Talking politics with the world

The start of an ongoing series of observing the U.S. Presidential elections from abroad. Today, a survey of the political mood from across the world so far. Next, a piece on the Obama factor in his father’s native Kenya.

Throughout our travels, we have sought to get a sense of where people stand on political issues, and in particular, whether they have any thoughts about the candidates in the U.S. primary race for president. The topic usually follows a relatively predictable script in which people first deride Bush and express their sincerest hopes that whoever follows him will demonstrate a little more competence and international goodwill.

The general non-American opinion on this year’s primary candidates is not very nuanced, due to a lack of substantive information in most smaller foreign newspapers, but it is hard to blame them, especially considering there were about 15 candidates in total when the Democrats and Republicans began the race for the nomination.

Occasionally, we come across a political buff that has taken an interest in the race and has lots of questions, but in a primary season that is so exaggeratedly lengthy, most of the world just doesn’t have the time or energy to constantly keep up. On the whole, it can be safely said that the Republican Party does not have a very good reputation outside of the U.S., and the vast majority of the people we meet seem to be looking to the Democrats to undo what many see as an overly aggressive eight years of U.S. policy.

Nevertheless, it has been interesting to see how sentiments toward the two Democratic candidates differ among the random smattering of people we meet. Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton are both unique figures that carry a great deal of symbolic weight along with their candidacies.

Hillary Clinton would be the first woman to be president in the U.S., and is well known around the world not simply because of her name, but because of her active international work during the presidency of her husband.

While in Salvador, Brazil, we stayed with Ariane Matos, a 28 year old filmmaker and friend of Mike’s. Reacting to the aggressive nature of the Bush administration over the past 8 years, she was rooting for Clinton.

“Men have always run the U.S., the wealthiest country in the world. I think it would be very interesting to see how things would change, internally and externally, if a woman took over power,” she said.

More often in Brazil and throughout Latin America, we met people who ranged from outright fans to cautious supporters of the international superstar of the Democratic primary, Barack Obama. Once, in a music store in Salvador, an American shopper talking to a clerk and was asked if they would be back in time to vote for the president. When the shopper told him we would, and that he expected to vote for Obama, the clerk was so overjoyed that he gave him a hug.

This type of excitement for Obama has been consistent in every country we have been to thus far. His face can be found at magazine stands on street corners in every city, heralding him as a messiah for change or questioning whether he has what it takes to bring the U.S. back around. Either way, the buzz surrounding him is by no means restricted to the U.S.; he has become an international symbol of hope.

Our hosts in Belgrade, all in their mid-20s, were very worried about the political state of their own country, seeming to have lost hope in the political process that had instigated massive ethnic conflict over the past 15 years in Serbia. On the other hand, the prospect of Obama in the White House provided a glimmer of something better to come outside of Serbia.

Still, both Obama and Clinton seem to be well liked by those we have met in our travels. In London, we had the privilege of taking a tour of the British Houses of Parliament in Westminster Abby and our tour guide, the chief of staff of a minister in the British Parliament, also expressed his support for Clinton, citing her knowledge and experience across a broad spectrum of issues.

“Her being elected would also just be very good for the U.K., since we are a close ally, and have had to deal with Bush for so long,” Steve Race said.

On the streets of Istanbul, two friendly strangers struck up a conversation about politics. After some anti-Bush chiding they asked us who we would vote for, invoking Hillary, not Barack. It was surprising, but seemed to be evidence that her name still has far reaching recognition. Obama may be the new sensation, but the Clinton political dynasty has been around the block.

Though people rarely criticize either of the democratic candidates (Hillary Clinton definitely doesn’t have the same “lover her/hate her” reputation that she does stateside), it is definitely Barack Obama who receives the most praise, and is the most intriguing candidate to many outside of the U.S.

For the poor, non-white sector of the world, Obama’s message is not the only thing that makes him popular, it is also what he symbolizes as a person. For many, the mere existence of a non-white president as commander in chief of the wealthiest nation offers a glimmer of hope that racial parity might not be an unattainable dream.

In a conversation with Alfonso Garcia, a musician at Plaza Garibaldi in Mexico City, we got to talking about politics in his country, and the disputed results in the most recent election in which the Socialist Party candidate, Manuel Lopez Obrador, lost to the more conservative National Action Party (PAN) candidate Felipe Calderón.

This particular harp player, of modest means and clearly a man of the people, was distraught by the loss of Obrador, and disillusioned in general by politicians.

He summed up his thoughts with this pessimistic comment: “They convince people to vote for them and then take all the money that could go into schools and education, which makes it easier to trick the people into voting for them again. It just gets worse and worse.”

He then switched his tone, and with a smile, asked me “But what about that black guy you guys have? Do you think he can win?”

Garcia was not sure on his name, but was sure that a black man in the White House was a good thing for the world. He highlighted the common feeling among non-whites that politics, not just in the U.S. but all over the world, is dominated by the wealthy, white elite that have managed to maintain power since the days of colonialism, despite the democratic apparatus that attempts to work toward social and political equality.

This sentiment has been echoed everywhere we go, from young culturally connected Guatemalans working for NGO’s to coffee farmers in remote hills, to parking attendants in Brazil. When conversations turn to politics, invariably Obama’s name comes up, and when we tell them that he really does have a chance, and, in fact, a good one, a brief smile flashed across peoples faces, a smile of renewed hope in a country that has all but been written off by the rest of the world.

This entry was posted on Saturday, May 10th, 2008 and is filed under politics. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.