Alice Walker on Barack Obama

An Open Letter to Barack Obama
By Alice Walker
Alice Walker on expectations, responsibilities and a new reality  that is almost more than the heart can bear. AFP/Getty Images Nov. 5, 2008

Dear Brother Obama,
You have no idea, really, of how profound this moment is for us. Us  being the black people of the Southern United States. You think you  know, because you are thoughtful, and you have studied our history.  But seeing you deliver the torch so many others before you carried,  year after year, decade after decade, century after century, only  to be struck down before igniting the flame of justice and of law,  is almost more than the heart can bear. And yet, this observation  is not intended to burden you, for you are of a different time, and, indeed,  because of all the relay runners before you, North America  is a different place. It is really only to say: Well done. We knew, through all  the generations, that you were with us, in us, the best of the Americas. Knowing this, that you  would actually appear, someday, was part of our strength. Seeing you  take your rightful place, based solely on your wisdom, stamina and character, is  a balm for the weary warriors of hope, previously only sung about.

I would advise you to remember that you did not create the disaster  that the world is experiencing, and you alone are not responsible for bringing  the world back to balance. A primary responsibility that you  do have, however, is to cultivate happiness in your own life. To make  a schedule that permits sufficient time of rest and play with your gorgeous wife  and lovely daughters. And so on. One gathers that your family is large. We are  used to seeing men in the White House soon become juiceless and as white-haired as the building; we notice their wives and  children looking strained and stressed. They soon have
smiles so lacking in joy that they remind us of scissors. This is no  way to lead. Nor does your family deserve this fate. One way of  thinking about all this is: It is so bad now that there is no excuse  not to relax. From your happy, relaxed state, you can model real  success, which is all that so many people in the world really want.  They may buy endless cars and houses and furs and gobble up all the attention  and space they can manage, or barely manage, but this is because it is not yet  clear to them that success is truly an inside job. That it is within the reach of almost everyone.

I would further advise you not to take on other people’s enemies.  Most damage that others do to us is out of fear, humiliation and pain. Those  feelings occur in all of us, not just in those of us who profess  a certain religious or racial devotion. We must learn actually not to have  enemies, but only confused adversaries who are ourselves in disguise. It is  understood by all that you are commander in chief of
the United States and are sworn to protect our beloved country; this  we understand, completely. However, as my mother used to say, quoting  a Bible with which I often fought, “hate the sin, but love the sinner.” There  must be no more crushing of whole communities, no more torture,  no more dehumanizing as a means of ruling a people’s spirit. This has already  happened to people of color, poor people, women, children. We  see where this leads, where it has led.

A good model of how to “work with the enemy” internally is presented  by the Dalai Lama, in his endless caretaking of his soul as he  confronts the Chinese government that invaded Tibet. Because, finally,  it is the soul that must be preserved, if one is to remain a credible leader.  All else might be lost; but when the soul dies, the connection  to earth, to peoples, to animals, to rivers, to mountain ranges, purple and  majestic, also dies. And your smile, with which we watch you do gracious battle  with unjust characterizations, distortions and lies, is that expression of healthy self-worth, spirit and soul, that, kept happy and  free and relaxed, can find an answering smile in all of us, lighting our way,  and brightening the world.

We are the ones we have been waiting for.

In Peace and Joy,
Alice Walker