Disappointed in Obama

I've been known to write the occasional glowing post about Barack Obama, but I won't shy away from pointing out an aspect of his campaign that has so far disappointed me: his repeated snubbing of Muslims. Obama declined offers from Keith Ellison, the first and only Muslim congressman, to speak on his behalf. Two Obama supporting Muslim women wearing head scarves were recently asked not to stand behind the candidate during a speech in Detroit for fear they might be caught by the TV cameras. Obama routinely visits churches and synagogues but won't be seen anywhere near a mosque. And his own website refers to the (false) claim that "Barack Obama is a Muslim" as a "smear". False? Obviously. A rumor spread in bad faith intended to appeal to xenophobic instincts? Certainly. But a smear? Only if you concede that there's something inherently wrong or undesirable about being a Muslim in the first place.

I understand that there are people out there actively trying to push the idea that Obama is a secret Muslim radical who, if elected, will enact Sharia law and try to destroy the United States from within. And I also understand that the number of Americans who draw little or no distinction between Islam and terrorism is unfortunately high. But Obama's response to this whisper campaign is both cowardly and stupid. Shunning public appearances that could be interpreted as supportive of Islam and labeling the word Muslim as a smear are tacit endorsements of anti-Muslim bigotry. It's cowardly because it's a transparent compromise on principle for the sake of political expediency.

And it's stupid because ultimately it's probably not very politically expedient either. I would imagine that the fraction of the American electorate who could be convinced that Obama is a Muslim is made up almost entirely of people who weren't going to vote for him anyway. More significantly, striking this defensive posture of denying the rumors but acquiescing to the bigotry behind them makes him look like a weak candidate. It makes him look like somebody who can be pushed around by the purveyors of this kind of crap. That, I would argue, is more likely to be politically damaging than a visit to a mosque would ever be.

Maybe I'm especially sensitive to this because the overwhelming majority of people I interact with on a daily basis are Muslims but I get tired of making excuses for this stuff. Even here in Niger, people are following this election in much greater detail than most Americans realize. It's not pleasant having to explain to Muslim friends why Obama has to have a website insisting that he's not Muslim, or why he can't be photographed with women wearing head scarves in the background.

John Cole has a good post on this as well.