The Colby Echo

Issue date: 2/27/08 Section: Opinions

Suddenly, Democratic black women are the most desired polling group.

There has been an intensifying of the public-generated interest in the upcoming presidential election. Much of this attention is based on lumping people together into groups based on very broad criteria, and then treating these groups as legitimate indicators of the progression of the presidential race. These groups are then asked questions, many designed to get a specific response, over and over. Regardless of the fact that the election is many months away, there is a constant question of who would win if the election was held today, or tomorrow, or three weeks ago.

Is anyone else bothered by this? Do we really care about opinions solely because those who hold them identify as a certain race or gender?

I hope that there is more to the political system than simply skin color or which public bathroom is used. The importance placed on factors unrelated to actual government-related policies is tolerated by far too many, especially in America. We have a system of government that allows for the democratic process, yet so often we do not respect this as we should.

Here's a new idea: gender and race do not determine who is elected. While these labels may play a small role in appealing to the masses, other things, such as a politician's platform, may actually be more important. It's a novel concept.

I refuse to believe that all people follow these constantly-updated polls. Not everyone has the time to follow each and every one, and many simply disregard the results. Perhaps some even take such polls as personal slights because they see themselves broken down into groups to justify why they should or should not vote for a candidate. Are we actually saying that some people are too stupid to choose a candidate, and must be coerced by doing so by pulling the "race card"?

Some would like to simply write these polls off as something the media has just pushed onto the population. This way of thinking omits one very important fact: the media's source of income is the general population. Taking such such a passive role means accepting whatever is displayed-and will result in the media doing things like conducting voter polls based on race, not on other, more influential aspects of life.

Democratic black women find themselves in the middle of the presidential race, told that they must identify themselves with one of the candidates. While some black women may like Sen. Barack Obama, and some may like Sen. Hilary Clinton, some may even find themselves liking Sen. John McCain, and switching parties.

Race is not what constructs one's beliefs. Gender does not determine one's political party. Anyone who sees the political process in such black and white terms is clearly missing the meaning behind our democratic process. Breaking down the general population into groups by race or gender or any other assigned name is both unwise and disrespectful. We are unable to determine the winner of the race solely by how many people there are in this country that share a candidate's sex or race. When someone enters the voting booth, there is the possibility that any candidate could be selected. In the end, it is that uncertainty that will keep candidates campaigning.

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