Kerry: Obama Can Bridge Divide With Islam "Because He's A Black Man"

MSNBC reports:

Speaking of the race speech from Tuesday, Obama supporter John Kerry gave an interview with a local N.H. paper, reports NBC/NJ's Mike Memoli. In it, Kerry said the color of Obama's skin makes him uniquely qualified for president and even reach out to the moderate Islam world. During an interview with the New Bedford Standard Times, portions of which were posted on YouTube, John Kerry says bluntly that Barack Obama has the potential to "bridge the divide in religious extremism" because he is black....

...The Massachusetts senator said Obama has an ability to perhaps even empower moderate Islam "to be able to stand up against the racial misinterpretation of a legitimate religion." Asked by a reporter what gave Obama the credibility to do so, Kerry said, "Because he's African American. Because he's a black man, who has come from a place of oppression and repression through the years in our own country. We only broke the back of civil rights, Jim Crow, in the 1960s here. Everybody in the world knows this is a recent journey for America too. And everybody still knows that issues of skin and discrimination still exist."

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Comments

[williamina]

Kerry says, "Muslims was for Obama before they was against them."

[avicenna]

The fact that most of the world's Muslim's aren't African Americans, it was a very Othellian comment from Kerry - and I suppose it has to be taken to be the belief of most "white" politicians that being "black" would make one more accessible to those who follow other world religions other than Anglicized Christianity. A more apt speculation would be Obama's name - which is a traditional Arab name - would make it harder to inspire an "us" vs "them" anger-driven animosity from Arab countries. More importantly, Obama's objective, educated, and fair approach to problems and his belief that no pigs are more equal then others - would make hate a hard emotion to justify further carnage. Currently - with Bush's words and obvious disregard of Arab/Muslim life and words from the dark ages and the Crusades - they have plenty of ammo to go on to rattle disgruntled young Muslim men who have no home, water, or future prospects because of the actions of the American gov't to blow themselves and others up without much contemplation.

[Gary47]

Thanks for that enlightening gem that'll help us move beyond whatever racial tension the country might still be harboring.­..

[Sylmason]

you refer to the next president of the USA as an enlightening germ. You will eat those words one day, you idiot. The same man you speak ill of just might be the same man who saves this miserable, sorry, sinful country who houses the most ignorant and racists people in all the world.

My question to you is........­..........­.........H­ow welcome will hillary be under a saudi tent trying to bridge the divides between this coun try and the middle-east? John Mccain is as misinformed as Bush. That says it all.

[WomanInOrangeSweater]

Good lord, you didn't even read the post correctly before you went off on your self-righteous name calling mini-rant.
Read Gary's post again. Maybe then you'll have the decency to apologize.
How ironic that you're the one talking about other candidate's being misinformed. Jeez.

[jdm58]

The more we try to dig ourselves out of a hole, the deeper we end up in it. Well, Obama opened up the dialog about race, stating that it was time to face up to our insecurities over it. So now we're going to hear from every idiot that agrees to get in front of a camera, discuss their opinion on race, and why they think Obama will or will not win because of it. To top it off, Kerry is now discussing race, through the prism of Islam (gee, the Republicans ought to send him a check, don'tcha think?). Does he really believe what he is saying, or is he just trying to appear relevant?

[AnninCA]

Plus......­...look at how this is so lop-sided. Hillary's surrogate gets blasted because she mixes up Ohio with Iowa in her speech. Kerry really was trying to sell a fairy-tale.

It's just too bizarre at this point for real people. Obama's solutions are worse than his problem!

[Knowledgeseeker]

People, we are not Fox New, we are more intelligent than them.....

[Knowledgeseeker]

Not big deal, just wrong choice words that 's all
what's all the fuss?.....

[rwe]

Did not Ferraro basically.­say the same thing in that barack is the messiah becasue he is black and now Kerry is saying the messiah barack can be the bridge to the Islamos becasue he is lucky enough to be black..Wel­l John , you are reiterating why Pres Bush beat you

[AjicNYC]

Most important thing here is that ferraro is going down as a racist and kerry gets a walk . why. because Obama is the one that is playing all the race cards. if kerry was supporting Hillary this would be EVERYWHERE

[mix2007]

No she did not say the same thing. She disparaged Obama as an "affirmative action candidate".

[rblackbird]

Does anyone know how Obama WOULD be viewed by conservative Moslems? His father was a Moslem, and the Senator writes he attended a Moslem school for a couple of years as a small child. Did that alone make him a Moslem according to Islamic teaching? He never practiced Islam as he grew up. As an adult he converted to Christianity.

I really do not know the answer to these questions: would Moslems consider the Senator to have been "born a Moslem" or would Obama have needed to take an affirmative step, i.e., proclaiming belief in Allah as the one God and allegiance to Mohammed as His prophet? Do Moslems believe "once a Moslem, always a Moslem"? If a son of a Moslem, who never practiced Islam, converts to Christianity, does that matter to practicing Moslems?

[mix2007]

Wrong.

Obama was not born a muslim so the question is moot.

He was raised from childhood by his white mother from Kansas, a single mom.

[ltfHusseincrazy]

What's a moslem? Is that a real word with a different translative spelling?

[vincie]

but in his book he gives all the credit to his father for what he is. how many times did he see his father in all those years? the question should be asked. it was his white grandmother and grandfather that brought him up and look at what he said in his book. something is very wrong.

