The Politics of Hope – Putting Things Into Perspective

As the presidential election season winds down and November 4th is a mere two weeks away, I’ve seen from my fellow Obama supporters much fear of a McCain victory.  I have also seen outrage, disgust, and more fear of the prevalent hatred and racism from many supporters of McCain and the GOP that have erupted from divisive and loathsome tactics from the campaign and the party.

I’ve been feeling that anxiety myself, but thankfully, I’ve become adept at picking good reading material.  Veteran journalist and community organizer Al Giordano’s recent blog entry “Stay Cool” inspired some reflection on my part and made enough sense to me that I’m now more hopeful of an Obama victory than ever.

The overarching theme of Al’s piece was, as I interpret it, the power of calm in the face of fear and using positivity to combat negativity.  I have been watching Obama very closely since January of this year, and his repetition of “the politics of hope” rhetoric certainly made sense to my liberal side.  However, having seen the campaign progress for all these months, I realize that the politics of hope is the driving force behind why he’s kicking ass right now.

Hope brings out the best qualities in us as human beings. Past movements for change have been based on hope in the face of adversity.  Transformational leaders such as Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr. and others like them have used hope and leadership to harness the power of the people to bring about necessary change.

Obama sure knows how to utilize hope in this same manner and is able to combine it with steady-handed, calm and cool presidential-looking leadership skills brought to you by the likes of FDR during the Great Depression.  The fact that his campaign has raised an unbelievable amount of money from over three million donors is no accident.  Nor is the fact that his campaign is comprised of thousands of volunteers across all 50 states (I repeat, volunteers, as in “working for free”) in addition to his paid staff an accident either.  Both are certainly the products of good luck, but this clearly is hope in action.

Many other factors have played a role in Obama’s good fortune thus far.  The meltdown of U.S. financial markets certainly gave Obama a chance to show his leadership skills.  The fact that the Republican party is also in meltdown mode and is reacting out of desperation and inciting hate and division also helps Obama in a time period unfavorable to the GOP and these tactics.  Obama’s good fortune of building an incredible political organization and guiding it through a tumultous election season, especially the primaries, is yet another factor.

However, the hope held by his donors, volunteers, and supporters are what have ultimately sustained his campaign for change.  Hope will see it through the next two weeks as the opposition’s tactics could predictably get nastier.  The hatred that has been displayed at the McCain/Palin rallies; the screams of “terrorist” and “socialist” and “kill him” among other things; and ugly instances of abuse, vandalism, and overt racism all occur out of fear

These folks, whatever their stories and backgrounds may be, have a fear of change.  They are just as fearful and uncertain during this time in our economy as many Obama supporters are.  The Republican party faithful are being goaded into reacting out of fear of “that other guy who isn’t like us;” you know, the black guy with the Arabic middle name and a last name that rhymes with “Osama.”

If I have any future as an activist, then I hope I retain the lessons that I have learned from Obama and his campaign for change.  Hope in the face of fear.  Calm in the face of panic.  Combating negativity with positivity.  Focus on the goal at hand and not getting sidetracked by the less important and irrelevant.

These lessons make perfect sense intellectually and are much harder to execute since they demand that we stray from some of our normal (and easier) reactions and habits.  However, for the next two weeks, see if you can find it within yourself to hope.  Turn that hope into action if you have the money to donate and time to volunteer.

Let hope carry Obama, you, me, and our country across the finish line on November 4th and send a signal to our government and the rest of the world that we want change.  If you wish to help facilitate this proverbial “finish-line crossing,” go to Obama’s website to find out how you can volunteer for Get Out the Vote efforts to bring on the unpredecedented voter turnout necessary to turn a campaign for change into a mandate for change.