Mitt Romney had to directly address religion during his primary run in order to assuage the concerns of a critical part of the Republican Party base. Now Obama must speak up about race in order to make clear to all Americans how he views himself in relation to this country’s racial history and contemporary race controversies. Every new week seems to bring fresh calls for Obama to denounce another prominent Black in order to prove how patriotic or politically mainstream he is. This will not stop. If he doesn’t draw a line and more importantly explain where and why he’s drawing the line, these demands are sure to become more audacious and demeaning. Obama had wished this could wait until after the nomination. Clinton’s continued presence in the race has made the issue more immediate.
First their were calls for him to distanced himself from his own wife over comments she made about this being the first time she felt proud to be an American in her adult life. Then at a debate a few weeks later Obama was told that denouncing Minister Farrakhan was not enough. He must reject him as well. He obliged. Last week the problem was his former pastor Jeremiah Wright. In between, Obama decided to skip Tavis Smiley’s State of the Black Union conference in order to avoid being associated with the very political tradition that made his candidacy possible. Naturally, Hilary Clinton showed up- front and center-right.
Some are beginning to wonder whether Obama will or can stand up and own the racial family that he has claimed as his own. He says he is Black. His family’s Black. His church is Black. Unlike Tiger Woods, he claims a Black racial identity- although he’s of mixed race. Like Muhammad Ali, Obama in his book “Dreams of My Father” expresses a pride in his Blackness and that pride has influenced how many people perceive him. With this identification comes a history and tradition that he increasing seems willing to jettison when it’s politically expedient. Will Obama model his approach to race and identity on Woods’ “post racial” aloofness or stand up for a people- his people- who have been despised and beaten down throughout this country’s history in the same way that Ali has during his life? If he’s not willing to be a fighter- even if it means he loses- he may still become a great politician at some point but not a great leader. He must find a cause that is bigger than his political ambitions. Racial reconciliation doesn’t have to define this cause but Obama should understand that part of his broad appeal is the promise of this reconciliation. He ignores this fact at his peril.
As it stands, the tea leaves don’t look encouraging. After a week of growing pressure Obama condemned his pastor of 20 years for “inflammatory” remarks about the U.S. and Hilary Clinton and “rejected outright the statements that are at issue.” What are the statements? “Racism is how this country was founded and how this country is still run… “We have supported state terrorism against the Palestinians and black South Africans and now we are indignant because the stuff we have done overseas is now brought right back to our own front yards…” He also pointed out that Hilary Clinton has never been called a “nigger” and has never been passed up by a cab because of her color. Direct? yes. Unpopular? yes. True? yes.
If Obama is moved to address race proactively, and intentionally rather than merely responding to every new demand to denounce this or that person or statement, there’s a good chance that it could backfire and hurt his campaign. Denial is still the rule on this subject in the U.S. and people who forget that have seen their careers evaporate overnight. But it’s also true that the address would make history and potentially deepen our collective understanding of this enduring weight on U.S. life. The main point would be to lay out his racial politics. Where is he on Affirmative Action? Reparations? Criminal justice issues? Urban development? But Obama must also address the more pressing question. Where is his heart? Does he “hate whitey”? Will he wear dashikies to formal White House events? Will he apoligize for slavery? A part of what drives these endless calls for Obama to reject Black leaders is an attempt to fill the information void about where and who he is and wear he stands on the issues.
This challenge is a another test for Obama. But this test goes beyond whether he will win the Democratic Party nomination or not. It reaches into whether he is willing to cherry pick from the Black freedom struggle those people, events, and institutions that have helped him get to where he is today, and disassociate himself with the anger, pain, burden of moving the movement forward. If he chooses that its not worth the trouble and does become the next president Black folks can look forward to four years of racial apologetics and Obama lectures to the Black community about how to be better Americans. Lets hope he chooses self respect over power at any cost.
Roger White, March 2008