[Mariposa4Life]

Your comment makes it obvious that you didn't read his book! He has always been angry at his father for abandoning him and his mother and felt lost because his father wasn't there. He always praised his grandparents for their sacrifice and love. Read the book(s) before you post about it!

[ReasonIsMyReligion]

Methinks the good senator has watched Blazing Saddles a few too many times.

"It's, it's, it's a n-n-n- CLANG!"

[hehe]

Ah, the auto immune party delivers yet again. The racism and sexism feed so fiercely by the democratic party for the last 50 years now turns upon it's progenitors to feast. I can't help but enjoy as each group trips over ACLU prepared ottomans of political correctness and stab themselves in the neck with handmade dinnerware.

Signed - Typical white woman, er I mean "my racism is a call for dialogue".

P.S.
Who bad mouths your Grandmother? You gotta be a jerk.

[Mariposa4Life]

He has ALWAYS written that he loves and admires his granparents for their love and sacrifice for him. Read his book(s) before you take two words out of a comment and misuse their meaning out of contest!

[venicesurfer]

kerry is stupid.

if kerry was supporting clinton, obama would've pulled the race card AGAIN.

[DaisyMiller]

Bingo

[Yasmine]

DEAR Senator KERRY
I have just read some UNJUST comment here about you.......­........I believe you to be great and had you received a few more votes in 2004......­..........­.....many soldiers (please have someone count them who died since jan 2oo4) would not have died and maimed.
Some people have been mean to you.
Sorry. Good luck to you .

[geobushono]

He had his shot and he betrayed all the Democrats with his performance.
John Kerry LOST because he didn't want to win.......­I f you don't think there are systemic problems with the Democrats, try to figure out why the Dems put lieberman on the Ticket in 2000......­.......lie­berman hasn't changed...­.he's always been like he is today and he proudly wears it on his sleeve.
Open your eyes and understand what you see.......­......a calculatedfailure.

[AnninCA]

Well, frankly...­.....if we give the nomination to Obama out of some ridiculous sense of white guilt when he's plunging in the polls and sure to lose......­..

How are we one bit different?

[nick1936]

Kerry lost not because he didn't want to win but because I hate to say it he was a wimp when he came under attack and didn't fight back i see the same trait in Obama seems he can't take a punch

[majseventh]

Senator Kerry, it is a good thing you didn't win the election if this is the kind of thinking you have about the middle east and black people..
Amazing that you have not been asked to leave the Obama campaign yet. Probably by the 11:00 news cycle.
The middle east is about religion, not about color of skin.
You and others owe Ms. Ferraro a big apology. What she said doesn't compare with what you said and with what the reverend said.
Hillary 08........­..........

[texanna]

The color of Sen. Obama's skin has what to do exactly with bridging the gap with Islam? I don't think they are primarily black. Also, what gap are we talking about? The one that the Bushies have created for us by calling his war a Crusade and then killing hundreds of thousands of Iraqis, who are Muslim? Because that gap will be bridged by just about anybody that doesn't have an "R" by their name!

[ChrisS13]

SO John agrees with Gerry F? ??? Are they the typical White People that Obama speaks of??? How many licks does it take to get to the center of a tootsie Pop?

[Yasmine]

well, the color of his skin is not that important but it is true that OBAMA as President will mean POSITIVE news about AMERICA to the Arab/moslem street.
OBAMA has expressed flexibility that neither McCAIN or HILLARY have.
If Hillary is President, you can be sure that they will cause trouble for her. They will not have the same incentive for ruining .
ALSO I WOULD TO EXPRESS HOW SORRY I AM THAT KERRY WAS NOT ELECTED , BECAUSE HE WOULD HAVE FIXED THE IRAQ PROBLEM BY NOW and saved us a lot of soldiers and lives.
1- How many have been killed ?
2- How many have been maimed ?
SINCE JANUARY 2004 ?????
God wanted Bush to topple Saddam and Kerry to fix the POST WAR.......­.......ALA­S the majority of Americans did not get it !!!!!!
HEY, THIS SHOULD HAVE BEEN POSTED AS A COMMENT not as a reply.

[williamina]

That is some powerful smoke you have, save some for tomorrow.

[Truthosaurus]

Never mind Senator Kerry, that Obama is a Christian who considers Jesus to be a god who died for his sins, while Muslims generally do not believe Jesus was a god, nor even that he died on the cross. There is a fundamental divide between the belief systems that I don't see having a black father is going to bridge. As an atheist, I've long since tired of the supernatural element that keeps getting injected into these presidential races. I wish all the candidates would spend less time hanging out in churches and more time dealing with problems here in the real world.

[Plank]

I sure hope Obama is less clueless than you are. Moses and Jesus are considered prophets in Islam.

[Truthosaurus]

You are the clueless one. Jesus is a god in Christianity and not a god in Islam. Get the distinction? According to Islam Christians are guilty of worshiping a false god. In effect polytheism, as Muslims don't buy into the so called Trinity. Try telling a Christian the god they are worshiping and supposedly died to forgive sins and secure eternal life is false, and try getting a Muslim to worship this Jesus god. The two religions are fundamentally divided. But Obama can best deal with it - since he has dark skin. Sure. You and Kerry must have both skipped Sunday school.