And I believe there is a great deal of truth to the analysis of Obama's magic comes from not being the descendant of slaves, but the son of an immigrant to the US. The descendant of slaves here in America could not be as genuinely utopian, hopeful, or optimistic as Obama. We've lived in the US since the end of the Civil War and the freeing of the slaves -- it really wasn't that long ago, only 133 years. (Living in Greece, you get a feel for the passing of time and 133 years means great grandparents, possibly great great grandparents...not millennia.)
I think it will take millennia before other African Americans can truly feel the hope and optimism that Obama speaks of everyday. Just because slaves were freed, doesn't mean that Blacks weren't still slaves. It took until June 19, 1867 before the slaves of Texas learned that legally they were no longer slaves. Heck, January 1, 2008 was the 200th anniversary of the end of the Atlantic slave trade, but there were no celebrations in the US (at least none that I read about on the Internet) and I haven't read about plans for future commemorations.
Showing posts with label Slavery. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Slavery. Show all posts
Monday, January 7, 2008
Obama and To The Point - the Backstory
So what compelled my friend Marian to write the letter below? An interview on Warren Olney's To the Point radio show on Friday (the link will lead you to the podcast).
Warren Olney was talking to a number of people, including a Democratic Party strategist and two professors: Dante Scala, a political science professor from the University of New Hampshire and Robert Dallek , a Boston University history professor.
In the Reporters' Notebook section (this starts at 42 minutes after the beginning of the show) Dallek called Obama an African American, where upon Warren Olney told him of the many emails he gets disputing that designation as he is not the descendent of slaves.
At that point, Dallek not only agreed but said this is why Obama gets such support. He is the son of an immigrant, which many Americans can relate to in their own lives where as being the descendent of slaves makes it much more difficult to connect to the American public.
Warren Olney was talking to a number of people, including a Democratic Party strategist and two professors: Dante Scala, a political science professor from the University of New Hampshire and Robert Dallek , a Boston University history professor.
In the Reporters' Notebook section (this starts at 42 minutes after the beginning of the show) Dallek called Obama an African American, where upon Warren Olney told him of the many emails he gets disputing that designation as he is not the descendent of slaves.
At that point, Dallek not only agreed but said this is why Obama gets such support. He is the son of an immigrant, which many Americans can relate to in their own lives where as being the descendent of slaves makes it much more difficult to connect to the American public.
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