The myth of a Post-Racial Society
The extended Obama family. | Getty Images
In the afterglow of the inauguration of President Barack Obama has come the suggestion that his ascendancy marks the onset of a “post-racial” society, one in which Dr. Martin Luther King’s dream has been fulfilled and race no longer is a barrier.
Indeed, his election and inauguration are mileposts in the progress of a nation. The ascension of a man of color to the most powerful position in the world is a landmark for the ages.
But “post-racial” is a bridge too far. Strained race relations have not been relegated to the past nor will they be just because an African-American family occupies the White House. Perhaps from the paneled offices within the Beltway, race might seem to have been vanquished, but those confines never have been the real America.
Mr. Obama resolutely called for Americans to seek a unity of purpose and shed old dogmas that have riven this country for decades.
America must take a heartfelt reality check.
Race, nationality and economic class will continue as barriers throughout the Obama administration and afterward. The insidious effects of prejudice and discrimination have not been eradicated, nor are they likely to be at any point in the next four, or even eight, years.
The symbolism is important, as is the reality of Mr. Obama’s appointments of a diverse array of emissaries throughout the federal government. They bring a special dynamic to overcome past divisiveness and increase opportunity for many. It is delusional, however, to pin hopes on any one person or elected official to reroute decades of internal rifts and pretexts for armed conflicts around the world.
How well local governments, business leaders, institutions and non-profit organizations will act to continue bridging those gulfs remains to be seen. Mr. Obama’s elevation has set the table. But priorities and tough choices are getting only harder.
Race relations improve when people exchange views and resolve conflicts with people different from them. The idea of such change is much more palatable than actually acting outside of one’s reliable comfort zone.
Power and privilege rarely are willingly shared or ceded. Many barriers continue to exist for minorities and women, although last year’s presidential campaign blazed a trail for those who follow.
Mr. Obama is not only biracial, but also young enough that he’s not caught up in the political chasms of the last generation. He breaks the mold in a number of ways. Yet in the real world, men and women with distinctive backgrounds, national origin or age still can be wrongly perceived as unproven risks.
The president talked about the patchwork of America in his inauguration speech. That quilt includes many immigrants who are working to absorb the language, culture and customs of the United States. The political dynamite of immigration reform must be elevated to the national stage after the economy reaches relative stability.
Our country should explode the deluded notion of a “color-blind society” espoused in the 1980s. America is multi-hued, not monochromatic. Yes, people have more in common than they have differences, but key differences must be acknowledged. Unity and progress are possible when those gaps are overcome by better human instincts.
Mr. Obama made an optimistic plea to heal America. And our nation, indeed, has many wounds that need cleansing and medicine. America is not post-racial; but as a new era begins, some stubborn vestiges may begin to dissolve into the American melting pot.
So you guys aren’t going to take any of the blame for causing racial divisiveness? The “myth” is that journalists seem to think they are part of the solution, not the problem.
Race relations will never improve until all sides are able to understand an opposing point of view. The articles I’ve seen in your paper take one side and either bashes or ignores the other which only serves to make stubborn minded people, such as myself, stand firmer in their convictions.
Here’s an idea. Take a poll and ask your readers if any article written by the post in the last 5 years has either improved their perception of another race or made it worse.
Obama blew a chance to make a real step forward for race relations by running as a bi-racial candidate. He and the media ignore completely that he is half white and half black. Had he run as the candidate who represented both groups it would have brought those two groups together much more strongly. Instead, he chose to run as the first “black” candidate. His decision creates an us and them presidency instead of an “our” presidency. As long as liberals continue to demand special treatment for special groups, tension is going to remain. As I have said often, “if you want to be treated differently, don’t be surprised when people do it.” Fixing discrimination against one group by discriminating against another doesn’t make much sense to me.
There really is nothing funnier than when the hypocrites at the PD ED talk about diversity. Can you name for me the GOP conservative on your editorial staff please? Diversity starts at home. You have gone out of your ways not to embrace a diversity of opinion at the PD. Sadly, what you all don’t get is that the real racists are the Democrats like yourselves who
continue to put everyone in their little color boxes. In case you missed it, it was white Republicans who crossed over and voted for Obama and got him elected. Blacks voted for a black man. So who are the racists in this story? We will not be a post-racial country until the Democrats get rid of black this and black that such as the Black Causus that does not allow whites. Look at yourselves and see who really is stifling race relations in this country. No one is a victim in this country unless you want to be.
So, apparently the PD editorial board is has abandoned Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s dream of putting content of one’s character ahead of skin color. “Power and privilege” should be earned, not “shared or ceded” according to race.
FEI, the Unites States still has yet to elect its first black president. President Obama isn’t black.
A Centrist… You are so lost! `No one is a victim in this country unless you want to be.’ Were you born sans a brain stem? I guess the `coolies’ building the railroad lines in the 1800s willingly allowed themselves to be victimized, as did the thousands of exploited workers of Andrew Carnegie (who happens to still spin PR, even from his grave, and sadly so on NPR). Remember `snuff films?’ What about women from Russia and former Easern Bloc countries who are forced into prostitution, because they’re conned into coming here and wind up with no manner of a safety net? On our end, we the taxpayers were recently victimized by our own Congress, who willingly handed out `our’ borrowed money to the crooks who caused the Wall Street collapse in the first place. I didn’t willingly go along with being a victim there. And what about the Federal Reserve? Anytime the plutocracy wants to steal more of my labor — and yours, by the way — they just pump more money into circulation to cause inflation, which causes me to have to spend more money to buy the same amount I was buying previously. That’s called `theft of labor.’ Again, I didn’t willingly consent to being a victim there, but I’m being victimized. And so are you.
NIA Rotert, get a clue pal this is 2009. Black is the new white.
And did you enjoy your new puppet-in-chief Obama this morning? Let me know when you find out who is really running the country? Wow - this is going to be too much fun as we descend into a Marxist nation.
Welcome to your new racist administration:
http://hotair.com/archives/2009/01/22/video-no-stimulus-money-for-white-males/
Apparently only H’s black counts.
Don’t believe me NIA? This is says it all:
http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/toby_harnden/blog/?message=WW91ciBwb3N0IGhhcyBub3cgYmVlbiBzdWJtaXR0ZWQh
Dear Editorial Board -
I see by the tenor of the comments posted here that you actually hit the nail right on the head.
Foolishness abounds and there is no lack of silly opinion.
At some point grown-ups will have to take over the conversation and do so in good will toward each other’s diverse views with an idea toward understanding.