Maya Angelou: Obama Email

Here's an email about early voting from Maya Angelou, acting on behalf of the Obama campaign:

Dear Mary,

I am not writing to you as a black voter, or a woman voter, or as a voter who is over 70 years old and six feet tall. I am writing to you as a representative of this great country -- as an American.

It is your job to vote. It is your responsibility, your right, and your privilege. You may be pretty or plain, heavy or thin, gay or straight, poor or rich.

But remember this: In an election, every voice is equally powerful -- don't underestimate your vote. Voting is the great equalizer.

Your vote might make the difference. Don't fool around with this: You can vote early in Wisconsin, so find your early vote polling location and do it now.

Once you've done that, make sure your friends know exactly where they can vote early, too.

As a country, we can scarcely perceive the magnitude of our progress.

My grandmother and my uncle experienced circumstances that would break your heart. When they went to vote, they were asked impossible questions like, "How many angels can dance on the head of a pin?" When they couldn't answer, they couldn't vote.

I once debated with the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. about whether an African American would ever be elected president. He believed it would happen within the next 40 years at the time -- I believed it would never happen within my lifetime.

I have never been happier to have been proven wrong.

And since President Barack Obama's historic election, we've moved forward in courageous and beautiful ways. More students can afford college, and more families have access to affordable health insurance. Women have greater opportunities to get equal pay for equal work.

Yet as Rev. King wrote, "All progress is precarious."

So don't sit on the sidelines. Don't hesitate. Don't have any regrets. Vote.

You don't have to wait until Election Day. Voting has already begun in Wisconsin -- so go, rise up, and cast your ballot early:

http://my.barackobama.com/Find-Your-Early-Vote-Location

And make sure everyone in your life knows where they can vote early, too:

http://my.barackobama.com/Help-Your-Friends-Vote-Early

Your vote is not only important. It's imperative.

Thank you,

Dr. Maya Angelou

Her story of what her grandmother and her uncle experienced, being turned away at the polls, should serve as a reminder that we shouldn't take our right to vote for granted.

It's also a reminder of the injustice experienced by citizens in our country. When we vote, we should remember how some Americans were denied participation in the electoral process, because of their skin color or because they were women.

Angelou makes note of Obama being an African American president, as if that should influence how we vote. It's not supposed to be about the color of one's skin but the content of one's character, right?

I'm somewhat concerned about Angelou's statement connecting Obama's presidency with Dr. Martin Luther King's quote, "All progress is precarious." That following the story of her relatives being denied the right to vote and the talk of electing an African American president suggests, albeit in a subtle fashion, that failing to vote for Obama and allowing Mitt Romney to be elected could reverse racial equality in the country.

I wish Angelou would express her objection to Obama's oppression of Catholics and his disregard for the Bill of Rights.

Her appeal to vote early isn't the problem. Her support for Obama isn't the problem. The problem is Angelou's racial message.

It's unfortunate.