PDHblog
This is a place for members of Progressive Democrats of Hawai‘i to express their thoughts
and exasperations about political happenings. The opinions and views are not necessarily
those of PDH's steering committee or membership as a whole.

In case you haven’t heard… PDH endorsed Obama at our meeting last week. In light of that, I think it is appropriate to post this commentary sent to me today by a PDH member…

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I’m hoping next Tuesday’s February 19th caucus is on your mind and that you are considering supporting Barack Obama.

Why?

I was a Dennis Kucinich supporter, who took strong stands against the war in Iraq and the “Patriot” Act as well as, like Edwards, against the role of lobbyists and corporate greed and the continuation of poverty.

Now we have a choice between two capable candidates. As a feminist I would love to see, finally, a woman in the White House. As a civil rights attorney from New Orleans–the Deep South–who has lived and breathed civil rights for Blacks since I was 15 years old, I
would love to see a Black man in office. Torn–if it was just such a superficial choice.

Yet, as in the Sharon Himeno matter, it’s not just about getting any woman in; it’s about getting in the right person who can affect the change that is desperately needed to give us back out civil rights, our freedoms, our integrity and morals as a nation.

From this perspective it appears that it has to be Barack Obama. I have been, of course, studying him long and hard since he first entered the race. I’ve read and seen many discussions about his perspectives and how he handled various experiences since his days at Punahou—as a basketball teammate of a lot of haoles and locals; as a law student; as a community organizer; as a state legislator; as a U.S. Senator; as a presidential candidate on the national stage.

What I get from all of this is that Barack clearly has a sense of the spirit of aloha. With his brilliance he seems to come from a place of respect and intuition, with an ability to bring the essence of what he learned from being on this ‘aina. He clearly carries and applies the spirit of ho‘oponopono.

It seems that as messed up as this world now is, we desperately need someone who can think out of the box to bring us back to a place where we can all be Americans again and no longer live in fear from our own government. That person would be Barack Obama.

I have attached links to a couple of articles below that speak to some of these concerns which may articulate my thoughts better to you. “The Wrong Experience” and “Why So Many Feminists Are Deciding to Vote for Barack Obama”.

Take care.
Me Ke Aloha Pumehana,
Liz Jubin Fujiwara

Ellen Bravo: Why So Many Feminists Are Deciding to Vote
for Barack Obama

Fareed Zakaria: The Wrong Experience