OPRAH & OBAMA: OUCH

Anniston, Ala.

I was surprised by the restraint in Patricia J. Williams's explanations for why America feels there's something not quite fair about Oprah endorsing Obama ["Diary of a Mad Law Professor," Dec. 24]. She almost identifies the more insidious motivation when she suggests we're uncomfortable with Oprah getting political. But it's not just about her getting political; it's whom she's getting political with. Williams suggests that part of the appeal of the "double O's" is that we trust them. I would submit that half of the attraction is that we flatter ourselves by believing they would trust and like us in return. That illusion is shattered for a huge portion of Oprah's audience because by endorsing Obama she has revealed the obvious, the barrier that they're afraid would keep her from being their friend: she's black. These folks feel betrayed because she is very publicly reminding them of something they've been working very hard to forget.

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