Politics Magazine
- Eighteen years ago, Douglas Wilder became the country’s first African-American governor. Now the mayor of Richmond, Wilder speaks about his legacy and its lessons for Barack Obama…
Politics: It’s tempting to think your own political career helped pave the way for Sen. Barack Obama. How do you view the impact of your career on his candidacy?
Wilder: I like the idea that he is saying that he’s not running to make history, and I never considered what I was doing to be making history. It was a matter of doing what is a natural consequence of seeking political office and moving ahead. An amazing similarity is that he has not been presumed to be ready by the so-called insiders. Same thing with me. The political leadership, particularly in the African-American community across the country, all said, “How dare this upstart from Illinois talk about running. He hasn’t come through us.” And I found that taking place when I was at the State of Black America event that Tavis Smiley was putting on down in Hampton, Va. It was amazing how people felt that it was more important for Obama to be there than to be making his presidential announcement in Springfield, Ill., the capital of his home state. Are you people crazy? And there was an attempt to undercut him and say that he had his priorities not in order.
