal to Kennedy and Lyndon Baines Johnson Civil Rights era the Democrats represented agents of positive change. Clinton said, “"We now know that it's not just about personalities. It's about ideas, it's about philosophy, it's about programming, and their deal has run out of energy and run out of time - it doesn't work". Obama, Clinton said was "brilliant, informed and a servant for the people."
Abraham Lincoln famous quote was again in play last night, when Obama acknowledging that change came bottom up not top down and he owes his success to the people of America. Obama said, “a government of the people, by the people and for the people has not perished from this earth. This is your victory”.
The turmoil in the markets, the economic downturn in the words of Harold McMillan British Prime Minister 1957 – 1963, ‘Events dear boy events’ won the election for Obama. However have we grasped the lessons of this symbolic Victory? The African in us places a high premium on the values of education, hard work, family and the community. These are values is instilled in Africans which Barack Obama has exemplified in his electoral victory. How could how our politicians in Nigeria and Africa react to his electoral success. It shows quite unlike in our country that good governance and democratic principles are cherished, acknowledged and lauded by the populace whose consent are sought by the person seeking office. Democracy is a sacred contract between the governor and the governed. It is a mutual consent between these two parties. It is quite a shame that when we analyse elections in Nigeria we are unable to identify any issues, policies or ideas. It is completely non-existent. Other than the politics of money in ‘Ghana must go bags’ those stripped blue and red check polystyrene material bags common in Nigeria used in stuffing Naira for politicians. This is politics of the highest bidder. When cynics say that Barack Obama won because of his record campaign funds they fail to realise that most of the contributions to his funds were by supporters who donated under $100. This is quite unparalleled in Nigeria where we are accustomed to moneybags and the big money spenders winning elections. Is there a way forward, we ask? I find it strange that bar a few young politicians, a Governor here a Speaker there could an Obama be created in Nigeria or indeed I dare say another African Country without reliance on old party machinery, we cannot yet say Uhuru of ideas and real politick. The choice however is ours to change our mindset, our psyche, to that of our fellow African, saying, ‘Yes we Can’ transform our villages, our societies and our Country. The agenda for change requires a vision, a sense of purpose, clarity, and direction. Change does not come easy however we need to have a rallying clarion call to engineer this change. Our generation should grasp this challenge and punch above its weight.
Omoba Oladele Osinuga is Contributing Editor of Africanlives.com |