Prometheus 6

I just got back from a phone drive sponsored by Moveon.org to urge voters in Texas to vote for Obama.  There was also some thoughtful discussion.  I was taken back, however, with the consensus among the majority of the people who attended that Obama would be a leader in the mold of Booker T. Washington.  Most of the people at the gathering were middle-aged to senior citizen.  Many had moved to Florida from New York to retire.  The majority of the people were white.  There was only one black person.  An older woman from Brooklyn said she was sold on Obama after seeing him in person give a lift-yourself-up-by-your-boot-straps speech to a majority black audience.  A like-minded person added that maybe there would be a cabinet position available for Bill Cosby in an Obama administration.  These white folk were intense in their passion for Obama.  Many agreed that he could become a new Lincoln.  It is troubling, however, that their passion is stoked by his willingness and ability to deliver a Sister Souljah moment.  They would much rather hear him say "lift yourself up by your bootstraps" than see him commence to "trample out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored." 

I also recently heard something disturbing from a black customer I worked with.  This individual was probably 18 or 19.  He told me that if Barack Obama wins he is going to "fuck things up" because he is black.  He then said he would like to see a black president but couldn't reconcile this wish with his understanding of what will happen if Obama wins.        

Just some observations from my end of the world.           

Black people who think Black people fuck everything up are not rare.

Were there any Black folks in your discussion circle?

Of about twenty people or so there was only one black person.  She was probably in her 50s or 60s.  I'm guessing she wasn't feeling what was being said.  She didn't say anything, and she and her husband were the first people to leave.  There were only six or seven people who spoke with any regularity.  They tended to dominate the discussion.     

Did you check out how the 'lurkers' were reacting to the discussion?

Most people tended to nod in agreement with what was being said.  Some people had impassive looks as they listened.  The black lady had an impassive look on her face.  The talkative people tended to be giddy at times.  It is hard to really give a full description of how people were reacting to the discussion, because I usually concentrated on whomever was speaking.     

Interesting. Maybe I should have accepted one of those MoveOn offers. I was concerned I'd lose him some support over just such conversations.

The impassive folk need to speak up. But I think we're still a way off from that point. 

I definitely think these lily white Obama support groups could use a dose of reality.  The only people you would offend are people who like to hear themselves talk, and I don't necessarily think these people are going to abandon Obama after being told things they don't want to hear.  Looking back, there were some things I wish I had said that needed to be said.  I spent most of the discussion trying to calibrate where they stood on the race question.  By the time I had formulated a response to the kinds of things being said, the discussion was pretty much over.  I imagine the mindset of some of the people who attended must have been similar to the white abolitionists of the 19th century who undervalued the contributions of African Americans in the fight to end slavery.    

The only people you would offend are people who like to hear themselves talk, and I don't necessarily think these people are going to abandon Obama after being told things they don't want to hear.

You don't have to offend anyway. Just remind them he's running for President of the United States of America, not President of the NAACP or Urban League. You can ask what tasks they expect him to take on that no other President has, too.

I imagine the mindset of some of the people who attended must have been similar to the white abolitionists of the 19th century

I imagine you're right. People who laud Obama's race transcendance don't realize they themselves haven't transcended a damn thing...if they had, they wouldn't be so impressed.

Anyway, it's a new set of conversations coming up, and it's going to take a while for folks to get the rhythm. You'll be fine by Jan 2009. 

Ubstu34 -

This is not advice but me simply relating my own experience. I have long since given up discussing race with non-blacks who are not personal friends. I have come to this realization through bitter experience. I find that non-blacks, especially if we are talking about African Americans, tend to take things much too personally.  

PT

I can identify with what you are saying and respect your decision in these matters.  I have had a hard time talking about race without separating a discussion from my own sense of personal morality.  It has been hard for me to accept the fact that whatever I may do to try and change things, in the end, it has nothing to do with me and shouldn't be about me trying to stroke my own personal vanity.  White people think we know everything and think that racism is a matter of personal character and not a matter of miseducation.  Driven by guilt and not empowered by knowledge, we become reactionary when the strain of showing moral concern becomes too much to bare.  Without a knowledge base, we can never put the pieces together in a manner which will sustain us when our emotional investments run dry.