Is he “The One,” as Oprah Winfrey once exclaimed with a sense of awe? Is he the secular messiah that has come to save the mighty American empire from crumbling into pebbles of shameful despair? Or, is he, as some right-wing extremists have condescendingly declared, “The Magic Negro,” who has come to wave his wand to cure all of America’s ills left over from the previous eight years? Who exactly is Barack Obama? He is the 44th President of the United States who has been given the responsibility via the expressed powers of the Constitution to be the Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces, to ensure that U.S. laws are properly carried out, to make treaties with foreign nations, to appoint ambassadors, Supreme Court Justices and Cabinet members, to veto certain legislation, when necessary, etc.
Is President Obama God? Obviously the answer to this extraordinarily extreme question is, “No!” But, one has to wonder whether certain individuals believe that President Obama, as well as former presidents, should fulfill the role of the sovereign, majestic, and mighty Creator. With nearly 200 accomplishments in two years, comments such as, “I’m tired of defending him” and “He should have reversed all of our problems by now” bespeak of this unattainable belief that President Obama or any other president can simply snap his fingers to fix the economy and other enormous issues that evolved years prior to his presidency. The President is one of many people involved in running the White House and passing beneficial public policies. We, as American citizens, should play a vital role in helping the President and ensuring that the country moves forward with value-adding policies through effective political engagement. The following principles should help individuals to successfully engage in politics upon implementation:
1. Don’t elevate a politician to divine status. Exclusive of your political affiliation, it is imperative that you view politicians for what they really are- that is, men and women who have been appointed, elected or selected by some other means to create secular, public policies that theoretically should benefit the general welfare of the public at large. These men and women are not messianic in nature. They are not here to save souls, to heal the brokenhearted or to set captives free. It is extremely difficult to effectively engage in fruitful political discussion and value-adding politics, when one believes that a mere man or woman has somehow been endowed to single-handedly and supernaturally change economic, cultural and societal ills.
2. Vote according to truth in lieu of partisan rancor. In our current time and space, many Americans appear to base their vote on biased cable chatter and politically polarized media outlets. Some pundits have suggested that Americans should spend more time watching and listening to media outlets that represent both sides of the political spectrum. For example, if an individual espouses conservative and right-wing values, then it would prove beneficial to watch MSNBC or to read The New York Times to understand liberal and progressive viewpoints in lieu of just watching and reading Fox News and The Wall Street Journal, respectively. To a certain degree, I agree with this notion. The remaining problem, however, is that one still may be left without the plain truth because of the inherent biases. To discover the truth, individuals should do their best to research non-partisan media outlets and fact checking organizations that consistently lay out the facts without unnecessary sensationalism and bias. Effectively engaging in politics requires the truth about all aspects of public policies.
3. Don’t dehumanize anyone. Relative to politics, it appears that the demonization of other individuals has become fairly commonplace. If someone disagrees with your political thoughts and hypotheses, does that make that person somehow stupid, ignorant or less than human? Absolutely no! Profitable political discourse requires humility and the necessity to respect others’ opinions relative to public policies.
4. Don’t forget about others. Selfishness can destroy your ability to effectively engage in politics. To be sure, it is extremely important to consider how a proposed or finalized public policy will affect the livelihood of you and your family. Oftentimes, however, some individuals forget about those that are less fortunate and operate in the atmosphere of indifference and aloofness, which is antithetical and diametrically opposed to value-adding political engagement.
5. Don’t allow yourself to support strife. Is it possible to be affiliated with a political party and not engage in hostile confrontations and nasty name calling? Absolutely. To see relatively recent incidents where African-American Congressmen have been spit on and minorities being called historically polarizing names is fairly disturbing. Political debates and demonstrations should be enamored with civility and love despite disagreement.
Anthony Jerrod is a speaker, public policy expert and author of Carnal Striving Spiritual.
