Nov. 4, 2008 is a date that I will always remember fondly as one of the most uplifting experiences of my life. To watch America – a nation stained by centuries of prejudice and inhumanity – turn a great page of history into a brand new era, gaining renewed respect across the globe, is a moment that should give all Americans great pride, regardless of their political leaning. For me, however, it was a personal moment of jubilation, mainly because it came as a great relief. After watching all the ugliness come bubbling to the surface from the mouths of right-wing fringe elements, during rallies which were more against Obama than were for McCain, it reminded me so much of how deeply and emotionally divided this nation has become – and that there were many people who wanted this division to remain. As a teenager during the eighties, I vividly recall the new fear instilled by divisive voices that felt more and more empowered. Over the two decades I watched a “screw you” culture emerge stronger and more vibrant, bringing lunatic fringe views to the mainstream via conservative talk radio and now Fox News. Even after this mentality led to the horror of the terroristic bombing in Oklahoma City, the xenophobic closing off of a right-wing element from civil discourse has gained a foothold in our nation’s capital, effectively shutting down any possibility of constructive discussions in a venue where such discussion actually affects the daily life of every American.
For these reasons, I was one who originally felt drawn to George W. Bush when he was first elected. In a time when both sides of the legislature sorely needed to come together, his record of doing just this as a Governor in Texas made him a very promising figure of unification. Instead of doing this, however, he and his cronies ended up deepening the divide even further, selling an unnecessary and costly war, alienating the rest of the world and making America the least popular it has ever been, and furthering the destructive mentality of “if you’re not with me, you’re against me”. We now live in a country where anyone who disagrees with the Republican platform gets labeled with discussion-ending terms like “liberal” or “anti-American” or “unpatriotic”. Therefore, when I saw such terms as “traitor” and “kill him” being screamed out at McCain rallies, I knew that Obama was the only one of the two sides who shows any interest in ending this destructive divide and shows the most promise for bringing this country back together to the great American conversation.
But what about my deeply held belief in the immorality of abortion? What about Obama’s promise to support the Freedom of Choice Act, a bill with which I very much disagree? I am a renewed Catholic Christian. After witnessing the live birth of my four children, I have become more emotional in my belief that abortion is the murder of an innocent human being. And there are large sections of my Faith who are now in some kind of mourning in reaction to Obama’s election to the presidency.
This is the way I see it: there are much more important things, such as bringing the nation back together in a culture of civilized dialog. What good are my strongest beliefs and opinions if they just get lost in the cacophony of partisan bickering? What about other issues important to me, such as ending the death penalty for convicts, something that would certainly get lost in the “screw you” culture that has now penetrated the mentality of conservative Congressmen? And you can forget about banning firearms. It causes me great sadness to see co-parishioners and leaders of my Church obsessing over this one issue of pro-life versus pro-choice and judging the whole character of a candidate based on just that one issue. How can they forget that, in our crusade to save innocent lives, we might be helping perpetuate the continuing slaughter in a war that never should have been, and by further angering Islamic extremists further endangering the life of every American both overseas and at home? How can we be so tunnel-visioned, when there are bigger pictures to consider?
The reality is: there will always be disagreements between Americans. On issues such as abortion, we should accept that such disagreement will not go away in the foreseeable future. Same story on many other issues as well. In issues where Americans remain divided, the only realistic choice if we want to get anything accomplished is to come together in a spirit of cooperation. Yes, compromise might be necessary. Each side will have to sacrifice something. We will have to agree to disagree. But right now this country is not an environment where it is safe to agree to disagree. Therefore, before anything can be accomplished – whether it’s discouraging abortion or ending our wars – we need to fix this divide first. We need to get both sides talking again. We need to come together as Americans once again, not forcing opinions on everyone, but willing to work out our differences into something that can take this country forward. Otherwise it does not matter what I believe in.
And that’s why I have placed my hopes on Obama.
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