Obama Hanged in Effigy at George Fox University

28.9.08

Mike drew my attention to a story about race, racism, Obama, and Act Six at George Fox University in Oregon.

On Tuesday a "life size cardboard cutout" of Obama was found hanging from a tree on the Christian campus. A sign saying "Act Six reject" was attached to the effigy of Obama.

Act Six is an urban leadership program that targets Portland high school students and provides 10 scholarships to George Fox University.

Act Six is open to all students and is not a race-based scholarship but there is the perception that the scholarship discriminates against whites.

This incident marks the third time that a racist image of hanging has been found on an Oregon campus in the last 12 months. In the other two cases (Oregon State University and Reed College) the students involved said that they did not intend to be racist.

The fact that one does not have to intend to be racist for an act to be considered racist was obviously lost on these students.

If you read the comments here you will find some of the same thinking on the Obama effigy. Other comments raise the notion that programs like Act Six represent reverse racism.

George Fox University is working hard to contain the damage to its reputation. The fact that this incident happened at a Christian university is a sore point for sure.

But before we get carried away with the right wing Christain analysis it would be prudent to note that neither Oregon State University, and certainly not Reed College, can be considered right wing universities.

This issue is about whiteness and its self-involved notion that 10 urban-based scholarships represent racism toward whites. It is also about Obama, his blackness, his presidential bid, and how it threatens whiteness.

When I read about the Obama effigy it made me think again that McCain can't win this election unless racism is a decisive factor.

And I say this as someone who is not even remotely an Obama advocate.

Whiteness would be less restless if Black folks would just stick to dancing and sports, and leave the leadership business to whites.

Ridwan Laher

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