Poverty, Not Politics

Mainstream Media's Obessions

I was not going to blog yet, but I caught this article in the WaPo ( Will Democrats Put Their Faith in Obama? ) while eating breakfast and felt compelled to comment upon it.

It regards the gathering I attended this week. The major purpose of the convention was to launch a New Covenant regarding poverty. The three main demands are: 1.) raise the minimum wage; 2.) commit to end child poverty in the US; and 3.) budget more funds for the MDG efforts to end extreme poverty in the world. A large number of sponsors have signed on, including most major religious denominations in the US. Copies of the Covenant were sent to everyone in Congress as well as the major media outlets. We were considered significant enough to draw important politicians from both parties.

Then I look at the WaPo today and its coverage is limited to one speech and to only one aspect of that speech: the political viability of the speaker. Not one word about poverty. The article does mention the covenant but does not explain it.

Without affectation or awkwardness yesterday, he got off phrases such as "we are blessed" and "we can raise up this covenant" and "you need to embrace Christ precisely because you have sins to wash away."

The first quote in the article was a mere aside in a carefully argued speech:

Democratic phenom Barack Obama, the subject of the latest presidential boomlet,was nearing the end of a thoughtful speech about religion in politics yesterday at a church in Thomas Circle when he mentioned the Sermon on the Mount.

"It's doubtful that our own Defense Department would survive its application," he quipped.

What annoys me the most is a statement about the crowd's reaction to Obama' speech:

The crowd was rapturous, giving Obama a far warmer reception than it gave two other senators this week, Clinton (D-N.Y.) and Sam Brownback (R-Kan.), both considered presidential contenders. "It's the most savvy, sophisticated look at this question by an American politician in a long time," Wallis gushed.

Had Dana Milbank stuck around for the second speech of the morning--one by Marian Wright-Edelman--he would have discovered that she received at least as much applause. The head and founder of the Children's Defense Fund had the crowd even more "rapturous," as did Rep. John Lewis the day before. No doubt Obama's speech was thoughtful and inspiring, but these other two veterans of the civil rights movement of the 1960s were the crowd favorites. Obama offers great hope for the future (and his speech was a major reason for my going to the conference). Hearing him only made me respect him more. However, we were there to fight poverty--not to determine the candidate for the Democratic party. Whereas Obama is a beacon of hope, Lewis and Wright-Edelman are our heroes because of their life-long battles for justice.

It looks like it is going to be hard work making media and Congress focus on poverty rather than politics. We knew it would be.