The next President of the United States almost definitely will come from the Democratic Party, that is to say that the top two contenders in the democratic race can beat anything the Republicans put forward as there seems to be a an appreciable level of Public dis-affection for the Republican agenda.
So the 2008 presidential elections present a unique opportunity to re-shape critical American policies for the next two decades. Interestingly, American policy is not monolithic, in that it emanates from a complex quilt of amalgamated cultures and interest groups. However, repeatedly two distinct groups of Americans always seem to get the attention of anyone who listens to the voices of the American population. There is white America, the demanding and at times imposing status quo, and the emerging vocal and at times equally demanding Black America.
These two Americas seem destined to be on a cataclysmic collision course that will either decimate the country as we now know it or will morph into a harmonious hew of peace seekers desperately trying to create a new America. With the increasing number of mixed race citizens in the US, the future of the country will undoubtedly be one that is redefined around their interest and with their supposedly colorless viewpoints.
America it seems is growing tired of the ceaseless agitation and conflict centered around race. A vast majority of whites wants to bury the ugly legacy of slavery and racism, while a significant number of blacks refuse to entertain the thought of letting white America off the hook for what it considers the greatest crime in history. Thus the two distinct Americas, one black and one white having accumulated their grievances are now holding their positions on how they expect this country to be governed and along what lines they want the society to develop.
For years white Americans have fought to ensure that foreigners arriving on their shores or “immigrants” as they like to call them only subscribed to the tenets of white America, this to ensure that the power base remains the same and the status quo is upheld. However through civil right struggles, education and sheer determination Black America has now become a force to be reckoned with and they too want to have a say in who is an immigrant and on important issues such as American foreign policy, so the American dilemma is now on center stage.
Which one of the Americas will win out, white America certainly has the numbers and the power, but Black America is showing they know how to organize, and they are persistent and resilient.
So here we are in the first election of the 21st century and at a major crossroads as to which America sets the tone for the next two decades. The issues are different but the passion that surrounds them burns equally hot on both sides. When one inquires about the top issues facing this divided America, it breaks down as such: For white America 1) Immigration, 2) Economy, 3) Foreign Policy. For Black America, it is 1) Racial Discrimination, 2) Economy 3) Health Care, and there are those of us who believe that if you fix number one the other two would fall in line, because in America most economic and health care polices are racially slanted and are practiced to encourage the marginalization of Black folks.
This is why the race between Hillary Clinton and Barrack Obama is such a bellwether for America. Those who follow politics know Hillary as pretty much a centrist American politician bordering on health care liberalism. Those who follow Obama’s history can easily classify him as a progressive liberal bordering on social activism. The question becomes, who is better for America at this critical juncture in our history. Do we want to change America into an America for all, or do we want to keep America a sacrosanct for whites who will occasionally throw crumbs to the begging minority for the next twenty years.
While it is clear that Black America is very concerned about the availability of decent health care for all, it ranks just a degree or two higher on the critical issues scale over foreign policy. In this divided America most blacks decry the Iraq war and attribute this costly albatross to Bush’s eccentricity, while White America mostly views this as a natural outgrowth of America’s dominance and its accompanying role in policing the world and reigning in incalcitrant leaders. Naturally, Black America would agree with Obama that the Iraq war is senseless and the money spent raging this war would be better spent stimulating domestic growth and creating the all-important jobs for our people. Hillary Clinton, who claims the President misled her, supported the war and at the time felt that the need to disarm Saddam and curb weapons of mass destruction was the American thing to do. This is the choice we face between these two potential leaders. One who will stand with the status quo, when pushed to make a decision and the other who will question the status quo and offer alternatives that may go against the grain of the American culture. But as Obama puts it, the need for change is critical, and if not now, when?
It is extremely perplexing to see a throve of Black American executives and leaders who have thrown their support behind Hillary Clinton supposedly in some kind of expression of loyalty for the favorable years under Bill Clinton, although loyalty is not a sentiment that black America is particularly endowed with. Historically they have found it difficult to offer it to their own and one should now question how they find it so easy to offer it to a past leader who in fact did fairly little to enhance their position on the American stage with meaningful projects. It is almost embarrassing to see black America rally around this mediocre saxophone player with questionable morals and denigrate one of their own who sacrificed a lucrative career to do social work in the ghettos of Chicago and give intelligent voice to a hopeless people who desperately needed one. Considering that he wasn’t from that background Obama’s sacrifice is even more admirable than Bill Clinton moving his ex-presidential offices to Harlem in a pre-meditated move to prepare his wife to run for the presidency based on the support of the Black vote. It seems our people are so confused and self-defeating that they sat around for decades lamenting the fact that the political system effectively ostracizes them and deny the intelligent among us from going after the pre-eminent position that when they finally have a qualified candidate from among them poised to challenge for this position, they find ways of undermining him and belittling his candidacy with the misguided mindset that they have to question his commitment to black people.
Question all you will, the sad fact is a black candidate who espouses his pro-black position will always be viewed as a special-interest candidate and will never get the endorsement of a significant number of the white population which is what is needed to win a national election. History has shown that the Jesse Jacksons of the world might infuse passion and ignite black pride, but they will not win the trust of white America. The politics of America is delicate and deeply divided along racial lines, and as such a confrontational challenger is never going to win the trusts of millions of Americans, the irony is one cannot champion the cause of black America without being confrontational or a challenger. There are too many people set in their ways, so conventional wisdom should say the best way to bring about change peacefully is working with an adversary to establish a degree of trust so they will allow mutually beneficial policies to be implemented.
Then there are those who question Obama’s electability. They should ponder the following. Any minority who won a statewide election in the United States had to get significant cross-race endorsement. Any minority that gets to be a representative in the United States Senate has been wholly endorsed by the mainstream and as such is seen as a significant political figure on the American landscape. With his academic and political accomplishments to date, teamed with his ethnic composition, Obama is truly a rare find that possesses all the raw ingredients to make a genuine appeal to the conscience of America to give him an opportunity to heal the racial divide and avert what is certain to be an inevitable collision of the two Americas.
America must seek new and promising leadership to infuse new ideas and change its self-destructive course. Rarely does a candidate come along with all the right credentials and offer themselves up for service. It is especially exciting when that candidate happens to be a minority with a social conscience and a penchant for building bridges. We would miss a tremendous opportunity if we didn’t give Barack Obama a chance.
Fortis Forever
Everton Barrett
Past President of KCOBA-GA
The views expressed in this article are not necessarily those of the board of directors of KCOBA. The association is apolitical and does not endorse any candidate for political office.
