Jeremiah Wright Speaks At Northwestern, Ayers In Audience

For months of the presidential campaign, two controversial figures dogged President-elect Barack Obama: the candidate's former pastor, Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Jr., and his Hyde Park neighbor, 1960s radical William Ayers.

And for a few hours Friday night, the two were together in a venue other than a negative campaign ad: Cahn Auditorium at Northwestern.

Read the whole story here.

Comments

[DaOne]

Sorry Rev, you and Mr Ayers only get attacked...........America attacks, it doesn't apologize.............ever.

[HerbTee]

DaOne, I have been upset by this for some time...for Reverend Wright and Mr. Ayers. Reverend Wright is an intelligent, well-educated and rather decent man who was publicly smeared and caricaturized by the hate-mongers and the MSM without ever trying to understand his points of view for what that looped video over his sermon was about. he was a man with a lifetime of achievement, only to be tainted by a 30-second video loop while totally ignoring the other 25 or so minutes of that video.

As for Mr. Ayers, he was wrong for the things he did in the 1960s as a member of the Weathermen. But for those of us who grew up during those times, the 1960s were crazy, raci$t, tragic, radical, hate-filled, awful times for the Nation. Bill Ayers, his wife and others were a product of that radicalism. But how many of us have committed dumb, stupid acts or either followed the wrong path or the wrong crowd when we were young and impressionable? Whatever Mr. Ayers did, right or wrong, he was acquitted of all charges. What some people have forgotten are two very basic Christian principles when it comes to Mr. Ayers...FORGIVENESS and REDEMPTION. Mr. Ayers is now a well respected, law-abiding citizen, a college professor and a very productive member of our society, no longer committed to violence or criminal acts. Can he finally be forgiven and allowed to live his remaining days in peace?

[aztecdiva]

The item that seems to get lost is that Wright was a decorated Marine who served LBJ. He risked his life so that he could benefit from free speech. He also is a savior to those he has helped within his Church. Regardless of his worlds, he put his action to words when he went to Libya to help in the return of American Soldiers with Jesse Jackson and Louis Farakkhan. He did this under Reagan's administration.

The other issuer regarding to Ayres, the Weatherman Underground, never killed any one other than their own. The bombs that killed two of the WU were created by those who built them. While his wife was on the most wanted, ultimately the charges were dropped due to illegal wire tapping and trumped up charges.

It is amazing the country where free speech is a right, that those who speak out against the government are thrown under the bus as those in China. Since when in this country could veterans who earned the right to condemn those in power be denied the right to excise it. Only in a Bush Cheney Administration. Change has come. Thank you America.

[Cambridge9]

From an agnostic -----------

AMEN!

[HerbTee]

VERY well said, thank you.

[harriettubman]

Ayers and Rev. Wright are both men from the turbulent 50s & 60s. No one can tell these men what they need to believe when they lived thru it. Rev. Wright was shaped by Jim Crow. When one of the white reporters proves he wore those shoes during Jim Crow then he'll have some credibility on those issues.

[DragonMama]

These right-wing extremists could make Jesus Christ sound like Osama bin Laden with their quoting-out-of-context joyrides. After all, Ole JC *did* say "cast the first stone" - that "let he who is without sin" part wasn't essential to understanding the justification of violence against others, was it?

The right-wing is foaming at the mouth to become the American version of the Taliban - both would have their citizens live in a fascist theocracy. Thank goodness the voters didn't let them gain power this time.

I'm a white girl whose dad abandoned his wife and child at about the same age Barack was when his dad left. I get why Barack wanted to be part of a black church - at least on one level, he wanted to understand some of what other people thought when they saw him superficially, as well as the comfort of being in a majority. Rev. Wright offered a positive male role model of "black male" that Barack didn't have growing up. I have sought positive examples of a father figure myself, to be able to be a better and more whole person, some of that seeking has been in church (I was raised unchurched). And I didn't have the skin color difference with my household that Barack did.

