During the presidential election campaign of 2008 the Neo-Conservatives, members of the Republican Party and political manipulators made a big issue of the middle name of Obama – Hussein: Barack Hussein Obama is a secret Muslim. He will take oath using a Koran, change policies around, engage in helping Muslims secretly, will be soft on terrorism. These political estimators and extremists were scared to use the race card – black and white – in this election, knowing fully well that it would cost the Republican Party the presidency. So they used his father’s religion, Islam, and his middle name ‘Hussein’ to appeal to the conservatives and extremists of America not to vote for him.
OBAMA’A MIDDLE NAME AND CITIZENSHIP (2008)
Then, these politicians started the propaganda that Obama is not a US citizen, even though he was born in Hawaii. When Obama was two years old, his father left him and his mother; his parents’ divorce was finalised in 1964. Later Obama went with his mother to Indonesia, where his Caucasian mother married an Indonesian. The politicians and members of the Republican Party continued their propaganda about Obama’s Muslim roots in Kenya and Indonesia. The whole strategy started working in favour of John McCain, the Republican candidate.
In 1960s and 1970s the name ‘Hussein’ was made fun of by the extremists and politicians in the US because of King Hussein of Jordan. During the June 1967 war King Hussein lost a portion of his kingdom. The portion of the kingdom he lost to Israel was Palestinian-West Bank and Bait-al-Maqdes-Jerusalem. Many jokes were created by Americans around the name ‘Hussein’. American Muslim Africans, Arabs, Pakistanis, Indians and Bangladeshis, who had Hussein as their last name, were harassed and made fun of at their places of work in the United States. In some offices and factories in the US it became the basis for bias and discrimination. Harassed and made fun of, a friend of this writer changed his last name and made Hussein his middle name; retained H. as his middle initial.
In 1980s (The Iran-Iraq War, also called The First Persian Gulf War (1980-1988)) and again during this 21st century Saddam Hussein became the target of the extremists sections of the American society who started making fun of the name ‘Hussein’ and also the first name Saddam. The indelible images of the destruction of the twin towers in New York in 2001 had already added new dimensions to the harassment and discrimination of Muslims throughout the United States and later after the invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan.
Baseless assertions were hurled at Barack Hussein Obama, accusing him of misrepresenting his ethnicity. Continued repetition of baseless smear that Obama is an Arab was aimed at the ignorant and naive Americans to urge them not to vote for Barack Hussein Obama. This opened the floodgates of anti-Muslim and anti-Arab sentiments during this highly charged election season of 2008. At the same time the high level of ignorance about Islam, by those who disseminate hatred and intolerance, brought the Tsunami of hatred closer to Muslims and Arabs.
At one of the campaign stops, a supporter of the Republican Party openly told McCain, “I don’t trust Obama. He is an Arab.” This was the height of ignorance and the height of hatred. McCain listened to her shaking his head and then took the microphone from her, “No. Ma’am,” he said, “He is a decent, family man, a citizen that I just happen to have disagreement with.” The Muslims and the Arab citizens of the United States, and the Muslim and Arab members of the Republican Party were shocked by McCain’s answer. McCain should have said, “There would be nothing wrong with being an Arab, but Obama is not,” suggested one journalist after hearing the shallow answer given by McCain. The way McCain said it strongly implied that he had a low opinion of Arabs. Disinformation, misinformation and ignorance played a great part in McCain’s answer that reflected his desire to win the presidency at any cost.
OBAMA’A MIDDLE NAME AND CITIZENSHIP (2012)
During the campaign for the Republican Party’s nomination many candidates used harsh and offensive language to refer to Obama’s very obvious and popular Muslim middle name, Hussein, his birth, circumstance of birth and his heritage. Donald Trump, a Republican candidate, felt that it is imperative to discuss President Barack Obama’s place of birth. Too many Americans think President Barack Obama is a citizen of Kenya or Indonesia. They refuse to accept that he was born in Hawaii. Some other politicians and writers started promoting the idea and posed the question: Where’s the Birth Certificate? It should be noted that Barack Obama did release proof of his citizenship, in June 2008. Still many Americans trust the evidence contained in an erroneous online report about Obama’s grandmother saying he was born in Kenya.
ELECTION DAY, 6 NOVEMBER, 2012
The nastiness of the American politics was felt throughout the world when the opponents of Obama engaged in trickery and demagoguery and presented recklessly inaccurate information about his birthplace, birth certificate and his middle name and demanded answers. The campaign ended on 5 November, 2012.
The day of reckoning came on 6 November, 2012 when millions of Americans went to polling stations throughout the United States. Each voter after entering the polling booth with the ballot paper visually checked names of the presidential candidates and made a decision. After selecting choices for other categories the voter picked up the ballot paper, placed it in the jacket provided for the ballot paper and handed it over to the polling officer to be checked and dropped in the ballot box. Then the voter left the polling station and went home.
On that day the Americans re-elected Barack Hussein Obama as the President of the United States of America for a second term.
(Concluded)