Obama campaign volunteers -- not staffers, volunteers -- prevented two Muslim women in head scarves from sitting behind the candidate at his Al Gore-endorsement rally in Detroit on Monday. They shouldn't have done that, and I'm glad the campaign has apologized. Both before and since, Obama has posed for photographs with Muslim supporters in traditional dress. As Ezra writes, a sit-down meeting with the two women would be an even stronger gesture of outreach to the Muslim community.
But some commentators on the left remain quite riled up about this incident. At CampusProgress' new blog, Pushback, Masoud Shafaee writes:
What's most troubling about this incident is the campaign it's coming from. ...
Obama's repeated denials of his alleged Islamic faith are accurate but incomplete. Given that the presidential candidate has been praised for his much-heralded speech on race, it's surprising and somewhat disappointing that he hasn't come out to say, “No, I am not a Muslim, but what if I were? So what?” It appears that Islam has become the new communism, and “Muslim” the new “commie.” It needn't be so.
I agree with the ideology here, but unfortunately, I can't agree with Shafaee on the politics. Campaign rallies are highly rehearsed events. The supporters sitting on the dais are often chosen in advance and carefully placed alongside props such as campaign posters and American flags. That these two women got behind the candidate without prior approval suggests some sort of slip-up, though one that's not out of the ordinary when handling a large crowd. Race and ethnicity are a concern at televised rallies because, sadly, they have to be in our contentious political climate.
I remember distinctly that during one of Obama's primary night victory speeches (I can't recall which one specifically, there were so many!), almost every supporter seated behind him was African American. A few minutes into the speech, a very awkward looking young white man in a full suit appeared directly behind Obama, moving a few other faces out of the shot. It would be a pretty safe bet to assume he was sent there to change the visuals.
This stuff is ugly, but it's politics as a smart Democrat will play it against a Republican Party reliant upon identity politics to appeal to Americans' lesser selves.
--Dana Goldstein
