Tuesday, February 12, 2008

Bernard Hopkins Thinks Obama May Be Assassinated

Boxer Bernard Hopkins thinks Barack Obama may be assassinated if he is elected President

"If he gets the nomination they won't let him become president, but if they do, it will be for a short time, maybe less than a month or two," he said.

Philadelphia-born Hopkins, known in the ring as The Executioner told the Independent on Sunday newspaper in Britain that he did not think the US was ready for an African-American president.

Sadly, I agree with the part of the US not being "ready" for a black President. I don't think it is ready for a woman either. I have been away from the US for almost three years now, but I do not think the landscape has changed that much. There are still pockets of deep prejudice. Remember, David Duke got elected, and everyone knew his background.

3 comments:

Ms Calabaza said...

Daniel,
50 cents said the same thing a few days ago. He's backing Hillary because of this. There is racism in the US, but I think there is racism everywhere. Have you not witnessed it in Brazil? I know I have seen in other parts of So. America and Europe. Anyways, I'd like to think that we are ready to vote for a person based on their values and core beliefs and not their race and gender. We all need to grow up. Oh, and by the way my husband agrees with you.

Daniel @ Campinas said...

I haven't seen "racism" per se, it is much more "prejudice" based on social classes and status. Money and social status seems to make people color blind here. It is all about who you are, who you're parents are, where you live. In general, the south of the country looks down on those from the north, because the north of the country is poor compared with the rest. People from the north "immigrate" to the south looking for jobs, and it is common to see graffiti denegrating the "nordestinos" who go looking for work. You even hear the same complaints, "they are coning to take our jobs", "crime is up because of them", etc. In the "rich parts" of town, everyone is the same, in the slums, everyone is the same. A rich black person is accepted in society much more so than a blonde haired blue eyed person in a favela. Keep in mind every race creed and color has intermarried and mixed here. There is a lady who walks up and down my street, she has a little push cart that sells candy and snacks to the kids after school. She is black, and I mean dark dark black, and her daughter is a very light cafe con leche color, silver/grey eyes, and blonde , kinky afro style hair. She will face prejudice, simply because she is poor, not because of her ancestry. That being said, consider who the president of Brazil is. Lula was born in the very city where I live. This region is among the poorest. Lowest standards of education, living, etc. Lula left here as a small boy on the back of a truck bed to Sao Paulo with his family looking for a better life, like the nordestinos I describe earlier. Today he is president. A story like that can't even happen in the US today, which I firmly believe is the land of opportunity. So while there is "social" prejudice, you gotta scratch your head at the fact that somehow, a person from the "undesireable" class reached the highest post in the country, and has reached approval ratings that are unheard of. I think I will make a post about this at some point, thanks for leading me to it!!

Ms Calabaza said...

yes, do write a post on this ~ fascinating! I have a cousin who married a brasilero surnamed Carvahlo (I think that's like a Smith or Jones in the US) and lived in Rio for about 2 years. She loved it and picked up the language quickly. That was years ago and the marriage did not last but I do remember her telling me how open the society was about sexuality, etc. It took her awhile to get used to the norms.

Interesting that it's class and not race that counts and it would make perfect sense if everyone is mixed. Also, we always hear "only in the USA", but here you have Lula become the leader of this country. You are right, that could not happen here anymore, sadly.