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Sunday, May 18

Mau-mauing the Democratic Party flak-catchers. Nation of Islam goes into overdrive to defend Barack Obama

But where O where was the Nation of Islam when Maryland Democrats were labeling Republican Michael Steele an Oreo cookie?

RezkoWatch has given me permission to cross-post their Farrakhan's Final Call on the victimization of Sen. Obama. Here it is:

Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.), frequently mentioned if not featured in Final Call—the Nation of Islam weekly newspaper published by Minister Louis Farrakhan—has increasingly been portrayed as the victim of voters who oppose him "simply because he is Black, and Democratic Party officials who will not support him because they do not think a Black man can win a general election," according to Askia Muhammad in the May 6, 2008, article No end to demonization of Obama?

In support of his contention, Muhammad wrote:

The campaign of Sen. Hillary Clinton, desperately behind in pledged convention delegates, popular votes, and the numbers of state primary victories, has successfully pinned a "Black militant" image on Sen. Obama, who ironically came to prominence in this campaign when he decisively won early campaign contests in the overwhelmingly White states of Iowa and New Hampshire.

Problem? It was Sen. Clinton who won in New Hampshire, not Sen. Obama. Including the primary states of Florida and Michigan, which Sen. Clinton won handily, and which must be counted in a 50-state election, it is Sen. Clinton who leads in the popular vote. RezkoWatch dares anyone to show one piece of evidence that Sen. Clinton or anyone associated with her campaign has "pinned" Sen. Obama with a "'Black militant' image."

A month earlier, Dr. Ron Walters, the Distinguished Leadership Scholar and Director of the African American Leadership Center and Professor of Government and Politics at the University of Maryland College Park, wrote April 1, 2008, about Sen. Obama's relationship with Rev. Jeremiah Wright, pastor of Trinity United Church of Christ, in "Blackening Obama":

This is a less than transparent attempt to do what race sensitive Whites always do to a high-flying Black figure in a White majority country who is about to gain some real national authority, they put him in a Black box.

On March 26, 2008, political science professor Robert T. Starks of Northeastern Illinois University was quoted as attributing Sen. Obama's lag in support from the Hispanic vote on the community's willingness to disassociate from Black people.

[Starks] said the overwhelming support for Sen. Clinton with Hispanics is because they were not as familiar with Sen. Obama. He also said that many Hispanics see themselves as "just another White immigrant group in America" like the Irish, Germans or other Europeans and they are "adapting their political behavior based on the American tradition," which is to stay away from any association or alignment socially or politically with Black people.

More than six weeks prior, on Super Tuesday, February 5, 2008, Ashahed M. Muhammad wrote:

The overwhelming support from Black voters in South Carolina demonstrated a rejection of the high profile push by former president Bill Clinton to inject race into the campaign as well as a parallel strategy aimed at winning support from Black voters who traditionally supported him and his administration.

Professor Starks also attributed Sen. Obama's "wave of support" in South Carolina on the "actions" of President Clinton and Sen. Clinton:

"The Clintons' themselves might have driven many Black people into the camp of Mr. Obama by the comments that they made," said Prof. Starks adding that he believes that this signals the rejection of the Clinton's influence and perhaps an end to the loyalty the political family has enjoyed from Blacks spanning two decades.

"Black people are going to take another look at the Clintons' at this point, especially if Mr. Clinton cannot contain himself. I'm convinced that his action, his talk, his craziness is going to drive more people into the Obama camp," he added.

Within only a few weeks Final Call readers, including countless members of the Nation of Islam, were told that Sen. Obama had been victimized by (1) both President and Sen. Clinton, (2) the hispanic community, (3) "race sensitive Whites", and (4) Sen. Clinton herself, who has allegedly "pinned a 'Black militant' image" on him.

Sadly, this message is no different than that fervently delivered by Sen. Obama's pastor, Rev. Wright in more than 20 years' worth of black liberation theology sermons. More sadly still, it is believed.

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