Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell has come under fire recently for suggesting that some Pennsylvanians "are probably not ready to vote for an African-American candidate."
But he is right, as I know from my own experience as a lifelong resident of the Keystone State.
It's been said that Pennsylvania consists of Pittsburgh on one side, Philadelphia on the other, and Alabama in the middle. And it's true. I grew up in the "Alabama" part of the state, in a small coal-mining town in north-central Pennsylvania. It was a scene out of "Deliverance". And everyone was white.
Not only were they all white, but they looked on any outsiders with suspicion and contempt, especially racial minorities.
When I went away to college, I briefly dated a wonderful African-American man. When the news got back to my hometown, there was hell to pay. I couldn't walk down the street without hearing shouts of "N____ Lover". This was in the late 1970s.
30 years later, that racist attitude still prevails in rural Pennsylvania. It's enough to keep them from voting for Barack Obama. And I can't imagine them voting for Hillary Clinton, either -- even though she is white. Women must be kept in their place as well.
No, the rednecks in the "Alabama" part of the state will likely vote for John McCain this November, even though he doesn't currently own a gun.
These attitudes are why I spent most of my teenage summers staying with relatives in Philadelphia and Washington, DC. And these attitudes are why I made the permanent move to civilization immediately after college. Some parts of Pennsylvania just aren't the right habitat for a fiercely independent and progressive woman who thrives on diversity.
So, yes, Governor Rendell is correct. Some Pennsylvanians are probably not ready to vote for an African-American candidate. Especially for President. But this is a big state, with big urban populations in and around Philly and Pittsburgh. We managed to throw Rick Santorum out of the Senate last year. Hopefully we can help to put a Democrat in the White House this year.
Fingers crossed.
PS: Apologies to any readers who happen to reside in the actual state of Alabama. I'm using your state in a conceptual/metaphorical sense, and no offense is intended.
http://www.maryshawonline.com
Mary Shaw is a Philadelphia-based writer and activist, with a focus on politics, human rights, and social justice. She is a former Philadelphia Area Coordinator for the Nobel-Prize-winning human rights group Amnesty International, and her views appear regularly in a variety of newspapers, magazines, and websites. Note that the ideas expressed here are the author's own, and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Amnesty International or any other organization with which she may be associated.
Talking to a couple of Democrats, I casually talked about how I slightly prefer Obama over Clinton (I'm a supporter of neither). One of them said: "After all that has happened why would you vote for a black?" His comment was unexpected, but I replied: "Because whites have screwed the country up so massively." Also, I said Obama is as much white as black.
I expressed my concern that somebody might assassinate Obama if he was elected and she (the other Democrat) said: "I wish somebody would."
Both these individuals are supporters of Hillary. I think their comments are incredibly sad statements about the state of the world.
by
all owners (1 articles, 56 quicklinks, 4 diaries, 140 comments)
on Friday, February 15, 2008 at 1:12:15 PM
Well Mary sadly I think you may be right. I too hail from that region, being born in the Delaware Valley, having once lived in SW Philadelphia near the airport and having relatives in the Lehigh Valley(Havertown) who by the way are fairly sophisticated.
Though I've lived away from the region for roughly twenty years, I basically see it as you do. Philadelphia will definitely go for Obama. Pittsburg may go for him or Hillary too even though they used to be a pretty conservative bunch as I remember. Pittsburg's been hit hard by Bushonomics as has much of the rest of the nation. I think that could make Obama very attractive to them.
But don't forget about Buck's County either. Lot's of upper-middle class right wingers there and lots of big money. At this point we can only hope the people in the rural areas are so mad at Bush they'll make the right decision. After all, they have every reason to be mad at him just like the rest of us.
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Michael Shaw (7 articles, 1 quicklinks, 1 diaries, 310 comments)
on Friday, February 15, 2008 at 4:44:15 PM
That you should comment on the state that the majority won't vote for the african-american candidate yet failed to mention the state(s) that wouldn't vote for a woman. Just goes to show you that it swings both ways. Alabama, South Carolina, Louisiana, etc. You know who I'm talking about. How pathetic is it that the only reason they are voting for this candidate is because of his race?? And they say it's not a race thing. Give me a break.
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Pam Wells (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 6 comments)
on Friday, February 15, 2008 at 8:39:22 PM
"I lent my campaign some of my own money." That could bring a Hillary vote from a woman who struggled valiantly and now has her own small stake. Or it could deny her a vote if the person followed politics and wondered how those two poor young people who used to sit in the Arkansas governors mansion have learned to act so regal.
And if Obama got the vote which Hillary lost, what would he do with it? I heard him tell one crowd that they finally paid off their student loans, and now were saving for the girls' college. Book sales helped as they did for the Clintons. Obama will have to face the fact that the economy is putting more voters on the edge. Will it work to his advantage?
My guess is that jobs, debt, and doctors bills are what people think about when they go into the voting booth. And it makes little difference what state the booth is in.
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Margaret Bassett (21 articles, 1354 quicklinks, 28 diaries, 810 comments)
on Friday, February 15, 2008 at 9:16:14 PM
