Rev. Jeremiah Wright

I watched Rev. Jeremiah Wright's interview with Bill Moyers on PBS the other night. I actually thought the interview was well put together and helped Wright defend some of the things he had said in his sermons. After listening to him speak and watching some clips of his sermons, I must say that the mainstream media and right-wing columnists and radio hosts have grossly mischaracterized Wright. Unfortunately, his words have been taken out of context and used for political reasons, that is to discredit Obama's presidential candidacy. As a result, Wright has been demonized and labeled as being extreme. If you watch the entire video and even watch some of the full sermons from which the media has taken only small clips from, you will understand entirely what he is talking about. In no way did he ever say he hated the US or imply that he hated white people. On the contrary, he has a very diverse church membership, including whites, and his sermons preached hope and action to change the flaws of our country.

There is no way one can call him anti-American or unpatriotic when he preaches that his members should stand up and make sure this country, and its government, does not fail its own people. This country was founded on the premise that its citizens should question its government when its policies fail. Furthermore, as an individual, he even quit school to enlist in the Navy and became a medic despite the fact that his own country discriminated against black Americans and other racial minorities. He even assisted in operating on President Lyndon Johnson when he was a young man.

Unfortunately, a man who has dedicated his life to this country and to his Church has been characterized as a man who is out of touch with mainstream America. He has even been called a racist. Perhaps, he is out of touch with mainstream America, but the question is who is mainstream America? What the media and the right-wing conservatives do not say is that mainstream America consists of mostly white Americans who have never experienced the same things as a black man growing up in a racially divided America. Perhaps, it is the mainstream America that is out of touch with those who have been historically oppressed and looked down upon? Perhaps, it is mainstream America whose eyes are closed and unwilling to understand what it is truly like to be in a non-dominant position purely based on race? Perhaps, mainstream America and those who oppose Reverend Wrights' words without putting them in context or listening to his whole sermon should stop judging him. Before you judge a man, walk a mile in his shoes. Only then will you fully understand where he is coming from and be able to share the same window in which to perceive the world.