What Does This Thing Mean?: The Election of Barack Obama to the Presidency of the United States

Alahu Aima, Guest Commentary

- The 2008 election of Barack Obama to the highest elective office in the land and the most influential political title on the planet came as an unexpected and fascinating turn of events. After eight years of one of the most inept, retrograde and destructive administrations in American history, Mr. Obama offered the promise of ‘change’ for which many Americans were very much ready.

From the perspective of an Afrocentric Panafricanist, an Obama presidency seems to intriguingly offer promise as well as potential pitfalls. It was difficult not to get caught up in the excitement and anticipation which engulfed the African American community during the weeks leading up to November 4th. The idea of a black man in the White House was appealing to African Americans of all political perspectives and socio-economic backgrounds. Even for those of us who have a clear understanding of the deceptiveness, disingenuousness and ulterior motives lurking throughout American politics, the symbolism of a black First Family was nevertheless alluring. Even so, at this point we would have to say that the potential benefits to the African World of an Obama presidency are mostly overshadowed by the numerous and more probable negative outcomes. Thus, it appears that the Obama Presidency will be seriously challenged to facilitate any substantial benefit to the greater good of the African American or African World communities though such an occurrence is not completely out of the realm of possibility.

The first and greatest difficulty for the Obama presidency comes about because of the manner in which he was elected. Obama often seemed to be more the motivational speaker than the politician, telling any and all who would listen that that they themselves had this wonderful power to affect some vague and poorly defined but somehow magnificent ‘change’ if they would but vote for him. In one of the most successful marketing campaigns ever devised Obama was presented to the American people as the effective agent of ‘change.’ And given eight years of the Bush administration along with a collapsing economy, it was a message that many people were inclined to receive.

But, now we are left to ask, “Change into what exactly?” There were few specifics provided concerning what it is that Africans or African Americans can expect from an Obama administration. Although some observers including the respected political scientist, Dr. Ronald Walters, have indicated that Mr. Obama does indeed have a deep understanding of issues that affect African Americans, he did little during his campaign to indicate just how he would specifically address these issues as president. Additionally, in neither his acceptance speech at the Democratic nomination nor in his victory speech on the night of the election did Mr. Obama say much of anything about the oppression and sacrifices of our ancestors during slavery, Reconstruction, the Jim Crow era, the Civil Rights and Black Freedom movements of the 60’s or our continuing struggles as a people.

Mr. Obama was quick to present his election as proof positive that the values of ‘our’ founding fathers including freedom, democracy and opportunity are alive and well in America. The unspoken but clear implication being communicated was that if a black man can become president then America is not a racist country, everyone has equal opportunity and in America anything is possible. But, apparently it is still not yet possible for a black President to acknowledge the historical sacrifices, courage and struggles of African Americans; the very same struggles and hard won civil rights victories that have allowed people like Mr. Obama to advance in society. Thus, how far have we really come if Obama is unable to publicly acknowledge or show respect for Black history, Black heritage or Black people?

Mr. Obama cut himself off from his former pastor Rev. Jeremiah Wright after earlier saying that he could no more do so than he could cut himself off from the African American community; not an auspicious sign. He then visited the Washington headquarters of AIPAC (the American Israel Political Action Committee) the day after his victory in the Democratic primaries to promise that he would do all in his power as president to provide Israel with a military advantage over its neighbors and to keep Iran from gaining nuclear weapons. No such visits to African American churches, the Congressional Black Caucus or any other organizations committed to interest of African people to pledge a similar loyalty to their causes would be forthcoming. Some might argue that for him to do so would be inappropriate, make him seem ‘tribal’ jeopardizing his political influence. But, then why is it appropriate to do so with AIPAC but not within his own community?

Whatever else politics may be about it is absolutely about securing resources for one’s own community of interests. Obama received 95% of an enthusiastic and enlarged Black vote, likely providing the margin of victory in Indiana, North Carolina, and Virginia, states that Democratic presidential candidates had not carried in a generation. The Black vote was also crucial to securing victories in Florida, Pennsylvania and Ohio, states that Obama did not carry in the primaries. He received only 43% of the white vote nationwide, compared with John McCain’s 55% (Obama also got 60% of the Hispanic vote and 78% of the Jewish vote). Of course he received much of his funding and organizational support from white and Jewish sources. And political quid pro quos are inevitable. Yet, we still must ask the question: If successful black politicians are only able to deliver nebulous symbolism and useless happy talk, even when receiving overwhelming and decisive support from the black electorate then why on earth should the election of black office holders ever be of any importance? After all we can certainly get the same mindless drivel from white politicians, along with a few political appointments and the occasional luncheon meeting.

In the aftermath of the Jeremiah Wright commotion, Mr. Obama went to the Apostolic Church of God in Chicago in order to deliver a rebuke of Black men for not taking better care of their families. Such criticism was nothing new in Black churches, as Black ministers often admonish their congregants, sometimes in caustic terms, to be mindful of their family and community responsibilities. But, unlike Mr. Obama most Black ministers who give such sermons have lived their entire lives within African American communities and they are committed to a life of service in those communities. During his address at the Apostolic Church of God congregation, Mr. Obama curiously adopted a ‘Black preacherly’ mannerism and cadence ala Hillary Clinton during one of her appearances at a Black church. (Such personality transformations upon addressing a distinctive audience tend not to inspire confidence.) In his speech Obama briefly mentioned a past history of unnamed injustices against Blacks leaving us to wonder whether it was slavery, lynching, black codes, poll taxes, redlining or police profiling he was referring to but then he quickly dismissed all such matters as no excuse for the failures of black fathers.

