Ok, so it is no secret that Obama's election into the White House has social and political meaning for all of America not to mention specifically for the black community. Being an African American woman myself I got to thinking about what Barack Obama's victory means for the black community's ego. Will Obama's win create a new found motivation for young people? Will his win give African American men in particular further reason to have excuses by means of this new "entitlement?" Will affirmative action be called into question? From the moment of Inauguration, I pondered the sense of pride being felt from the black community and even the possible opportunity for continued disguise and lackadaisical attitude. I came across a nice article that discusses the social and political improvement Obama's victory symbolizes for America. The article comes from Solidarity and discusses how his win ties into the long standing issue of race and class in American history. Not only does Obama's popularity show how the reverse Bradley Effect (a group of people saying they would vote for the opposite race in public then deciding not to in private) was a factor in the election, but as well may be a statement against bigotry.
I also came across another article from the Washington Post in November between psychiatrist and author, Alvin F. Poussaint, MD, and journalist Amy Alexander. The two went online to discuss with people their reactions to the historical election and what this means for African Americans and the entire nation. This article also talks about the possibility for this generation to be moving past the issues that divided us in the past. Dr. Poussaint says that the younger generation is less racist and open to accepting differences in people in large part as a result to the Civil Rights Movement, Women's Movement, and the gay/lesbian Movement that emerged. The issue of afffirmative action arises in this article as the question of whether or not it is still necessary given that the first black president has just been elected...
What are your thoughts about all that has been brought up???
This is a great victory for african americans as a whole because this will give african americans a chance to see that we can do anything we put our minds too. We do not have to be a statistic.
ReplyDeleteI of course agree that Obama's victory was one on two fronts -- a victory for all the ethnicities that comprise our nation, especially those of African-American descent, as well as a victory for American society as a whole -- he wouldn't have won if only one side or the other voted for him. On that same note, I think the opinions on this unprecedented win will naturally be multifaceted even from just within the black community. Being from the black community myself, I've heard lots of praise for Obama and also lots of backlash. I think most are grateful he was elected and look to him as hope for closing some of the socio-economic disparities our communities seem to face. Some seem to feel his victory is a ruse, stating he's not "black" enough worrying that he's not going to specifically address to the issues faced by our growing minority communities. All we can do is be optimistic and hope that he can prove he is a well deserving president in the next four years. I think its silly to think this man can undo the what the legacy of slavery has done within the short span of time he's given. What he can do though is encourage our youth to strive to achieve beyond our perceived limitations. The fact that he was elected at all proves that we are slowly moving in the right direction, and we as a people can no longer make excuses for ourselves..."with great power comes great responsibility" - Uncle Ben from Spiderman LOL!
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