The United States must reject bigotry in all its forms, President Barack Obama emphasized Wednesday amidst anti-Muslim rhetoric by Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump.
Obama did not name Trump in a speech – commemorating 150th anniversary of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution that abolished slavery– but his remarks were interpreted as repudiation of an exclusionary approach toward Muslims being propagated by the 2016 presidential race contender in the wake of San Bernardino terrorist attacks.
Raising the political temperatures, Trump this week called for a ban on entry of all Muslims into the United States, arguing that the measure would be better than internment of Japanese in the U.S. during WWII. His proposal has drawn widespread criticism from both Republican and Democrats on the Capitol Hill as well as from world capitals. Obama’s spokesman and White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest says Trump’s statement on baring all Muslims from entering the United States disqualifies him from being president.
In his remarks, which the White House said were not specifically aimed at Trump, President Obama cautioned “We would do a disservice to those warriors of justice – (Harriet) Tubman, and (Frederick) Douglass, and (President Abraham) Lincoln, and (Martin Luther) King — were we to deny that the scars of our nation’s original sin are still with us today.”
He added, “We condemn ourselves to shackles once more if we fail to answer those who wonder if they’re truly equals in their communities, or in their justice systems, or in a job interview. We betray the efforts of the past if we fail to push back against bigotry in all its forms.”
Continuing his remarks – interspersed with ideas of freedom from slavery, U.S. progress in terms of equality, and America’s constitutional commitment to respect for all irrespective of people’s color, creed or religion, Obama said:
“But we betray our most noble past as well if we were to deny the possibility of movement, the possibility of progress; if we were to let cynicism consume us and fear overwhelm us. If we lost hope. For however slow, however incomplete, however harshly, loudly, rudely challenged at each point along our journey, in America, we can create the change that we seek. “
“All it requires is that our generation be willing to do what those who came before us have done: To rise above the cynicism and rise above the fear, to hold fast to our values, to see ourselves in each other, to cherish dignity and opportunity not just for our own children but for somebody else’s child. To remember that our freedom is bound up with the freedom of others -– regardless of what they look like or where they come from or what their last name is or what faith they practice.”
“To be honorable alike in what we give, and what we preserve. To nobly save, or meanly lose, the last best hope of Earth. To nobly save, or meanly lose, the last best hope of Earth. That is our choice. Today, we affirm hope,” he said, echoing President Lincoln’s words to applause from the gathering of Congressional leaders.
After the Paris attacks and shooting in San Bernardino, California, Trump has been particularly outspoken on immigration issues.
Meanwhile, top Democratic White House aspirant Hillary Clinton has reminded Trump with a tweet that “hate is not an American value.” House of Representative Speaker Republican Paul Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Democratic Harry Reid have also censured Trump’s proposal.
The mainstream media have also criticized politics of exclusion and sweeping opposition to taking in Syrian refugees. Some conservative commentators, on the other hand, argue that the U.S. should first safeguard national security, tighten immigration controls, and combat the threat of ISIS, also known as ISIL and Daesh, operating from its strongholds in Syria and Iraq, more forcefully.
American Muslims have also lambasted anti-Muslim rhetoric by Trump and another Republican contender Ben Carson, pointing out that stigmatizing 1.7 billion Muslims due to violence perpetrated by a group or a few individuals is against America’s spirit of pluralism At the same time, several groups of American Muslims and Pakistani-Americans have condemned terrorist attacks in Paris and San Bernardino and expressed sympathy with victims.
In his latest statement, Trump, a billionaire businessman who has maintained a consistent support among Republicans disaffected with their own party and Washington politics, has shrugged off all criticism. Trump has also declared that he is open to running as an independent, if the Republican Party does not nominate him. His stances on various issues and support base among conservatives poses a stiff challenge to the GOP in the 2016 election season ahead.
FEATURED IMAGE above shows President Obama in 2011 State of the Union address. Photo Credit:Pete Souza (Executive Office of the President ) via Wikimedia Commons
