Spike Lee: Obama's Election Will Be "Seismic Change"

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. — Spike Lee says the Rev. Jesse Jackson's crudely phrased criticism of Barack Obama won't affect the Democrat's campaign, which the filmmaker expects to succeed at bringing "seismic" change to the world.

"I don't think his (Jackson's) comments help anybody. It's just unfortunate," Lee said after taking part in a Television Critics Association panel.

Lee predicted Obama would be elected in November.

"When that happens, it will change everything. ... You'll have to measure time by `Before Obama' and `After Obama,'" Lee said during the panel. "It's an exciting time to be alive now."

The presidency of the first African-American will ripple throughout arts, sports and more, said Lee, whose films include "Malcolm X" and "Do the Right Thing."

"Everything's going to be affected by this seismic change in the universe," he said.

Lee attended the TV group's annual summer session to discuss documentaries he's making for ESPN Films, including one about Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers.

Jackson's comment about Obama came last Sunday during a break in Jackson's appearance on Fox News' "Fox & Friends." Unaware his microphone was on, Jackson told a fellow guest that Obama was "talking down" to blacks in speeches on morality at black churches; he also used a slang reference for wanting to sever Obama's testicles.

Jackson apologized Wednesday for "hurtful and wrong" remarks. Obama's campaign offered a low-key response, accepting the apology and defending against the notion that he neglected issues important to blacks.

Lee was more pointed when speaking of Jackson's remarks.

Asked if there was any validity to the criticism of Obama, Lee replied: "No. Here's the thing: I don't know why people are questioning whether Barack Obama is black enough. For me, that's an ignorant statement."

"There are middle-class, educated black people who speak the way he does. ... We have to try to move away from this so-called image of what black is, which is largely influenced by rap and that type of stuff," Lee said.

"I'm for Mr. Obama," Lee said. "I think he's gonna win. And it's going to be a better day not only for the United States but for the world."

(This version CORRECTS typo in title "Malcolm X." )

Comments

[obiter]

Spike Lee is right on the money.

I'm from Australia and I can guarantee that EVERYONE here, from the barber shop, to executives on the peak hour trains - are talking about Obama.

Everyone is really worried abhttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/07/11/spike-lee-obamas-election_n_112142.html#out the direction the USA is going, especially with China's growing influence in our region - and we just hope, pray, and hope some more that democrats don't screw this one up.

[mike53]

Your from Australia and your worried about China, I understand that part. What I don't understand is why you think Obama would be better for Australia.

[obiter]

We have fought with the USA in every war since WW11 - incl. WW11, Korean war, Vietnam War, the first Gulf War, Afghanistan, and Iraq.
Our foreign policy is practically aligned with that of the US. We don't need more Sabre rattlers in the WH.

Our economy is strongly tied to the US as well. And although we have stronger trade ties in Asia, as a Western country, we rely on a powerful USA to protect our ideological position in the region (such as our democratic, liberal-capitalist traditions) in the face of growing non-democratic Chinese influence.

A strong America would require a smart president. One that can conjure a coherent sentence and can identify the problems facing the US seems to fit the bill.

So yes. Obama would we good for Australia.

[mike53]

A seismic change in the universe?? What does that mean? Are we going to have a uniquake? Sounds like spike bit a little to deep into the "messiah" apple.

[Krikkit]

Mike, there's no difference between saying "seismic change" and "sea change." They mean the same thing. No messiah necessary.

[ofbbg]

Just remember the "seismic change" of 1906! The city of San Francisco was not impressed!

[bitabingbitabangbitaboom]

Come gather 'round people
Wherever you roam
And admit that the waters
Around you have grown
You'll be drenched to the bone.
If your time to you
Is worth savin'
Then you better start swimmin'
Or you'll sink like a stone
For the times they are a-changin'.

Come writers and critics
Who prophesize with your pen
And keep your eyes wide
The chance won't come again
And don't speak too soon
For the wheel's still in spin
And there's no tellin' who
That it's namin'.
For the loser now
Will be later to win
For the times they are a-changin'.

Come senators, congressmen
Please heed the call
Don't stand in the doorway
Don't block up the hall
For he that gets hurt
Will be he who has stalled
There's a battle outside
And it is ragin'.
It'll soon shake your windows
And rattle your walls
For the times they are a-changin'.

Come mothers and fathers
Throughout the land
And don't criticize
What you can't understand
Your sons and your daughters
Are beyond your command
Your old road is
Rapidly agin'.
Please get out of the new one
If you can't lend your hand
For the times they are a-changin'.

The line it is drawn
The curse it is cast
The slow one now
Will later be fast
As the present now
Will later be past
The order is
Rapidly fadin'.
And the first one now
Will later be last
For the times they are a-changin'.

