In the comments of the post immediately preceding this one my friend Quaker said
Mr. Egan seems to have figured out exactly what Mr. Obama can and can't do if he's going to be successful in his campaign. That's awfully generous of him.
Great ghost of Jehosephat! That was an awful column.
Awful. But was it wrong?
I am far from the only Black person that called it as it was developing. And though the Clintons started the problem, stank things up to the point that no mainstream media outlet can bring itself to list all the things they've done, you almost can't blame them. It was inevitable no matter who ran against The First Viable Black Presidential Candidate.
And you know what the funny thing is? It's that The First Viable Black Presidential Candidate is the perfect person to lead the nation.
I'm not joking. The First Viable Black Anything has to be perfect to even be considered. That's what viable means when you're talking about Black folks. The Little Rock Nine. The marchers on the Pettus Bridge. Folks at the lunch counter sit-ins. The first Black folks have to take the worst white folks can throw at us with a smile (though they weren't smiling inside, let me tell you).
He is exactly what white Americans need. And most Black folks will take what they get from him plus the psychological boost of a new First Blackism. Haven't had one of them in a long time.
But you gotta be perfect...if you're not, whoever let you in takes heat too so they will not let you in unless you're perfect. You know that coming in. So unless Obama commited a gross blunder of some sort (which he has not) the idea of him admitting making racism a critical issue is absurd. Yet all the press, all the analysis is like "Obama had the most to lose if racism is discussed," and "Obama depends on running an race that's free from the Taint of Blackness"...white folks raise the topic and it's Obama's fault somehow.
"Oh, oh...not his fault but once the issue is raised..." Bullshit. No one is going to ask Hillary, "Why did you do that," because the rules don't let you call the candidates liars when they lie. Which means when she says "The Obama campaign is twisting my words," no one calls bullshit.
And if you want to know the truth, he's not the perfect candidate for Black folks. All white constituencies expect The First Viable Black Presidential Candidate to demonstrate a lack of favoritism, specifically by not supporting any effort to undo the damage done by slavery and its legacy in white Americans. Any taint of Blackness on him will destroy his chances.
Right?
Do you know how foolish that is? And it's a lesson in human nature and American society that has to be seen and generally recognized before any of the broken things in American society can be fixed.
I got a favor to ask...could someone watch Hillary on Tyra's show and let me know who the target audience is? I've seen most of it onthe news last few days so I don't feel the need to stand before the coherant stream of rhetoric.
Sorry. Had to get that out.