For Area Blacks, a House Divided

D.C. Council member Marion Barry (D-Ward 8) had been silent on the primary until last week, when the he endorsed Obama. He said he'd been torn between Obama and Clinton.

"Black leadership is not monolithic, just as white leadership is not monolithic," he said, adding that the momentum for Obama can't be denied.

"Whether anyone admits it, race and gender are a factor in everyone's minds. Not the factor, but a factor," he said. "The white Democrats have taken us for granted. They always thought our vote was there. The Republicans have ignored us. At last, we're in a leveraged position in the Democratic Party."

Bishop Glen A. Staples, pastor of the Temple of Praise Church in Southeast Washington, where former president Bill Clinton appeared yesterday, said Clinton and Obama differ little on the issues.

"Of course, a lot are going to Obama because they like that he's a black man. But a lot support Hillary because of past and present ties to" the Clintons, said Staples, who said he is undecided but will not reveal his choice publicly when he makes it.

Barry, who showed up at the church later, said he understands why black lawmakers are split between Obama and Clinton.

"In politics, it's about relationships, and the Clintons have had had long relationships with John Lewis [Ga.], with Maxine Waters [Calif.] and a number of other people -- Charlie Rangel [N.Y.]," he said, speaking of members of the Congressional Black Caucus, which is divided on the two Democratic candidates. "In the final analysis, you have to look at your interest."

D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton remains mum on her choice for president and said she hopes the Obama-Clinton battle will not hurt the Democrats in the November general election.

Former D.C. mayor Sharon Pratt, along with Mayor Adrian M. Fenty and former Virginia governor L. Douglas Wilder (D), now mayor of Richmond, are among those supporting Obama and actively pushing people to the polls.

"People underestimate the need for hope and renewal . . . and he's not afraid of being different," Wilder said. "He has elevated the thinking of Americans with his words about moving forward. . . . What he is doing with young people and their participation . . . I've never seen anything like it."

Pratt trekked to Alabama in the days preceding Super Tuesday to campaign for Obama. "I don't think people appreciated the firestorm created by Obama. Even when he announced his candidacy from Illinois, a lion's share of African Americans didn't take his candidacy seriously and were supporting Clinton," she said.

Now, Clinton supporters, particularly African Americans, are fighting a rolling tide, she said. "It's a tough phenomenon to battle," Pratt said. "When I did phone banks to voters in Huntsville, people would say, 'This is history.' "