[Gma11]

from Mirrain-Webster:

Main Entry: met·a·phor
Pronunciation: ˈme-tə-ˌfȯr also -fər
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English methaphor, from Middle French or Latin; Middle French metaphore, from Latin metaphora, from Greek, from metapherein to transfer, from meta- + pherein to bear — more at bear
Date: 15th century
1: a figure of speech in which a word or phrase literally denoting one kind of object or idea is used in place of another to suggest a likeness or analogy between them (as in drowning in money); broadly : figurative language — compare simile
2: an object, activity, or idea treated as a metaphor : symbol 2
— met·a·phor·ic ˌme-tə-ˈfȯr-ik, -ˈfär- or met·a·phor·i·cal -i-kəl adjective
— met·a·phor·i·cal·ly -i-k(ə-)lē adverb

[chirps]

That's "Merriam", by the way. Not Mirrain.

[jw]

Will anyone bet me that the US with Obama will be different than it is now?

[olivia]

It will take more than 2 terms to undo what Bush did, and some of it cannot be undone.

But people will feel differently and work hard for their country again. I've seen it in my own town. The Bush administration disempowered people like no other. Than God that is going to end.

[jw]

I will be surprised if he undoes any of it. He has begun to look and sound like just another corporate shill.

[Krikkit]

That all depends on a host of things, including the makeup of Congress and how much hardball the corporations (especially media and oil) and their neocon puppets are willing to play.

[bitabingbitabangbitaboom]

-how much hardball the corporations (especially media and oil) and their neocon puppets are willing to play-

They are going to be playing so far out in left field that they are going to be playing stick ball in the parking lot

[Gma11]

Absolutely! The consciousness of thousands (if not millions) will change in significant ways.

"Man's mind, once stretched by a new idea, never regains its original dimensions." Oliver Wendell Holmes

[alamoscout]

What we will have if Barry is elected is a obamanation.

[olivia]

Well now that was brilliant and thought-provoking! I'm going to have to go off and contemplate that.

[mergina]

Spike Lee? Is Spike Lee being vetted?

[alamoscout]

I thought his mother was white?

[tigerjmf]

This older white guy asked his older black friend, 'Are you voting for Barack Obama just because he's black?'

So the older black guy fires back and says,
'Are you not voting for him because he's black?

Sh** !! Why can't I vote for him just cause he's black?

Hell in this country men are pulled over everyday just cause their black,
passed over for promotions just cause their black, considered to be criminals
just cause their black, but you don't seem to have a problem with that.

This country was built with the sweat and whip off the slaves back, and now
a descendant of those same slaves has a chance to lead the same country
where we wasn't even considered to be people, [3 fifths human]. Where we weren't
allowed to be educated, drink from the same water fountains, eat in the same
restaurants, or even vote, so you damn right I'm going to vote for him!

Not just because he's black, But because he is hope, he is change, and he now
allows me to understand when my grandson says he wants to be president when he
grows up, it is not a fairy tale but a short term goal,
Because he sees, understand, and knows, he can achieve, withstand, and do
anything Just because He's Black!

[alamoscout]

I thought his mother was white?

[tigerjmf]

Well, when he walks the streets ..his mother is not with him...what do you see with your eyes? The same as the world sees him? ...I'm sure if no one ask him his color...you'd never know or suspect his Whiteness...that's why we can proudly identify him with his blackness, he is a black man with a white mother ...simple, it's the light that shines so brightly

[Krikkit]

If you are a US citizen, then you can vote for whoever you want for whatever lame or profound reason you may have. Did you even have to ask that question?

[mark227]

I'm so amazed by those who claim to hate racism but yet define everything by race. If Obama was white and said all the same things Hilary would be the democratic nominee. And "before Obama and after Obama" , you may be right....before when America was on the wrong path ( the way the liberals are taking us) and after when we are completely screwed and bankrupt both morally and economically. The one thing I will have in common with Obama is we both can be embarrassed by America when he wins.

[CtJean]

go get some of S I N D Y' S "meds"

You'll feel better in a few minutes

[Countdown09]

I said the day Obama won Iowa that if he didn't win another primary he'd already done this country a service. I remember crying tears of joy listening to his victory speech that night, I was a skeptic, but that night I realized just how far we had progressed. For weeks I kept smiling thinking about that day. Then WV, KT took the winds out of my sails for awhile.

Now, the only people who might not be so thrilled are our kids. Many of you may remember the quilt mom you put on your for wasting or not eating your food -- "you know there are starving kids in other countries"finish your food. I suspect there will be an addition to moms lists of guilt trips......"you know a black man became President in this country I don't want to hear about what you can't do. LOL.

[ErnestineBass]

Yep, Countdown09. Back in the fifties, mom used to chide us about starving Chinese children...

