Elección

The Democratic presidential hopefuls joined in the first-ever debate broadcast in Spanish on Sunday. The leading candidates, Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama accompanied former Senator John Edwards during the discussion and critique of the current administration’s immigration policy. The debate was broadcast on a Spanish language channel and each candidate was expected to speak in English even though two of the participants, Bill Richardson and Chris Dodd speak Spanish fluently.

The debate relied on a series of translations. Questions were asked in Spanish and then translated into English for the candidates to respond and then converted back into Spanish for the audience. Although it may have been difficult for the true persona of the candidates to be shown in this call-and-response pattern, it was an excellent gesture for them to engage with the Hispanic community in the best way they could.

I think this debate reflects a change in US society. It’s nice to see candidates trying to inform and acknowledge a segment of the population that is usually ignored. Some English-only activists oppose the debate but I feel it is absolutely ridiculous that the United States’ largest ethnic or race minority would be ignored during the presidential race. This debate may also usher in some of the change needed for stability and reduced conflict on the immigration debate.

I find it very interesting that Obama discussed the letter Martin Luther King Jr. sent to César Chávez stating that said, “Our separate struggles are one.” Either Obama had a very poignant recollection of history or a really good person in PR. This statement was able to connect the audience Obama was speaking to at the time with another key demographic he hopes to reach during his run.

All in all, I think the debate is a clever way to start out the Democrats to start out the run for the White House. If immigration is a main platform issue then why not address those affected most by the outcomes of future decisions? But of course there's plenty of time for bureaucracy to get in the way of that.

http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5gwLF-CrjIgLcd9iy0ezpo6FPlUwQ

http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/09/10/america/dems.php

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/09/AR2007090902033.html?sub=new