...and who would you vote for?

There is a Scenario at the start of Kwame Kwei Armah's play 'Statement of Regret' where one of the characters asks his business partner "if Hilary Clinton was running for US president against Condoleeza Rice, who would you vote for?" (I guess the UK equivalent would be Cherie Blair vs a black Female Tory - someone like the former mayor of Wandsworth, the fiery Lola Ayorinde).

The dilemma is supposed to represent the classic conscience versus own culture or race. I suppose it also assumes the respondent is ideologically left-wing. The question is particularly topical at this time where Obama is running for politcal office and millions of African Americans are being asked to support the charismatic Barack whether or not his policies appeal to them.




In Chris Rock's recent UK stand up tour he had a particularly relevant routine where he says the majority of the Italian Americans are voting for Rudy Giuliani and all the Jews are voting for Liebermann and he ain't even running! He goes on to complain that a notable amount of African Americans are choosing to vote for Hilary because she 'understands black people' and can she understand black people more than Obama? he exclaims.

In the mid Nineties I rejoiced when I heard OJ got off. Not because I thought he was innocent or because I didn't sympathize with Nicole's family, but because the case trancended OJ's guilt or innocence, representing more the inequalities of the American legal system as it applied to the different races.

So faced with Kwame's dilemma who would you vote for Condi or Clinton?