[HerbTee]

So true DragonMama! If we all really think about it and are truthful with ourselves, Braack Obama and Reverend Wright are two men who were likely cut from the same bolt of cloth. The difference is, one man (Rev. Wright) was cut from that cloth at a different point and time in our Nation's history. That alone could explain why the two men were very close and why it was so hard for Obama to break his bond and ties with Reverend Wright. Obama was practically forced into it by his attackers and the MSM. In their collective rushes to judgment about Reverend Wright, many people have totally forgotten that Reverend Wright was a close friend, a revered mentor and a consul to Barack Obama for many years.

Think of it folks...Barack would possibly NOT be the Barack Obama we all have come to know and love if not for men like Reverend Wright! I am absolutely sure that much of whom Barack Obama is today, both internally and spiritually, he owes to Reverend Wright who for all intents and purposes was likely a father figure to Barack. Barack Obama DID NOT makes this journey to becoming our President-elect alone! As the old proverb goes, "it takes a whole village to raise a child." President-elect Barack Obama is indeed that "child" of the village and Reverend Wright was one of the "elders" in that village.

[dadw5boys]

Rev Wright is a decorated Navy Corpsman.

He has earned his right to Freedom Of Speech.

Everything he said was true.

Am American drug company did sell Aides Infected Drugs in Africa, the middle East and in Eroupe.

Yes and DAMN a Government that would allow that. Of Course Regean is gone now but you can spank Daddy Bush for not stopping it.

[HerbTee]

I agree with you in part, except I don't personally believe or know of any AIDS-infected drugs sold in Africa. However, let's not forget that the US Government WAS capable of committing such acts and have actually done so against African Americans. We should recall the Tuskegee, Alabama experiments by the US Department of Health where African American men were intentionally infected with syphilis for decades to determine the health results. These men in turn spread syphilis to their innocent lovers, their wives and even their newborn children. Many of the men and their loved ones died from syphilis as well as those they infected. We should also recall the US Army's testing of LSD in the late 1950s and early 1960s predominately against African American soldiers staitioned in Europe (Google "US Army, James Thornwell" for an example).

So, do I personally believe the US Government created AIDS...NO! However, is the US Government capable of doing it and is it capable of using African Americans or people of color in other parts of the world as guinea pigs to test drugs and diseases today...PERHAPS! I don't believe for a moment that our Government would stoop to this level today. However, some African Americans certainly believe the US Government can, it will and it has stooped to this level!

[MNmommy]

Having never heard of Rev. Wright before the campaign as well as not being religious in any way; I've really come to admire this man.

I hope there can be some truth and healing with regards to him in the very near future.

[Cambridge9]

Even though I'm agnostic, when the story first came out I took time to read some of the controversial sermons. In the full context there was (in my mind) no anti-American sentiments. What I read was the story of the black man from slavery to Jim Crow to today's acceptance of blacks - or not.

The likes of Limbaugh and Hannity (and the political opposition) had a field day - but has anyone noticed that Bill Ayers kept his own counsel and, after his Press Club speech, so did Rev. Wright? That's more than I can say for the spokesmen/women for the republican campaign.

We can now turn the page and maybe our First and Fourth amendments will retake their rightful place in the Constitution - and our lives.

Thank you President-elect Obama!

[dimplesmile7]

I heard he whole sermon and it was very similar to other sermons I have heard before growing up in the church. The people that feel negative, only saw the excerpts they watched on tv or they do not want to hear it and want to make a judgment anyway. It really is very different when you hear the whole. It just go to show how much the media can control the minds and opinions of its audience.

[harriettubman]

That's why Fox news & Elizabeth Hasselbeck come off as disengenuous when they speak about Rev. Wright. You can edit and loop anything a person says but that doesn't mean it was the entire way they said it.

[Cambridge9]

AMEN!

[papapj]

The instant gratification of Americans weaned on soundbites never took the time to examine fully what this man had to say before casting stones.

One doubts wether they would have understood, anyways...Who feels it, knows it....

[notconfindtweenhatnboots]

I expect in the next year or two, we as a country will have an open discussion about Rev. Wright with a lot of highly respected (white) ministers & theologians explaining how Wright was right and the coverage of him was wrong. This will just make those who do want to be Christians examine the hypo.cracy in their own hearts regarding Wright & their attitudes about ra.c.ism. God will work through this controversy to make the good things that Wright has always worked for come into reality.

