Rick Warren
I do not support intolerance or the kinds of divisive social policies that Rick Warren and many like-minded people believe in. But to criticize Obama for inviting Warren to participate in the inauguration is to fall victim to old-line thinking and a lack of imagination.
The bottom line is that Warren and the millions who follow him exist. They are Americans, and they are a powerful part of what America will be in 2009.
Many other people might not like that very much, but it's the simple and honest truth.
To argue in favor of silencing or shunning those people is to argue in favor of actions that are inherently one-sided.
By embracing Warren, Obama is signaling that he appreciates the reality that those people exist.
They exist as Americans with their own opinions, but just as importantly, they exist as people who will be part of the coming debates on issues like gay marriage and don't ask/don't tell.
Better to signal a surprising and inclusive acceptance of them as part of America right off the bat, rather than starting things off with a polarizing gesture.
Obama's actions in the years to come will speak to his ability to further social progress. But I think the Rick Warren choice shows that he's prepared to tackle these issues in a manner that's more thorough and ambitious than most people can imagine.
posted by Jeff @ 12/20/2008 10:35:00 AM
2 comments
2 Comments:
Hey man, I appreciate this point of view, but I don't totally buy it. I know Obama has to reach out to evangelicals, but I think the timing of the choice, i.e., right after the passage of Proposition 8, given Rev. Warren's support of that measure, is suspect. I get that Obama needs to embrace the right on some symbolic level, but there are many pastor he could have picked who are conservative like Warren, but less obviously involved in the anti-gay marriage movement. I get the symbolism, but question the timing.
Thanks for the comment. But my point is that I believe for us to really make advances, we need to get beyond symbolic gestures. Symbolic gestures are what people who are trying to manipulate people engage in. Real gestures- and the reality is, we're going to need to bring a lot of evangelicals on board to really move this country forward- involve engaging people in ways beyond the symbolic, and in ways that may be uncomfortable for people on one's own "side".
I don't think Rick Warren was a symbolic gesture- not in the traditional sense. I think it was an indication that Obama recognizes that throwing symbolic gestures and nothing more to the right is not going to work.
It hasn't worked yet. It didn't work with regard to Proposition 8. But I think we've got a good shot in the coming years, because he's going to go out of his way to get to the core of these issues. And Rick Warren and the people who voted it down are right at the core of Proposition 8.
Perhaps a hackneyed analogy would be, if you beat me up, I'm not going to invite someone else who harbors slightly less enmity to me over to my place for dinner to show that I'm not afraid of people who don't like me. I'm going to invite YOU into my house, with genuine hospitality, and we're going to sit down and talk for a while.
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