I wonder how long it will be before China's children are chided in much the same manner by their own mothers concerning starving American children...sigh.

[txgal44]

A change is a comin" !!!

[Tropiholic]

As a middle aged white surburban stay at home Mom, I hope Spike is correct!

[Scarllatti]

I wish he is right too. All I have ever wanted is the BEST for America. Any person or thing that brings that is much welcome by me.

[ErnestineBass]

Spike is right on the bubble. Obama is EXACTLY what this sorry-@zz country needs to shake us out of our divisive, consumer-driven stupor.

It's about time we had SOMEBODY who can get folks talking...to he// with hiding our differences and fears behind PC BS!

(And by the way, Scarllatti, that comment you left in a "ditch" on the Tennessee thread last week painting me as a "subtle bigot" really, really offended me. Do NOT judge me by my nick. Fact is, I'm a member of an endangered species - the last of the *OLD* FDR Dems left in the wild woods of Alabama.)

[MariaHopeful]

He is so right! The whole world is abuzz!

[marymansour]

This is so exciting. Thanks for these special words, Spike.

[bitabingbitabangbitaboom]

Laying on the ground banging his arm on the floor whining for attention.­..........­..........­...Go make the movie before Clint Eastwood beats you to the punch again.

.

[nhplanner]

I do agree that an Obama presidency will greatly improve our standing in the world and I hope that President Obama will be more fiscally responsible than our current president, who has run our economy into the ground. I do think there is a danger in creating unreasonable expectations though, afterall we are talking about Washington. Obama's candor is a refreshing, but I don't expect him to be a miracle worker.

[Krikkit]

We will be going further into debt before we can turn this Bush disaster around. Deficit spending is going to have to be done for a whole host of reasons before the Iraq war can be brought to a close and before the tax rollback takes effect. There won't be any magic wands waved to make it all better right away. Obama will be taking on a burden I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy, but I'm glad he's willing to do it.

[bitabingbitabangbitaboom]

All he has to DO is say >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>NO

[mom2sons]

I've been trying not to let you really know, but I met Bush in 2005 I think. He came to the after-school program my son attended and where I am involved with Parent Council. It was an opportunity and I just asked him if he had a chance to meet my son and he said yes. This was followed by an interview by the local media and a radio interview with a conservative etc. I won't bore you with the details, but what many AA's are feeling is that we will finally be able to tell our sons and daughters that they can dream big and if they work, they can be anything that they want to be, including President. Many of us tell our children this, but deep down you have this little nasty feeling, that somewhere along the line, they will run up against the ugliness somewhere. Why are AAs still making "firsts" in 2008. It is simply quite ridiculous if you ask me, but we all know that instituional racism is the elephant in the room, along with "white privilege". BTW, pictures were taken with the children and copies were sent from the WH, but I've never put them up. He seemed like a nice enough fellow, but I knew the real person. I'm just glad my son didn't mention the things we talked about in our house that were related to politics. LOL

[1099]

If Obama becomes president how will that jibe with all your institutional racism and "white privilege"?

[Scarllatti]

You have to "remove" that concept of institutionalized racism in your lexicon and aspire for the best just like any other folk. I get what you are trying to say but I never have the word "NEVER" in my tool box and so, I do not let perceptions whether real or imagined stand in my way. I am a "spiritual bulldozer" if I can use that phrase. I has been working for me.

You know, even if you are the best swimmer, you will definitely drown if you tie a 100-pounder on your ankle and jump into a lake. Hope you get what I am driving at?

[YankeeCanuck]

He will have become President against all odds-- that's how.
And there will still be petty people, and petty uglinesses. Perhaps it is not quite "Institutional" but it is very present. An African American President is a meaningful change.

You see, I happen to know that a couple of white guys walking in a suburban neighbourhood NEVER get stopped by the police. If one of those two is black, they get stopped and questioned about their business there every time.
Never being questioned by the police is one "privilege" white folks never consider. But it's there. Take a walk in an affluent white suburb with a black friend and find out for yourself.

[seanosul]

Quote: If Obama becomes president how will that jibe with all your institutional racism and "white privilege"?

This is the real glass ceiling that will be broken. It will not be completely destroyed and the shocking comments from the likes of PUMA show that racism is not limited to the right. It will however show that America has matured and that race, if not a dead issue is a dying issue.

[jeffp26]

I hope you are right, Spike. So does the planet, and most foreigners.

[1099]

Well as long Spike Lee and foreigners are on board you can sign me up.

[ofbbg]

Are these the same foreigners who have been slitting each others throats, raping each others women, destroying each others homes and taking each others land almost continuously for the last 5,000 years? Yet when this country tries to help them create a more peaceful government based on the ideas of human dignity and freedom, it's you NeoComs who do all the screaming and whining.
Good Grief!