Obama urges Americans to help heal racial divide

PHILADELPHIA, Pennsylvania (CNN) -- Sen. Barack Obama in a speech Tuesday addressed the controversy surrounding his former minister, using it as an opportunity to challenge Americans to take a closer look at race relations.

Speaking at Philadelphia's National Constitution Center, the Democratic presidential candidate said he rejected racially charged comments made by the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, but he tried to explain the root of those remarks.

Wright recently retired as pastor of Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago, where the senator from Illinois worships.

Some of Wright's old sermons came under fire after a news report last week turned some of his most controversial comments into a YouTube phenomenon.

In one, the minister said America had brought the September 11 attacks upon itself. In another, he said Sen. Hillary Clinton had an advantage over Obama because she is white.

Speaking before a relatively small, diverse crowd, Obama emphasized his upbringing as "the son of a black man from Kenya and a white woman from Kansas."

Unlike many of Obama's campaign events -- where he generally appears onstage backed by an overflow crowd of supporters -- this time Obama took the stage alone, backed by a row of U.S. flags.

"I will never forget that in no other country on Earth is my story even possible," he said.

"It's a story that hasn't made me the most conventional candidate. But it is a story that has seared into my genetic makeup the idea that this nation is more than the sum of its parts -- that out of many, we are truly one."


Obama's speech was greeted with a handful of responses. Some shouted, "You're so right," and "That's the truth." But his relatively subdued demeanor seemed to be mostly reflected in the crowd as well, with most of the reaction limited to polite applause.

The senator mostly has avoided focusing on race during his campaign. His speech comes after spending the weekend on the defensive over his former minister's statements.

His biggest challenge Tuesday was similar to that faced by former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney when he gave a speech during his GOP presidential run to reach voters unfamiliar with his Mormon faith: Obama was looking to explain his church and its worldview to voters aware only of Wright's headline-grabbing comments.

Obama admitted he had sat in church and heard his former minister make controversial remarks.

"Did I strongly disagree with many of his political views? Absolutely -- just as I'm sure many of you have heard remarks from your pastors, priests or rabbis with which you strongly disagreed."

The remarks that caused the most recent firestorm "were not only wrong but divisive, divisive at a time when we need unity," Obama said.

Obama urges Americans to help heal racial divide - CNN.com

Can one disagree with some of the comments his pastor makes and still love God and his religious community? I say yes,but...he must have "known" that he was playing with future political fire! My theory is that he "needed" that black base to get his start. He would not be where he is today if he had reserved his appeal to the white community and shunned the black base.That is not to say that Obama is not a Christian,I believe he is a Christian but he is also a..POLITICIAN!

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"Destiny must be shaped and not left to mere chance."..Spencer Collins ..

Obama on March 14th...

Obama on March 18th...

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"You get the respect that you give" - cnredd

Believe me..I did NOTICE the contradiction and it will be noted in November if he gets the nomination.He is starting to squirm and thus the double speak..

Thus the age old legal argument rears it's ugly head. Does silence lend consent? That can be a difficult question but for me,Obama's silence until now is very disturbing!

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"Destiny must be shaped and not left to mere chance."..Spencer Collins ..

But it wasn't silence....Obama's was praising and honoring Wright until it became "politically disadvantageous"...

Quite Kerryesque...

"I embraced Wright BEFORE I condemned him."...

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"You get the respect that you give" - cnredd

I don't think Obama was praising Wright's white bashing rhetoric. I think he was praising his overall work within the church community. When I say Obama's silence,it was in regards to Wright's anti-white and anti- government rhetoric. On those issues,he seemed to speak volums by "maintaining" his silence..

Sometimes what we don't say is an opportunity lost.An opportunity to heal rather than encourage racial division. I fault him for this but I know politics is involved here. He was reluctant to shoot himself in the foot by alienating what support he had.For a black man to become a "viable" candidate,he must play the game even though he may find it personally abhorent.

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"Destiny must be shaped and not left to mere chance."..Spencer Collins ..

It's a LOT more than political...

The main questions voters have to answer is this...

1) "Will I vote for someone who not just associates, but holds in high regard, a man whose Obama himself knew has spewed such harmful rhetoric?"...

2) "Obama has willingly been around this rhetoric for 20 years...Do I REALLY believe that will have no influence on his life and what he does?"...

A personal question I have is this...

"Obama sat in that church with his children...Did ever explain to them the "parts" he disagreed with or did they take the pastor's words as truth with no one to point out the hatred?"...

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"You get the respect that you give" - cnredd

I would hope he took the time to explain the parts he disagreed with. This is NOT rocket science,even the very young are able to comprehend that hate is wrong! As I have said..I am concerned about this whole affair.A misstep by a pastor is one thing,that can happen in any congregation. It is difficult to think that Obama could listen to this rhetoric for two decades and still follow this Shepperd of hate...

I was willing to hear Obama out on this but now he is contradicting himself..

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"Destiny must be shaped and not left to mere chance."..Spencer Collins ..

cnredd doesn't like Obama. I get it. He goes after Obama at every chance. Its funny because I used to defend Hillary against what I saw as unfair attacks. Now even though I don't support Obama I find myself defending him from innuendo. If you have something real solid to hang on Obama then do it. Otherwise this is like a rumor mill.

I am just disturbed at how it wasn't the minorities that turned this campaign into a racial issue; it was white America that did and they did so at an opportunistic point where the most damage could be done. It was a political maneuver and Sean Hannity was the architect of it. Honestly, why can't they attack the man on policy (which is a big bull's eye in and of itself) and leave the race baiting to the race hustlers like Farrakan and Sharpton?

Does 20 years of silence lend consent to Wright's racist rhetoric? That is the question here! Only Obama can asnswer that,I know that if a priest or rabbi were to bash blacks or gays,I would not remain a member of that congregation for very long. Think about it...Obama "knew" what was being said,what took him so long to condemn Wright's comments? I think I know why,Obama needed that congregation for political reasons. A candidate,especially a "black" candidate..needs a base! He used them and they used him and that explains his silence.

I defended Obama time and time again in this forum and I took a good deal of flack for it. I am not an Obama supporter,I only wanted to give the man a chance to define himself before passing judgement on his candidacy. He has now spoken and contradicted himself. At minimum,this is troubling...

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"Destiny must be shaped and not left to mere chance."..Spencer Collins ..