The New Yorker’s Tasteless Cover of Barack Obama, Change, and the Racial Divide

The New Yorker

The cover of the latest issue of The New Yorker has been the talk of the town for the past couple days now. What was intended to be a satirical comment regarding Republican attacks misrepresenting Obama’s faith, religion and patriotism has unfortunately backfired.

The caricature, drawn by Barry Blitt, portays Obama in traditional Muslim dress and his wife, Michelle, dressed in military combat gear holding a machine gun. The White House hopefuls are standing in the Oval Office, pounding fists while the the American flag burns in the fireplace just below a hanging portrait of Osama Bin Laden.

The satire is there but is probably more apparent to the targeted demographic of the popular magazine. Most of you reading this can probably see the attempt at satire in this drawing. Unfortunately, not everyone in America views this country and this world in the same light as most up-to-date earthlings. For many, this cartoon portrayal of Obama reinforces the rumors circulating the internet through email and other smear tactics

On a recent program on CNN, a reporter travels throughout America interviewing various citizens on their thoughts regarding the presidential race to the White House. At a baseball game in Nashville, Tennessee, an older woman who voted Democrat for 18 years simply said she would not vote for Barack Obama because she believes he is a Muslim. Her friend, a middle aged man, said,

“I’m an old Southern Boy. I don’t see a black man making change. The only black man I’ve seen make change had a cup in his hand.”

Now I have been to Nashville and I can honestly say that it was one of my favorite stops on tour, regardless of the fact that slight traces of old Southern racial overtones still lingered in the air. As we approach 2009, one could only hope that the views of a segregated generation would have faded by now, but the reality is that some of these same racially charged views have been passed down from generation to generation. It’s a mindset that has been ingrained into the minds of people all over the world.

How do I know this? Because as a Filipino American, there have been several instances throughout my life where I felt I was being treated and viewed differently, even looked down upon, solely on the basis of my heritage and ethnicity. For the record, Asian and Chinese are not interchangeable words to describe someone from an Asian country. China is part of Asia. Korea is part of Asia. The Philippines is part of Asia and here’s the real heartbreaker… India is part of Asia!

So do all Asian people look the same? No. Are all Muslims terrorists? No. Are Barack and Michelle Obama Muslim terrorists? Gosh no. Did The New Yorker make a mistake by choosing this cover for their latest issue? Possibly, but I think it is safe to say that the world isn’t ready for satirical comments like this when the root of many problems today still stem from understanding the differences in each other’s heritage, ethnicity, faith and religious views. I’m sure there are Muslims who were offended by Blitt’s drawing.

So here we are, a nation on the edge of what some call one of the greatest potential turning points in the history of America. Will we all ever be on the same leveled playing field where we all respect and understand each other’s differences? Maybe not, but I do know that in order for us to take one step forward in overcoming this racial divide (an issue that no one wants to talk about or, at the very least, admit exists) we need to embrace the fact that it calls for a change in every single one of us

We need to want change badly enough to make change and to want change that badly, we need to understand the scope of the problems that we individually face, that face our country and that face our world, whether it be racism, poverty, drug abuse, health care or affordable education. The problem is that many of us don’t care enough to peek outside of our little perfect micro-worlds. We need to realize that while maybe we don’t necessarily need change in our immediate lives, there are people out there who need it on many varying levels.

So unless we can begin to realize the value of personal responsibility, open our eyes and expand our minds outside of our bubbles that are so easy to live within, absolutely nothing will change and we will continue to solely rely on one leader to change the world. And it is with this mindset that regardless of who ends up in that Oval Office, there will always be a burning flag beneath a hanging portrait of a figure of fear.