Obama and Black Paranoia

OK…so “paranoia” is a strong word. But I wanted to grab your attention. Perhaps projection is a better way to describe a couple of things that I’m hearing.

First, Obama received support from 43 percent of white voters, while 55 percent of the white electorate voted for McCain. On one hand, this is seen by many people as a remarkable achievement. Imagine that. Some 43 percent of non Hispanic white Americans–remember that white people represent slightly less than 70 percent of the total American populace–case their ballot for a president of color. Take yourself back two years and imagine someone telling you that. How many of us would have believed it?

On the other hand, I have heard some somewhat disgruntled mumbling about how it was “only” 43 percent of white Americans. The underlying sentiment with that word “only” thrown in is that not even half of white America supported his presidency.

Such concerns are befitting a people who have a short attention span for the details of history, but they do not account for one powerful anecdotal fact: that 43 percent is a remarkable achievement when compared with past presidential campaigns. Consider the percentage of non Hispanic whites who voted for the following presidents:

2004 Kerry – 41 percent
2000 Gore – 42 percent
1996 Clinton – 43 percent
1992 Clinton – 39 percent
1988 Dukakis – 40 percent
1984 Mondale – 35 percent
1980 Carter – 36 percent

Obama beat all of them except Clinton’s second campaign, a president who by that time was often referred to as our “first black president.” The truth is, the majority of white Americans are Republican or Independent while blacks and other racial minorities lean heavily Democratic. This heavily impacts those numbers.

On another note, and this is more in line with paranoia, I’ve heard many black people voice their concern that Obama is going to be “judged more harshly” than previous (white) presidents simply or primarily because he’s black. This reflects old school thinking emerging out of the black community and it’s definitely not without merit. Anyone with an honest eye on race relations would conclude that black Americans have undoubted been held to a higher standard than other people, especially white Americans. This is not news to anyone paying attention, especially black people.

But in fairness, if black people go into the Obama years wearing these lenses, then we’re in for some serious disagreements because ALL presidents are “judged harshly,” even for silly seemingly mundane decisions. Obama has just taken the world’s worst job. For every friend he’ll make two enemies. For each slap on the back he’ll receive another in the face. Remembering the harsh way in which all U.S. presidents are judged will do wonders for averting unnecessary arguments about the kind of job our new president is doing.

So all of the people who have had this concern, get ready for your man to take a harsh smack down for the next four or eight years. Trust me, it goes with the job.

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