[robXdion]

Everyone knows he was right, that's why the largely white media attacked him so hard and white ministers stayed silent. They were embarrassed Rev. Wright ripped the scab off their denial and hypocrisy. It was also really incensing how white ministers (except Father Phleger) were quiet about this. It seems they have always followed the Old Testament to justify their attitudes towards blacks, while blacks are following the New Testament of inclusion and tolerance. There was an excellent article on here about that. Forgot who wrote it though.

[RoaringMoose]

http://www.amherst.edu/media/events/2007_02_09_MLK/State_of_the_Dream_speech.mp3

It is my personal opinion that the mainstream media and the current Administration tried to kill two birds with one stone.

GYE NYAME
"except for God"
symbol of the supremacy of God
This unique and beautiful symbol is ubiquitous in Ghana. It is by far the most popular for use in decoration, a reflection on the deeply religious character of the Ghanaian people

[Matt7]

Thank you, roaringmoose. I'd never heard this lecture before, and I haven't heard this voice for a long time. I miss his colorful illustrations.

And it breaks my heart that Rev Wright was denied the right to celebrate this historic occasion in the way that he deserved to, after so many years of courageous ministry. I don't fault Barack for having to create space between them. I blame the insensitivity of chaos-hungry, ignorant naysayers, whose opinions should not have mattered, but did.Thank you for sharing this.

[RoaringMoose]

Black liberation theology is so misleading. Any way you slice it, it is Christian Theology. I heard Rev. Wright at Amherst College.
The Rev. Dr. Jeremiah A. Wright, Interfaith Service Celebrating the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., February 9, 2007. He asked some truly hard question. Do you or any have good answers?

https://www.amherst.edu/aboutamherst/news/eventsmultimedia/2007/node/17062

http://www.amherst.edu/media/events/2007_02_09_MLK/State_of_the_Dream_speech.mp3

It is my personal opinion that the mainstream media and the current Administration tried to kill two birds with one stone.

[Matt7]

"It is my personal opinion that the mainstream media and the current Administration tried to kill two birds with one stone."

Yep. But missed both times. As the saying goes, "What man intended for evil, God uses for good."

[NoSandwiches]

I am white and have never been to a black church before, but my husband and I watched the fuller context of both the looped statements, and not only did we agree that we have no problem with what he said nor how he said it but also agreed that we would feel perfectly comfortable sitting in that church.

Anyone who doesn't get it, will never get it.

I have no doubt that Rev Wright loves his country. I have no doubt that his country has done wrong by him, by people he knows or has known. His who 911 sermon was a walk through the feelings people were having and he ended it with a call not to go to war nor to engage in hate but to take an introspective look at your own relationship with God.

[harriettubman]

They don't WANT to get it. Fox and the GOP wanted to present it to America as part of their campaign of fear.

[AlligatorShuz]

Rev. Wright is just like any other black preacher here in the U.S. If you have never been to a black church you would think Rev. Wright was a racist. Has anybody ever listened to Rev. Wright entire sermons! It is apperant that Rev. Wright must be saying something he has one of the largest black congregations in Chicago.

[gop4obama]

After the speech, he went home to his million dollar mansion with the indoor swimming pool, built on the backs of his low income congregation.

Wright is a narcissist and an opportunist. His own deluded personality and ego drove him to make the statements he did. It seems in Jesse Jackson and Wright there's this old fashioned sense that if " I " don't make it to the national front, then no one will.

Both of them tried to throw Barack under the bus...the strategy didn't work. Now both of them can crawl back to their empires built on extortion, greed, and the backs of their followers.

