Colin Powell Cites Platon Photo In Obama Endorsement

President Bush's former Secretary of State Colin Powell was moved to endorse Barack Obama in part by a photo he saw in a magazine. On Meet The Press this morning, Powell said he was troubled by members of the Republican party falsely suggesting that Obama is a Muslim and therefore associated with terrorists:

"I feel strongly about this particular point because of a picture I saw in a magazine. It was a photo essay about troops who were serving in Iraq and Afganistan. And one picture at the tail end of this photo essay was a mother in Arlington Cemetry, and she had her head on the headstone of her son's grave. And as the picture focused in, you could see the writing on the headstone. And it gave his awards, Purple Heart, Bronze Star, showed that he died in Iraq, gave his date of birth, date of death. He was 20 years old. And then at the very top of the headstone, it didn't have a Christian Cross. It didn't have a Star of David. It had a crescent and a star of the Islamic faith. And his name was Kareem Rashad Sultan Khan. And he was an American."

(Link to video.)

The photo Powell mentioned is almost certainly this one by Platon that ran in The New Yorker last month:

Caption: Elsheba Khan at the grave of her son, Specialist Kareem Rashad Sultan Khan. Click on the photo to view it on The New Yorker site, or view the whole photo essay online here.

Comments

[kudos]

Thanks PDN! When I saw Powell tell that harrowing story this morning on MTP I just HAD to know what photo he was referring to. You saved me lots of research time. After Obama wins, I hope we won't have to see many more photos like that one for much longer.

[joshlevine]

reminds one of the power that excellent photography & storytelling can wield.

[Stan B.]

And for what reason was the deceased sent there, and by whom was it made possible?

Mr. Powell can be quite insightful- until he allows himself to be duped. Pity he does not have the power of his convictions.

[salstend]

Stan, he was sent because he volunteered for the US military. Soldiers obey. They must. Your beef is not with the deceased boy, friend.

[Stan B.]

For the record, my beef is clearly and emphatically not with the brave youth who volunteered above. It is with the greedy, sociopathic criminals who sent him there- with whom Mr. Powell is very much complicit thanks to his performance at the UN, an act of showmanship that helped make possible the scene above many times over...

[barry]

Ok Stan i think we all know where you stand on hating Powell.

Now my beef with Powell: He is hoisting a strawman
The Obama/Muslim issue is not about faith but about trust.
Obama was clearly of Muslim faith when his mom registered him in school way back when, but that isn't the issue. The issue is that he has been lying about it.
Obama has been disassociating himself with parts of his past (wisely I think) so he is more "electable" (Rev Wright was correct).
It is obvious that is his strategy and it is working.

[Shahzad Murad]

The trouble with the Western World is that they know nothing about Islam.
The fault lies at the Doorstep of the Muslim World. We have done nothing to educate the West about Islam. This is compounded by the rubbish put out by the Western Media about Islam, specially RABID extreme RIGHT WING TV Channels like FOX NEWS. It is further compounded by the ignorance that most Westerners have of anything that is outside of their immediate vicinity.
Yes, the Muslim World does have a Lunatic Fringe. Just like, for instance, that GUNMAN who went shooting young girls in a Mormon School. I can list many such similar incidents that have taken place in the West. Does Sinn Fein or Bader Meinhoff strike a chord!!!!
Come on the WEST. Show us that you all are really EDUCATED like you all CLAIM to be!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[mike wood photo]

Thanks for locating and posting that image. I was looking for a poignant image like this for my post on Remembrance Day here in Canada, and while I used one of my own, this one was so much more powerful. Pictures can change minds.