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Silencing Jesse Jackson
By Jonathan Elendu

Special to USAfricaonline.com and NigeriaCentral.com

The world woke up on Thursday, January 18, 2001, to yet another sex scandal; another debate about the moral direction of one of our leaders; another debate about privacy and leadership. This time it is the Rev. Jesse Louis Jackson, who is in the mix. Apparently he was having an affair with a Rainbow/Push Coalition staffer during the Clinton impeachment saga, while he was ministering to the embattled President. A child is the product of his affair.

It was reported that Jackson told his wife and children about his indiscretion about a year and half ago. This is another sad face of politics in America. The end of the 90s saw the American political landscape awash in "politics of personal destruction" and hypocrisy in high places. This has become a vicious cycle that engulfs all.

I have no opinions about the Reverend's extramarital affair. I am advised by an interview his wife of 38 years, Jackie Jackson, gave sometime ago in 1988 when she said, "I don't want to talk about anybody's extramarital affairs. If my husband is having an affair with another woman I don't want him to tell me about it and I don't want you telling me about it....." Wise woman; I must say.

I neither applaud nor condemn Jesse Jackson's lifestyle. This is a position I have maintained even before this time. I said the same thing during the Monica Lewinsky saga; a man's infidelity is between him and his wife. They, and they alone, should deal with the matter.

I have long wondered why the American society spends time and money to build a man up only to later destroy him. It is like a rancher feeding his cows good grass and expensive hormones to fatten the animal so as to realize good meat when slaughtered. As a matter of consequence, top athletes, musicians, politicians, judges, priests and people of all professions have been destroyed in this inferno of morbid curiosity.

Many have blamed this trend on the 24 hour news cycle which came with the founding of CNN by Ted Turner. I disagree. While America has made great strides in technology and almost all other aspects of life, relationships and human development have suffered. As a result people have become more lonely and bitter; they have substituted machines for human feelings and touch. The result is a society that has been driven by an uncanny desire to self-destruct. And, as is true of life, we feed these desires and nature materializes it for us. We have writers and producers who now make it their business to tell the whole world the gory details of our lives.

Some turn away in distaste while many applaud and ask for more. The stories and the shows grow. We sell more magazines and newspapers, ratings go up on television shows, and is everybody happy? Certainly not! Yet, we keep asking for more until it comes to our turn. When the intimate details of our lives become news fodder for the world, we cry foul. It has become politically correct to condemn Jerry Springer on television in the day and go back at night to watch more. Any wonder the show still remains one of the most highly rated TV shows in America. Even mainstream networks have joined in this gory fascination with scandal. Did I hear you say Fox and Temptation Island? Thou sayest.

Bill Maher's solution for infidelity in marriages is one with which I do not agree, but I believe its worth some consideration. The man believes that the best way to solve the problem of infidelity is to stay single. Who says you cannot cheat on a lover to whom you are not married?

His approach shows a simplistic understanding of relationships. I have believed, for a very long time, that relationships don't just happen. People don't just meet and decide to have a relationship. Sometimes people get into relationships inspite of themselves.

Some relationships are continuations of previous relationships while some others may be ending of certain experiences we have had over time. One common theme in every relationship is that we are never the same after any relationship. Those who have this understanding see everyday in a relationship as a gift, enjoy the moments and learn the lessons therein.

Enough of philosophy and back to Jesse Jackson...

Since after the general election in November of last year, Jesse Jackson has led the fight to ensure that the voices of millions of voters that were disenfranchised in Florida are heard. He led protests in Florida to protest the outcome of the elections. Police reports indicate that the protest on George Bush's inauguration is expected to be the biggest ever.

That this information on Jesse Jackson's indiscretion was released at this time has raised many eye brows. He had also been in the forefront of the opposition for the nomination of John Ashcroft as attorney general of the country by President George Bush.

This story has been out there for over a year and yet the public did not know about it until a few days to inauguration of the new president and in the middle of Judiciary Committee hearing on Ashcroft. Anybody who thinks all these happened by chance has not been living in this country with their eyes open. This is politics and "gotcha" politics at its best.

Any pretension to a more civil and bipartisan Washington just took a dive out of the window. The testimonies at the Ashcroft hearing and the Jesse affair has ensured that the partisan bitterness and wrangling are here to stay.

George Bush ran as a uniter, not a divider. His appointment of John Ashcroft as attorney general undermines the new president's promise to unite the country. In some ways I don't blame George Bush. As the candidate transformed into the elected (some argue selected) president he had to come to terms with the reality of his situation. He needed to define his alliances and loyalty to the interests that made him President. He chose the right wing!

Nobody should blame him for that. His promise to unite the country worked in the opposite direction. He united the opposition groups against his new administration. The next four years promise to be interesting, especially to people like us. George Bush also promised to change the tone in Washington.

Reality struck. There are evils and principalities in high places and Dubya realizes that now.

Wham! Jesse Jackson get out of the way. This calculated attempt to silence Jesse Jackson and others like him is an affront on the African-American people in United States and indeed blacks all over the world. This must be resisted. Thirty-five years of public service must not go down the drain.

Jesse has many more good years to fight for his people. He should not be allowed to go to waste. This man who has traversed the globe, serving people of different color and race, should not and must not be allowed to fade into oblivion because of a personal failing. Some have said he can no longer claim the moral high ground. Nonsense. People who think like this are bereft of the most basic understanding of life and morality. These are people who are blinded by politics and ideology that they turn the Bible upside down. Sex is not the only sin in the Bible.

The last time I checked, it is still ten commandments and not one. So-called moral and religious leaders lie everyday to their congregations and the general public. That is immoral. Those who line their pockets with money from the special interests in order to pass laws that are inimical to the interests of their constituents are immoral. Supporting policies that endanger lives and breed suffering in the world's poorest regions are acts of immorality. Undermining others to advance your political and financial goals is immoral. The Ashcroft confirmation hearings have revealed a pattern of distortion of records for political purposes; This is highly immoral, but I support his nomination for the position of attorney general. None of us is completely blameless. No sin is greater than the other.

Since the election of November 7, America and her politicians have shown that they do not have an exclusive monopoly on wisdom. Certainly not in democratic practice and principles. American politicians should travel to other countries to learn how to conduct elections and how not to allow personal failings affect them in high office.
Elendu is a contributing editor and columnist for NigeriaCentral.com and USAfrica The Newspaper.

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