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Is America ready for a non-white male president? This question will soon be answered in the 2008 presidential election later this year. Whether it is Senator Hillary Clinton or Senator Barack Obama, the Democratic Party will put forth a non-white male candidate that will counter presumed Republican nominee Senator John McCain. This year's election will be one for the history books, as this country will perhaps elect its first woman or Black president.
But, is this country ready? In this author's humble opinion, the answer is a resounding yes. We are a few decades away from segregation in the South, and almost a century since this country gave women suffrage rights. We are no longer a country run solely by rich, white, old male lawyers -instead and in fact, minorities are fast becoming this country's leading leaders: in the house of Representatives, current Speaker Nancy Pelosi is the first woman Speaker of the House; in the mid-1960s, former Supreme Court judge Thurgood Marshall was the first African-American judge to sit in the high court. These examples show that minorities and women are capable of taking high positions in government.
People need to stop relying on the past and calm their fears of a non-white, male president. Other countries have had female presidents / prime ministers, including Great Britain, Ireland, India, Liberia, and Chile. Likewise, other countries have had more 'liberal' ideas about the types of presidents they elect. Why then does the United States wish to keep its tradition of electing old, white, males? Minorities have the same aptitude than their counterparts. This country needs to wake up and quell its fears about the presidency and who should fill it.
If we as a country wish to advance then we must halt our archaic practices, some of which include sexism and racism. This path will not be smooth; in fact, there has been severe resistance during this primary season. But, if we do not do this now, then when will be the 'right' time? We need to realize that other races and females are capable of performing the same duties as those of white males, including becoming president of a country.
