Obama Election Watch

Why is it that black people in our country have to convince others of their patriotism and loyalty to the United States? Seems like this is almost always the case. Last week, Barack Obama, the only black man who has ever had a chance of becoming president of the United States, felt compelled to give a long address explaining his loyalty and patriotism.

Now comes a cover of The New Yorker magazine making a clever but not so subtle affirmation of the beliefs held by so many in our nation that the Obamas are dangerous, dark-skinned flag burners.

The New Yorker magazine cover, which hit the newsstands Monday, pictures Barack Obama in Muslim garb. He is fist-bumping with his wife Michelle, who is depicted as a machine gun-toting terrorist. The cover drawing shows a portrait of Osama bin Laden hanging in the Oval Office. An American flag is burning in the fireplace.

The cover is said by The New Yorker to be satire. Yet it will be seen over the Internet by millions of Americans who may not be blessed with a proper understanding of The New Yorker’s sense of irony. Confident of a nationwide appreciation of their wit, the editors of The New Yorker failed to check reactions outside of Manhattan.

A forceful response from the candidate Obama expressing his extreme outrage is needed. Obama will never put all the rumors to rest. But possibly by issuing a strong condemnation of what The New Yorker has done, he can persuade others to think before they print such thoughtless and insulting trash about a loyal and patriotic man.