My friend kid oakland has an excellent post up, which I urge you to read. I too am uncomfortable with the t-shirt’s John Aravosis created in the wake of the McClurkin/Obama flap. kid oakland issued a challenge to Aravosis: what next?

Where are you going to take it from here?

Is it enough that a wave of anti-Obama rhetoric has swept the web? Was that what you were after? Or were you looking for something more….say, engagement, policy debate, coalition-building between Blacks and gays? What kind of response and challenges can we look forward to from you regarding the other Democratic presidential candidates? What is AMERICAblog doing to bring Democrats of every skin color who are sympathetic to McClurkin, who perhaps even share his mindset, into engagement and a reasoned exchange of views?

John, I look forward to reading about your outreach efforts in the days and weeks to come!

Obama may not be able to bring together these people, but somebody clearly needs to. I actually would be very interested to see Aravosis invite on to his blog some of the folks listed here on this letter. They write:

We believe that Barack Obama is constructing a tent big enough for LGBT Americans who know that their sexual orientation is an innate and treasured part of their being, and for African American ministers and citizens who believe that their religion prevents them from fully embracing their gay brothers and sisters. And if we are to confront our shared challenges we have to join together, build on common ground, and engage in a civil dialogue even when we disagree.

We also ask Senator Obama’s critics to consider the alternatives. Would we prefer a candidate who ignores the realities in the African American community and cuts off millions of Blacks who believe things offensive to many Americans? Or a panderer who tells African Americans what they want to hear, at the expense of our gay brothers and sisters? Or would we rather stand with Barack Obama, who speaks truth in love to both sides, pulling no punches but foreclosing no opportunities to engage?

We stand with Senator Obama. We stand with him because of the solutions he is proposing for our nation. We stand with him because of his character and his judgment. But the most important reason we stand with him is because today, as he has done all along, Barack Obama is causing us to stand together.

Look, I really want a big tent and wish that Obama was able to bring them together where words of hatred were not spread. He failed at that. He has united the folks who have written the letter, but his and his campaigns actions have driven many more away from him.

What I wanted most was for Obama to speak “truth in love” in person, not through press releases or interviews with gay publications. I wanted him to appear on that stage with Donnie McClurkin and challenge him when McClurkin started blaming the blogs and claiming the bible hates me. That would be a unifying moment. That is when his message needed to be heard the most.

I want to believe in the politics of hope. I want a politician who will bring together millions under one big tent. I want a progressive to speak up, to me and for me. Thus far Obama has done a lot of pretty talking, but has failed to deliver when push comes to shove.