In Clarendon, NC, a letter was recently mailed to residents saying “a friend has recommended that I reach out to you about a problem that you may be having but may not be aware of.”  Signed “A Clarendon Neighbor,” it made a novel argument: the intention to vote for Barack Obama may be a sign of latent white supremacy.

The letter goes on to say:

Racism comes in many forms, and there is a significant possibility that your sponsorship of Senator Obama is really an obsessive compulsion to prove to yourself, and to others, that you are not a racist. Have you looked within yourself and examined your motives?

… Isn’t making a big deal out of Obama’s skin color just another form of racism?

Unfortunately, Senator Obama and his team have approached this question in a very cynical way. Can anyone really brand former President Bill Clinton a racist? After all he had done for Black people? Well, the Obama campaign did. Can anyone accuse the Rev. Jesse Jackson of being a racist against Blacks? The Obama campaign almost did.

You should be absolutely certain that you are not being carried over to the voting booth upon a guilt trip. You should take this opportunity to look deeply within yourself and ask, “Why did I fall for Obama? Why am I, after all that we have accomplished on racial issues, still feeling guilty? Am I an unconscious racist? Am I any better than those who pretend not to stare at an inter-racial couple?”

I’m sorry to tell you that voting for Obama does not absolve you of racism, it may even confirm it.

I think this is a novel entry into the annals of voter suppression: don’t let your white guilt drive you out of your home and into the polling booth…

News of the letter, and a scan of the hard-copy original, was first posted on The Grove Project on Wednesday, 10/1.  That same day, it was pasted into a comment at StopDogWhistleRacism.com.  Is it going viral?

If you have seen this message, please let me know by leaving a comment here.  Thanks.