How Muslim is Barack Obama?
Despite the best efforts of US Democratic Presidential candidate Barack Obama and his team of spin doctors, the questions are often raised in America and abroad as to exactly ‘how Muslim’ Obama is, whether he practices Islam, and whether his Islamic upbringing has impacted upon his political convictions? It is necessary to review biographical information about Obama, to ascertain the extent to which any of this questions bear significance.
A quick summary of his life so far:
Barack Hussein Obama was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, to Barack Hussein Obama, Sr, a black Muslim from Nyangoma-Kogel, Kenya and Ann Dunham, a white atheist from Wichita, Kansas. Obama’s parents met at the University of Hawaii. When Obama was two years old, his parents divorced. His father returned to Kenya. His mother then married Lolo Soetoro, who is an Indonesian Muslim. When Obama was 6 years old, the family relocated to Indonesia and he attended a Muslim school in Jakarta. He also spent two years in a Catholic school.
Obama takes great care to conceal the fact that he is a Muslim and is quick to point out that, ‘he was once a Muslim, but that he also attended Catholic school.’ Obama’s political advisers and spin doctors are attempting to make it appear that Obama’s introduction to Islam came via his father, and that this influence was temporary at best.
In reality, Obama senior returned to Kenya soon after the divorce, and never again had any direct influence over his son’s education. Lolo Soetoro, the second husband of Obama’s mother, Ann Dunham, introduced his stepson to Islam and Barack Obama was enrolled in a religious islamic school in Jakarta, Indonesia.
Some say it is equally important to keep in mind that when he was sworn into office as the Senator of Illinois in 2004 - he did not use the Holy Bible, but instead the Qur’an, despite claiming to be a member of the United Church of Christ.
Since it is politically expedient to be a Christian when seeking a major public office in the United States, Barack Hussein Obama has joined the United Church of Christ in an attempt to downplay his Muslim background. The question must be asked as to how alert the American public must be, concerning Obama’s presidential candidacy and recent victory in the Iowa Democratic Caucus.
Whilst it is clear that Obama is in no way connected to or supportive of terrorism or terrorist activities, it is important to recognise the motives behind Obama’s desperate attempts to conceal his religious identity.
Martyn, even by your standards…
Here’s what Wikipedia says (all quotes from his book):
Obama has written two bestselling books. The first, Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance, was published after his graduation from law school and before running for public office. In it he recalls his childhood in Honolulu and Jakarta, college years in Los Angeles and New York City, and his employment as a community organizer in Chicago in the 1980s. The book’s last chapters describe his first visit to Kenya, a journey to connect with his Luo family and heritage. In his preface to the 2004 revised edition, Obama explains that he had hoped the story of his family “might speak in some way to the fissures of race that have characterized the American experience, as well as the fluid state of identity—the leaps through time, the collision of cultures—that mark our modern life.”[140] Time magazine’s Joe Klein wrote that the book “may be the best-written memoir ever produced by an American politician.”[141] The audiobook edition earned Obama the 2006 Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album.[142]
His second book, The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream, was published in October 2006, three weeks before the 2006 midterm election. It was an immediate bestseller and rose to the top of the New York Times Best Seller list by early November 2006.[143] The Chicago Tribune credits the large crowds that gathered at book signings with influencing Obama’s decision to run for president.[144] Former presidential candidate Gary Hart describes the book as Obama’s “thesis submission” for the U.S. presidency: “It presents a man of relative youth yet maturity, a wise observer of the human condition, a figure who possesses perseverance and writing skills that have flashes of grandeur.”[145] Reviewer Michael Tomasky writes that it does not contain “boldly innovative policy prescriptions that will lead the Democrats out of their wilderness,” but does show Obama’s potential to “construct a new politics that is progressive but grounded in civic traditions that speak to a wider range of Americans.”[146] An Italian translation was published in April 2007 with a preface by Walter Veltroni, Mayor of Rome.[147] Spanish and German editions were published in June 2007.[148]
The last paragraph is with what I really take issue. Why does him having one (irreligious) Muslim parent require the default assessment of whether he is ‘connected to or supportive or terrorism’? I would say his motive (assuming he has tried to ‘conceal’ his muslim father; he’s a christian) if any, is not because of his own assumed propensity for terrorism, rather a response to the typical response of the American biggot.
Please read this response from the UCC:
http://www.ucc.org/news/thomas-denounces-smear-1.html
Martyn, what does it matter whether or not Obama is a Muslim?