“I haven’t voted in over 20 years,” an acquaintance recently confided. “But I went and registered to vote in this election, just so I can vote against Obama.”

“Why is that?” I inquired.

“Because he’s a Muslim!”

I was silent for a moment, and then I pointed out the obvious. Everyone knows that Obama belongs to the Church of Christ. If he were a Muslim, the conservative attempt to smear him with the unpatriotic words of Rev. Jeremiah Wright would have fallen flat. In fact the presidential candidate recently renounced his association with Wright’s church because of some extremist views and language — extremist Christian views, mind you.

I explained the facts patiently the first time my associate brought up the Muslim argument, but this individual was not swayed by facts. Finally I asked, “When you say ‘Muslim,’ does that mean black?”

The answer was affirmative. Since that conversation, I’ve received numerous emails — some spam and some, unfortunately, forwarded from well-meaning friends — claiming that Obama must be defeated because we do not want a Muslim in the White House.

Apparently the n-word, which is too vulgar to voice in polite company, has been replaced with the M-word: Muslim. As a white Christian, I can only imagine how this accusation sounds in the ears of black Christians.

Frankly, the M-word attack on Obama implies that black Christians cannot really be trusted. Since black Muslims do exist, any professing Christian with dark skin might be a secret Muslim! Yet the very idea of a “secret Muslim” is an oxymoron. A person cannot be a secret Muslim any more than he can be a secret Christian. Both religions require adherents to practice faith openly, not “hide it under a bushel.”

If any of my dear readers find themselves swayed by “Obama is a Muslim” arguments, I invite you to investigate the claims using that quintessential urban legend spotlight, www.snopes.com.

In case you’re wondering, Obama was sworn in on the Bible, not the Quran. He attends church, not Mosque. He never attended a Madrassa or Wahabi school in Jakarta, as some news sources even claimed. Investigative reporting by CNN revealed that Obama’s early education consisted of public schooling, plus two years of Catholic school.

Obama is no Muslim, closet or otherwise. In fact, he is more open than most politicians about his faith, speaking often of a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. He walked the aisle at Trinity United Church of Christ 16 years ago. He knelt at the altar on a Sunday morning. He stood and professed Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior.

But the M-word need not be accurate to deal its blow. In fact, it can be used as a sort of code word, the speaker and the hearer sharing a secret camaraderie. After all, not everyone is crass enough to don a T-shirt that says “Obama is my slave” or depicts him as Curious George. Likewise, the n-word is now considered too offensive for all but the most hateful bigots. Substituting the M-word for the n-word allows those racists who consider themselves civilized to engage in a bit of thinly disguised black-bashing while feigning innocence.

The tactic is not new. Racial prejudice has often been disguised as religious objection. Throughout history the targets of racism and genocide have been many — indigenous peoples, Jews, gypsies, etc. In nearly every case, racism is overlaid with religious complaint. Persecution is excused by the claim that the persecuted are heathens, pagans, savages or cannibals. Whether the Spanish wanted Mayan treasure or the USA wanted to own and occupy Hawai’i, the tactics were the same — they labeled the people heathens and suddenly it was acceptable to rape, pillage, steal and exterminate.

Hopefully, Obama is in no danger of extermination, but the M-word could very well cost him the presidency. That will not hurt him too much. After all, he’ll still be a senator, a wealthy author, and the first black American to secure a major party nomination. He has enough money, fame and connections to last a lifetime.

But what about the rest of us? Can we survive four more years of Bushism?

Jeannie Babb Taylor may be contacted at jeannie@babb.com, or you can leave a public comment on her blog at JeannieBabbTaylor.com.