These comments ranged on a lot of things such as what is deemed to be Hillary Clinton diminishing the role of Martin Luther King Jr. in the civil rights movement. One of Hillary’s aides had said she had misspoken about Martin Luther King Jr. There was a comment about Bill Clinton dismissing Senator Obama’s image as a fairy tale.
As a result, outrage was generated on black radio, black blogs, and cable television. Along with generating outrage, these comments had attracted the attention of prominent politicians who are African-American.
“A cross-section of voters are alarmed at the tenor of some of these statements,” according to Obama spokeswoman, Candice Tolliver. Tolliver said that Clinton had to decide whether she owned anyone an apology.
“There’s a groundswell of reaction to these comments – and not just these latest comments but really a pattern, or a series of comments that we’ve heard for several months,” Tolliver said. She adds: “Folks are beginning to wonder: Is this really an isolated situation or is there something bigger behind all of this?”
However, supporters of Clinton fired back with their own outrage.
“To say that there is a pattern of racist comments coming out of the Hillary campaign is ridiculous,” according to Ohio Representative Stephanie Tubb Jones. Jones adds: “All of the world knows the commitment of President Clinton and Sen. Clinton to civil rights issues – and not only the commitment in terms of words but terms of deeds.”
Sheila Jackson Lee, who supports Clinton explains she was trying to contrast King and Obama. Lee said: “It really is a question of focusing on the suggestion that you can inspire without deeds – what is well known to the child who studies Dr. King in school is that yes, he spoke, but he also moved people to action.”
However, there are other black Clinton supporters that found themselves affected by the Clintons’ words.
According to many analysts, Clinton had won the New Hampshire primaries by a wave of feminist backlash against criticism of her rivals. This year, the issue of race is a complicated turf.
Bill Clinton was sometimes deemed the first black president of the United States.
If elected, Obama could be deemed the “second black president.” He has gained great dexterity by playing the question of race in his campaign. Obama had showed the African-American community that he is one of them at the same time using a message that excludes no one.
According to Tolliver, Obama had no personal reaction to remarks from Clinton. Instead, Obama focused on his message of hope.
“I think America is still caught in a little bit of a time warp: The narrative of black politics is still shaped by the ‘60s and black power,” Obama said to Newsweek in the summer.
He added: “That is not, I think, how most black voters are thinking. I don’t think that’s how most white voters are thinking. I think that people are thinking about how to find a job, how to fill up a gas tank, how to send their kids to college. I find that when I talk about those issues, both blacks and whites respond well.”
Representative Jim Clyburn of South Carolina said to the New York Times that he would consider endorsing Barack Obama in response of what he deemed a lack of respect on the part of the Clinton campaign’s approach to Obama.
“For him to go after Obama, using a ‘fairy tale,’ calling him as he did last week. It’s an insult. And I will tell you, as an African-American, I find his tone and his words to be very depressing,” according to Donna Brazile to CNN. Brazile has been an ally to Clinton for a long time. She is neutral in the race.