“I Am Black And I Am Not Voting For Obama,” a Guest Post by Xax

Last night on NoQuarter, I was privileged to read a beautiful and very moving piece by Xax, who gave us permission to guest post his thoughtful essay:

Eight days to go and I’m in the mood to bear my soul. (well parts of it.) It’s a long post, but here I go…

I am black and I am not voting for Obama. Why? There are many that I know, who are jumping at the chance of having a black man in office and despite their ingrained disagreements with him over issues such as abortion and gay marriage, they will vote for him. Though I am not voting for him, I wish him luck.

In these times I have taken a good long hard look at myself and wonder. I am not the foremost expert on black history in this country, but I know it. America is a patch quilt of people, ideas, religions and beliefs. America’s past make up that fabric.

My ancestors, my family, were brought to this country on ships. They were beaten, tortured, raped and killed to help build this nation. Their blood, sweat, tears, hopes, dreams and prayers are forever dried in America’s soil. And they kept on. Despite not knowing how to read, they kept on and believed in something. That something was our Constitution. The piece of paper that gave them rights they did not know they had. They stayed and here I am.

From then on, my family lived in the shadows of American society. They were allowed to live, be free and read, but they were not allowed to vote, hold office or sit next to white people. And yet they stayed. I remember watching a video (the title escapes me) in which I saw old photos from the end of the civil war until now. In that documentary, I remember how parents would send their children miles to some desolate cabin with no running water, light or textbooks so that their child could receive an education. I remember that footage and am saddened by the attitudes of children of all races today concerning education. Those children were willing to sacrifice to achieve something. Again it did not have a tangible name to them. It was an idea of being able to build yourself. It was the idea of a brighter future. They endured and here I am.

Then came the era of the civil rights movement. And though many people like to invoke King’s name, I choose instead to focus on the foot soldier; the man/woman who marched and cried for their rights to participate in this country. After a hundred years, they paid their dues and demanded to be a part of this country. They were threatened, insulted, spit at, shot, mauled by dogs, sprayed with fire hoses and murdered to ensure their equal participation in American society. No longer would they sit in the dark. And people were inspired by the idea that America could look beyond race and judge the person by their character. What type on man/woman are you? They fought for a better world where everyone had equal access, an America where everyone could achieve greatness. And so they fought and here I am.

So, Senator, I wish you luck in your endeavor. But I refuse to vote based on race. I cannot vote for you because you are black. I cannot vote because I feel it is “owed” to the community. Nothing is owed to anyone. The only thing that matters is what you earn. Personally, you have earned it, but I owe no debt to you. Even the illiterate slave understood that the only thing owed to them was their freedom. Without freedom, where would our nation be? And that is part of the reason I cannot vote for you.

I believe you want to encourage strife via class warfare. I believe that you honestly think America is not a place for people to succeed, but a place for those people to fail. I believe you think the government ought to provide for people what they cannot achieve themselves. And though there is something noble in providing for the less fortunate, I do not want your help. Nor do I want you take from someone else to do so.

You see, I believe that government is incapable of actually helping people. I believe our government to be corrupt. So any money that is taken from the rich, will never reach the poor. There are many programs, like education, that despite the continued cry for money and the constant outpouring of funds, are never funded. Somehow the money never makes it to where it’s needed most. Instead, on its way down, it’s skimmed from the top by politicians like you for their re-election bid. It is for that reason that I hate your plans for big government. In short, I do not trust you, or your friends, with such power.

We all know the story and it varies a little depending on who’s telling it. It occurred in 1787 after the ratification of the Constitution. A woman approached Dr. Benjamin Franklin and asked him a question.

“What have you given us? A Republic or a Monarchy?”

Without hesitation he said:

“A Republic. If you can keep it.”

It is now some eight days before we exercise that oh so important American ritual. Every now and then I remind myself that power lies not in the hands of the President. It lies not in the hands on the Congress. Nor does it lie with the Judicial. No, power lies in the hands of the people. It is the people who decide their futures. It’s the people who decide the history of this country. My family decided to stay, endure and fight for that power. Why should I just hand it over? After all it is from them, that I am here. Indeed, it is from our shared past that WE are here.

Thank you, Xax, for sharing this with all of us.