By STU WOO
The UNITY News

Shiela Reaves spent extra cash to bring Tom, her 18-year-old son, to the UNITY ’08 convention. The Wisconsin communications professor expected the two major presidential contenders to speak at a forum originally planned for tonight, to be televised on CNN.

But now, the Madison, Wis., residents will see neither. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., is unlikely to appear at the conference, while Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., will speak Sunday, after the Reaves depart Chicago.

The Reaves are one of many UNITY attendees let down by McCain’s no-show and the rescheduling of Obama’s speech.

On Wednesday, UNITY Executive Director Onica Makwakwa and UNITY Convention Chair Bryan Monroe reiterated that the presidential hopefuls never committed to the forum, even though the convention Web site, www.unityjournalists.org, heavily promoted their supposed appearance.

Obama, the expected Democratic nominee, is confirmed to speak on Sunday, when he will make his first public appearance in the United States after returning from trips to the Middle East and Europe, Monroe said. He added that McCain, the Republican candidate, is unlikely to attend UNITY, though an invitation is still standing.

Makwakwa said UNITY began heavily courting McCain and Obama when they became clear presidential frontrunners earlier this year. She added that while the Obama campaign was receptive to attending the conference, “it was clear on the McCain side that the campaign needed a lot more work in terms of interest.” McCain spoke at the 1999 UNITY convention.

But in the past few weeks, Makwakwa said it became apparent that Obama would be overseas during that time slot. And last week, a McCain spokeswoman confirmed that the Arizona senator could also not make the Thursday appearance because of a scheduling conflict. He is scheduled to be in Ohio Thursday.

Reaves, a University of Wisconsin professor, is upset about McCain’s likely absence.

“I think it’s outrageous that Republicans are basically snubbing journalists of color,” she said. “Why would someone be so shortsighted?”

Esperanza Urbaez, a freelance writer in New York City, said she was disappointed for a simpler reason: “I was telling everybody back home that I was seeing Obama, that I was seeing McCain.”

topic: uncategorized

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