Obama and Muslims
June 19, 2008 - 10:17 am
So, two Muslim women were told they couldn’t sit behind the podium at a Barack Obama appearance because they were wearing hijab (hijabs?). The campaign blamed it on overzealous volunteers and apologized, saying that’s not what Obama stands for. Is it possible that while it may not be what he truly stands for, perhaps it was a directive from the campaign to avoid attacks from Republican thugs and dirty tricksters? Perhaps they realized they might have to apologize publicly (a cost of doing business?), but at least they wouldn’t have video out there with Muslims behind him.
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An interesting aspect of the story is that the women actively sought out the spot behind the podium to make a political point, not just because they wanted to see if his ears looked that big from behind, too.
Good for those two Muslim women. Polital points are important to make! The names Tommie Smith and Juan Carlos come to mind. Just thinking about it makes me so proud I could cry right now.
Obama called them on the phone, apologized to one personally & left a message for the other:
“The actions of these volunteers were unacceptable and in no way reflect any policy of my campaign,” Obama said in a statement.
“Our campaign is about bringing people together, and I’m grateful that Ms Abdelfadeel accepted our apology and I hope Ms Aref and any who were offended accept my apology as well,” he said.
His campaign distributed photos of him at other events standing with women in Islamic dress.