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South Africa Rocks has an interesting tweet that sums up the irresistible urge to compare Mandela, one of the most magnificent political figures of the 20th century, with Barack Obama. The tweet reads: " There is no comparison. Mandela is a different person from a different time who called for a different following to achieve different goals. The closest these two come to one another is the tone of their skin color." So true, unless events were to change. But the divisions and lines drawn in the sand in America make a comparison between the two a waste of thought and breath.
What Obama preached during his campaign and the voice of change and hope he promised his followers, all of a sudden seems so long ago with the rush of events, and the cold reality of Washington.
The politics of skin color remains a handy weapon for this White House, along with a host of those who would silence and ostracize a news outlet, and deride citizens who disagree with their policies.
It would seem that the contrasts between Mandela and Obama are apparent, and most specifically when the politics of race is the subject of anyone's comparison.
It is a given that Mandela and Obama are both revolutionary, but Mandela proved to be a leader. In turn, Obama has inspired his followers and many in the world. Yet Obama has yet to unite and lead all of America.