Yet, he left no such ambiguity as to which failures of black men he was referring to as he gave a long list of shortcomings in the Black community which are supposedly associated with inadequate fathers, but apparently not so much associated with the injustices of white oppression. At any rate this was an odd speech to deliver on a day which is supposed to be set aside to honor and celebrate our fathers – a broadside against black men in general, and nothing about the many black men who have struggled and sacrificed to be the best fathers that they know how to be in the midst of a racist and often hostile society. Mr. Obama should be well aware, being an astute politician, that the main stream media tends to focus only on negative statements about blacks even when positive things are also said, thus the need for him to take greater care in addressing issues in way that is encouraging and not simply engage in negative, one-sided and nonconstructive criticisms. (No, unlike Rev. Jesse Jackson I do not recommend that we remove any of Mr. Obama’s body parts for this offense, but only that he should be challenged to be more evenhanded, respectful of our community and cognizant of the public perception of his comments in the future.)

We still have yet to hear from Mr. Obama any such detailed criticisms for white, Hispanic, Asian or other men some of whom discriminate in hiring, engage in practices of ethnic favoritism and preferential treatment in business or who commit numerable acts of violence and abuse against Black men under color of law as police officers.

Does the success of Mr. Obama mean that no Black person can ever again point out discrimination or mistreatment based on anti-black sentiments? And if Mr. Obama has indeed achieved such a racism-transcending victory then why is it still not possible to show some appreciation and acknowledgment of the community which embraced him and then supported and lifted him up from a community organizer to a state legislator to the US Senate to where a point where he could reach the highest office in the land? Mr. Obama frequently pointed out during the campaign that he had a white mother and grandmother, not too much mentioned about the black relatives. His most visible relative, his wife Michelle, had to be silenced and sent for retraining after she slipped when she indicated that she felt no pride in America until her husband’s success in politics. (Having no pride in America being a not so uncommon sentiment and a positive indicator of mental health among Blacks).

But, still it was the African American community not his white background which helped to nurture and advance his early career. And it is his Black heritage, both African and African American, not his white ancestry, which makes his election a symbol of hope and an inspiration to many across the globe. (What white politician could have inspired such a hopeful reaction from various corners of the world?) Yet, was the African American community of the Southside of Chicago and the rest of African America just a stepping stool to be used and then cast aside, like so much garbage, once the aspired for goal is attained? Are whites to be the main beneficiaries of an Obama Presidency – they get to be absolved of a racist past, while maintaining economic and social dominance – while African people get a nice warm fuzzy feeling for a few days but not much else?

In actuality the election of Obama is very much incongruous with the still oppressive reality experienced by Black people in the US and around the world. This makes his election potentially dangerous. It would have been much more preferable if a true grassroots movement, perhaps a coalition of Blacks, Latinos and progressive whites, demanding redress for injustices in our communities, had put him in office. Instead his election is more a product of the magic of marketing than the culmination of a progressive movement.

If Mr. Obama is manipulated or feels politically pressured into blasting criticism at Blacks, while being unable to critique the long and sordid history of white oppression along with its current practice, then he will become more of a ridiculous caricature of ‘black achievement’ (something achieved only at the expense of and to the detriment of other blacks) and his Presidency will not be progressive or of any substantive benefit.

Yes, he should be the President of all of America not just Black America, but he self-identifies as a black man and an African American and if that cannot be translated into any tangible gains for our community, then why was everyone so excited? We must remain prepared to challenge and push an Obama administration to do right by our community. We must insist that Mr. Obama do more than simply put a smiley face on oppression and then vacuously proclaim that a great ‘change’ has occurred. If Obama does not attempt to reverse the oppressive and unjust policies of his predecessors then he will be a moral failure. If he is unable to provide anything other than symbolic hope to our communities, something that Clinton and Bush did as well through their various appointments of blacks to cabinet posts and judgeships and meetings with ministers and civil rights groups, then he will have failed to advance the interests of African and African American communities. (He does seem fully prepared to advance the interest of at least one other ethnic group.) This is all quite a tall order for Mr. Obama, especially given all of the other problems that presently beset America, but presumably he ran for office knowing full well the depth and seriousness of the challenges ahead.

Finally, despite all of the potential pit falls just discussed we must still acknowledge that Mr. Obama’s ascendancy to the presidency is one of the most hopeful signs for people of African descent since the fall of apartheid in South Africa. The President of the United States has the most powerful bully pulpit in the world and just his presence on the world stage along with the images of his beautiful wife and daughters will inspire hope in many, and dispel stereotypical notions of black inferiority that are still too prevalent in today’s world. The Obama First Family is just a symbol, but it is a powerful symbol that can be used to motivate and encourage people of African descent, and other oppressed people across the globe.

Alahu Aima is a former public school teacher and he is currently a graduate student in Houston, Texas.