Obama Wins and Loses Allies

In a controversial and interesting move full of moral and social implications that is not without risk in the upcoming electoral season, President Barack Obama announced his support of same-sex marriage. With his announcement, Obama has become the first North American president to be congratulated by a Cuban official in the last 50 years. The well-wishes came from Mariela Castro Espín, director of the National Center for Sexual Education in Cuba and the EFE news agency described her support for the president as “excellent.”

The gesture (from Obama, not Mariela) is particularly daring because the United States is a nation that was founded upon the religious tenants supported by the so-called “Founding Fathers” that had arrived to the coasts to escape religious persecution in England. It is one of the most religious countries in the world and one in which faith and politics are highly intertwined. During the inauguration ceremony the president must take an oath on the Bible, with John Quincy Adams being the only president in history to abstain because he was agnostic.

Apart from his convictions about the topic, it is obvious that Obama wouldn’t make the announcement without thinking about the upcoming elections. Risk aside, Obama’s declaration seems perfectly calculated because he won’t lose votes from the white evangelicals, strict Catholics, conservatives, homophobes, male chauvinists, rifle association members or racists who never even supported him in the first place.

While Obama’s statement doesn’t necessarily mean anything will change, because the issue lays in the hands of the states, it could improve his image among the young and tolerant, an important part of progressive Latinos and blacks that reject all types of discrimination and exclusion. In addition, it will naturally capture the support of the powerful gay community whose powers are still not fully known. By adding a substantial topic to the campaign, Obama balances out other topics like unemployment.

In this sphere, Obama’s campaign is betting on the pragmatism of the North American elections that is not accustomed to “change the horse in the middle of the river,” and will not believe that a candidate like Mitt Romney will have more success than Obama in fixing the economy. Obama has led for four years during a crisis that hasn’t worked out well, but hasn’t made the country collapse either.

Obviously, his conservative opponents and racists have won many provisions, which are hardly sufficient to win. However, as with every important decision, there are risks that governments must take in place of sidestepping or postponing the issue. We’ll see what happens.