No laughing matter

Watching the Republican National Convention last week was a little like entering the twilight zone.

For one, there was almost no mention of President Bush during the proceedings – he actually had to suffer the indignity of an appearance through remote feed. And after all he’s done for them. It also warmed my heart that the party of Rush Limbaugh had suddenly discovered sexism.

But, the part that really got me was the Republicans’ odd attempts at humor. First, former New York Gov. Rudy Giuliani openly laughed at Sen. Barack Obama, D.-Ill., over the Democrat’s past as a community organizer. To my horror, the attendees at the convention actually clapped and cheered in response.

Gov. Sarah Palin also joined in, belittling Obama’s three years of service in the South Side of Chicago. She mocked Obama, while defending her stint as mayor of Wasilla, saying, “I guess a small-town mayor is sort of like a ‘community organizer,’ except that you have actual responsibilities.” That’s right – organizing social services for low-income individuals isn’t an “actual responsibility.” Overseeing the needs of 7,000 Alaskans is, on the other hand.

This isn’t the first time we’ve gotten a little taste of the Republican sense of humor. In 1960, President Kennedy ran on a platform to eradicate poverty and hunger. Just four years later, Ronald Reagan openly ridiculed Kennedy when he joked that the 17 million people who went to bed hungry each night were all on a diet.

More recently, in 2004, President Bush joked about the lack of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq during a black-tie dinner for journalists. A slideshow narrated by Bush featured him looking under some furniture, while joking, “those weapons of mass destruction have got to be somewhere.” Yes, there is nothing more hilarious than going to war under false pretenses.

Despite this extremely insensitive history on the part of Republicans, the devolution of community organizing into a mere punch line is particularly galling. After all, Obama’s campaign has relied on the theme of public service and working for a cause greater than us. While these notions were particularly relevant after 9/11, the Republican Party perverted them for their gain. Public service was reduced to a decal sticker proclaiming one’s support for the troops, and self-interest quickly became a part of the government equation again. Since President Bush took office, the funding for AmeriCorps has been slashed dramatically.

It is particularly evident that when Republicans mock Obama, they’re actually ridiculing all the college students who volunteer at a food bank or homeless shelter. When Republicans refer to community organizing in a pejorative sense, they are questioning the ability of ordinary people like you and me to make change.
They are insulting the many college students at IU who are helping to register people to vote. They are diminishing the efforts of college activists who dedicate untold hours to various causes. Most of all, they’re insulting the dignity of volunteerism.
And there is nothing funny about that.