Quick Question…

Maybe you can answer it for me.

Where do you think its a more dangerous place for a black person to be, a McCain/Palin rally or an M.O.P. concert?

McCain/Palin rally…

M.O.P….

An Open Letter To White People Afraid To Support Barack Obama…

Dear White People,

Let me introduce myself.  My name is Corey Richardson, I’m an African American man, and I’m a huge fan of The Carpenters.  You’re probably reading this letter because you’re an undecided voter and have been sent this by a friend who is concerned that you’re afraid to support Barack Obama and thinks my words may be just the thing to help you get over the hump.

I know what you’re thinking…

Who the hell is Corey Richardson?

I’m not a racist, so what’s this talk about African Americans?

What do The Carpenters have to do with any of this?

Well, to the first point, I’m a blogger and an erstwhile observer of life.  A self proclaimed yuppie and a product of the 1980’s and 90’s middle class.  In a lot of ways, I’m just like you.  I eat at McDonald’s, I watch Seinfeld, I love my momma, and I’m pursuing the American Dream.

As for the second point, I’m not accusing you of being a racist.  In fact, I know you’re not a racist.  But, I also know that you have some trepidation about voting for Barack Obama, and I have a haunting suspicion that his blackness has something to do with it.  Its okay, we all have our conditioning and our prejudices and you’re not a bad person for having them… in fact, I’ll admit that I was mildly upset when Steve Nash won the NBA MVP a few years ago because I thought he got it because he was white… But that’s neither here nor there in this discussion.  We’re here for the sake of unity, not difference, so I digress.

Now, about The Carpenters… Sometimes, when I’m at home alone or in the car by myself with the windows up, I like to blast “We’ve Only Just Begun” and groove along to Karen Carpenter’s voice.  I don’t know, it’s just something about it that’s melodically hypnotic and I just really dig it.  I mean really, who can hate on “Close To You”?  No one.  Now, I have a lot of black friends who have no idea about my enjoyment of The Carpenters.  They think I’m all about hip hop and R&B.  Me and my black friends have attended hip hop concerts, traded music, gone to clubs, and been wrapped up in the lyrics of Biggie, Jay-Z, and Nas for years.  They have no idea about my secret.  I don’t let on to anyone that I prefer Karen’s version of “Superstar” to Luther Vandross’s because they just wouldn’t understand.  That’s why I enjoy it in the safety, comfort, and privacy of my home and my car.  It doesn’t mean I like The Carpenters any less, it just means I keep it close to the vest because its no one else’s business.

I know, I know… What’s that got to do with the price of tea in China?

Everything.

See, just like I listen to The Carpenters in the sanctity and privacy of my home and car, you have that same opportunity of November 4th when you walk into the voting booth.  See, your other white friends might not understand how you can support Barack Obama, they might laugh at you, they might ridicule you, they may ostracize you.  But just like my secret relationship with The Carpenters, you can have a secret relationship with Obama.  No one’s gotta know who you’re voting for, and if he does win you can feign indignance and blame it on some other white people who sold out and return to your peers emotionally unscathed.

You can do it.

Just like I show no shame by myself singing along to “Top Of The World,” you can show that same singular bravery when you pull that lever for Barack Obama.  And it’ll be between you and me, and you got some good dirt on me now, so you know I’m not telling.

Give it a shot.

And if it doesn’t work out, you have my name and a vague physical description of me, so you just look for the black guy jamming out in the dentist’s office waiting room and its probably me, and you can punch me in the face.

So, do we have a deal?

Think it over.

Sincerely,

R. Corey Richardson