[Matt7]

Let me try to help you out. (Although it's almost not worth the effort)

1. Million dollar mansion? A single family house IN THE HEART OF one of Chicago's regentrifying innercity neighborhoods sold for upwards of $400,000 5 yrs ago. A million bucks ain't what it used to be.
2. Low income congregation? Actually it's quite diverse. As evidenced by the doctors, lawyers, teachers, judges, public/elected officials who also attend there; ALONG SIDE the folks in public housing, homeless, etc. YOU'LL EVEN SEE THEM SITTING ON THE SAME ROWS.
3. Narcissistic and opportunistic are terms that can be used to describe someone who tries to speak authoritatively on something they know NOTHING about. Rev Wright was a nationally known figure within the faith community, long before Obama even came to Chicago. He's also an author, biblical scholar and international lecturer. Most who KNOW him, have only INCREASED their respect for him. Try again.
4. No run away busses here. Neither Obama nor Wright was thrown anywhere. Both of those men love and understand each other. What they had to do was painful for both, and I'm sure one day, they'll reconcile. But I don't expect you to understand. Just don't try to act like you do.
5. You could care less about the "backs" of the parishioners. If you did, you'd take the time and energy to learn about them, rather than try to insult and denigrate them, while show boating on HuffPo.

[notconfindtweenhatnboots]

Good post, Matt7, it's obvious your heart follows the teachings of your moniker.

[esgabel]

1. Oprah was in his congregation as was Tamryn ? Hall from MSNBC...his congregation was not necessarily low income--in fact, it very actively supported many worth while Community Activities...

2. I know a number of Dominican nuns that worked with Rev. Wright for years, and couldn't believe how he was being characterized--they had nothing but praise for him.

Just ask yourself how is it that now that Barach Obama is President Elect we get Michelle Bachmann, Sara Palin, Wm Krystal and Joe Lieberman becoming more concilliatory--if he was so evil before--why the change?

Cynical machinations and extreme partisanship are going to kill our democracy...

[PoliJunkie]

My question here is, if he were the "opportunist" you claim him to be, then why on earth did he stay OUT of the media during the GE? I really don't think he "hates" Obama, IMO! I am so sure Faux news offered him lots of money to appear on their shows. He laid low and we did not hear a peep from him during the GE.

[dadw5boys]

READ UP DUDE !!!!!!!

NOTHING REV WRIGHT SAID IN THAT SPEECH WAS A LIE.

EVERYTHING WAS TRUE.

YES EVEN DAMN THE GOVERNMENT THAT WOULD ALLOW A COMPANY TO SELL AIDES INFECTED DRIGS OVERSEAS !!!!!!

[harriettubman]

I'm not a Wright fan at all. I do believe he was unfairly treated for his edited sermons though. However, he hurt Obama emotionally when he talked negatively about him. I believe Wright said negative comments about Obama after Obama publicly disagreed with some of his statements like AIDS being created by the government. That made him mad. He should've remained quiet and taken it up with Obama.

And you're right, Wright lives in a very expensive home with the married woman he offered marital counseling to then married her himself. He's not embroiled in another scandal involving another married woman at his friend's church. No, Obama didn't know this man well but who knows the personal side of their pastor? There are many middle class professionals who attend Wright's church too, not just low income.

[RevZ]

The media exploitation of Rev. Wright was shameful. And will never be apologized for.
Anyone explored the entire sermon?
For the actions of the government of this country God may well damn America.
Slavery, Theft, Murder, American Indians, unjust wars for economic gain.
read the entire sermon.
Did the governments of America do those things or not?

America has no bowl in which to wash it's metaphoric hands.
How many other Black preachers feel as Jeremiah Wright does? The media takes all kind of polls one was never done, why?

"To develop a theology that speaks to (Blacks) black liberation theologians such as James Cone begin with the person of Jesus...there have been those who have sought to make it more relevant.... where Martin Luther King, Jr. gave fresh meaning and relevance to the church ....Liberation theology arose in the third world--specifically Latin America.... expressed itself in the African-American community seeks to find a way to make the gospel relevant to black people who ¦struggle daily under the burden of white oppression. When black people hear this message... they discover a message that resonates with their experience of life¦. struggling for liberation is the same as the struggle of Christ himself¦. if Jesus was resurrected, and is now alive, then he is now fighting for the very same things, working against the structures of injustice. "
www.wfu.edu/~matthetl/perspectives/twentyseven.html

If you take in the whole of that sermon you will find truth.