Who Are You?

The other night, in class, we were discussing where we come from. The Catholic Church's history traces itself back, in a direct apostolic line, to the first Pope, Peter.


I was talking to the kids about family history and how it is important to know from whence we come. My daughter, who never ceases to amuse me (which is a good thing), claims to be Irish. OK. Works for me. My father was of German descent. My mother is of German, Swiss and French descent. Julie's paternal grandmother is of Italian descent. Her paternal grandfather was of Irish and French descent. Notice anything? Yeah, me, too. Irish is definitely not the most dominant ethnic background in Julie's history. Yet it is how she chooses to identify herself.


This caused me to wonder about Barack Obama. Barack Obama's father is a black man from Kenya. His mother is a white woman from a farm in Kansas. I do not know their ethnicity beyond this. Mr. Obama identifies himself as a black candidate. It is how he chooses to identify himself.



This is not nearly as much of an issue for me personally as the fact that he identifies himself as a Democratic candidate but I am not here to discuss politics.


I have eyes. Mr. Obama clearly looks like a person of color. I try to be understanding and compassionate and put myself in the other person's shoes. I cannot imagine growing up as the child of a mixed race marriage. It is just stuck in my brain, though, that this man, the grandchild of a Midwest farmer, is choosing not to identify himself as such but is identifying himself as the black candidate.


Maybe I have missed something and Mr. Obama has addressed this somewhere. If so, and you know where, please just point me in the correct direction.


Maybe, someday, none of it will matter. Maybe, someday, political campaigns will be decided on the written views of the candidates and not on their looks or ethnicity or sex.


Maybe. But in the meantime, I am curious. Who are you?