Isn't it far more likely that Obama's camp didn't know who or what Donnie McClurkin stood for beyond his position as a gospel singer? Why the shallow posturing on the philosophic meaning behind his misstep, and why extrapolate that mistake into a shallow reading of black antigay religiosity? The assumptions in this article about the black community are offensive and reveal a peculiar desire to label several million individuals, who happen to share African ancestry, into a monolithic entity, who, among other things, do not attack homosexuals, because of our legacy of non violence, unlike our brethren in less enlightened countries. The assumption that Martin Luther King civilized our natural tendency to African violence and intolerance rather than capitalizing on the spirit of Christian virtue that has always been present within our community is "Heart of Darkness" rhetorical nonsense dressed in 21st Century clothing. For the record, Martin Luther King's plead for tolerance was meant more to check the kind of blanket assumptions exemplified in this article rather than as a self-regulating behavioral model for the black community. Very interesting assumption on Mr. Hannaham's part though.

Another interesting tidbit of information is that all blacks tend to look towards their preachers and gospel singers for moral guidance. Nevermind that not all blacks are Baptist or even, Protestant (some of us are actually Catholic as well), consider the mindbending idea that blacks are actually able to formulate complex moral philosophies that belie the simplicity of their rudimentary Christianity in ways similar to the vastly complicated moral stances of Irish Catholics. That's a revelation on par with Bill O'Reilly's discovery that not all Harlem blacks are gun-toting thugs! Blacks are capable of high moral reasoning??? Who would have thunk it?

Sigh, I believe that Obama should have been made aware of his mistake with McClurkin. However, I also believe that everything Obama does is placed under a social microscope for fear that he will "revert" to type, and express some unfortunately ignorant "black" belief, pushing bigoted liberals (oh yes, they exist) into the arms of Hilary Clinton, who isn't a stranger herself to racial pandering of the most obscene kind. When Hilary is attacked as fiercely for her antiunion associations, including hiring Mark Penn as a strategist, I will call it "even." However, as long as Hilary can court individuals who can actually do the country actual harm as opposed to Obama inviting an ignorant singer to a media event, excuse me if I focus more on the agenda behind the hysteria more than on Obama's actual mistake.

So, let's recap: Obama made a mistake. He has been called on it. Some members of the black community, like any other group, has its homophobes, and deserve constructive criticism, not assumptions dressed in condescension. Not all blacks are Protestant or are emotionally immature automatons manipulated by their religious leaders and gospel singers. Using black television programs as a barometer for all black thought and beliefs is as offensive as assuming all gays comprise a single personality and/or behavioral characteristics because one has watched "Will and Grace" a few times. Now, let's all take a deep breath and read something substantial, like Glenn Greenwald, shall we?

Sugarman said: no, Assezmalicieuse, GG is just another single-issue pro-gay advocate.

he just has Pam Spaulding do his obamabashing for him. being a lawyer, he is well, lawyerly and it's difficult to see that advocacy for gays is top priority (with a subtext of animus toward jews). he didn't like comments like this and banned me from the thread. oh well, doesn't matter, i see obama will get at least two votes but you can't avoid the feeling that, in the end, america gets the leaders it *wants.

Assez says: We'd have to agree to disagree on Greenwald. ;-) Although, the news that he supposedly has an animus towards Jews is a new one for me. (Maybe, he simply disagrees with some ideas enspoused by some individuals who happen to be Jewish. He is, after all, entitled to his own thoughts on such matters despite being Jewish himself. I certainly don't agree with all Catholics despite having been raised Catholic myself. However, I don't think I have an animus towards all Catholics, I just dislike some individuals who happen to be Catholic. There is a difference after all.) At any rate, I'm not antigay. I support gay rights in all capacities, including the right to marry in all 50 states. I simply dislike hypocrisy, and this article reeks of self righteous, politically correct racism par excellance in my humble opinion. If I must read an article denigrating Obama's association with McClurkin, there should be a few articles detailing the gay community's relative indifference to the Shirley Q. Liquors within their community as well. Fairplay is key.

Well, considering it is New England, I suppose we should be glad the girls weren't pilloried with filth til next Whitsuntide, but I am surprised that this sort of juvenilia was condoned by the adults in town.