by Eric Martin
There is little doubt that for the many that sacrificed to advance the cause of civil rights in America - and for those that simply lived through the painful chapters of our racist legacy - watching the inauguration of President Obama was a powerful, emotional experience. At the risk of sounding maudlin, my eyes welled up on more than one occasion, but almost always in response to the expressions of triumph, joy and release on the faces of others. That's what triggered it for me.
However, as I mentioned in the comments to a prior Hilzoy post, I am actually looking forward to the not-so-distant future when the novelty of having our first African American President wears off - the post climax period if you will. For while the ascendancy of Obama represents one form of medication to treat this nation's lingering racial pathology, the normalizing effects of having an African American in the Oval Office will work toward its own ameliorative ends. This is how I put it then (slightly edited):
I'm anticipating the wonderful effect of watching - as the weeks, months and years elapse - an African American family in the White House. Every time the POTUS does something (be it a State of the Union address, Rose Garden press conference, Easter Egg roll, meeting with foreign dignitaries, etc.), it will be an African American doing it - with his African American family in tow.
I believe those images and that reality will do a significant amount to further race relations. Just by being who they are, and going through the motions, Obama's example will accustom people to the notion of seeing African Americans in positions of responsibility, honor and respect.
Actually, the hope is that soon people won't really be paying attention to race at all. That is, after the narrative of the watershed subsides, it will be wonderful when monotony works its own magic turning the novel into the unremarkable.
I bring this up now because I came across the following piece via Adam Serwer and it seemed relevant:
Justin [the author's son] was given an assignment on Abraham Lincoln...Justin was instructed to color in the president, or he would actually lose points on his assignment. With no instruction from us we left him to color in the picture of Abraham Lincoln. The image above is what he created.
Yeah So we asked him why he colored in Abraham Lincoln brown. He could have said a number of things, like “he’s on a penny, and a penny is brown,” or he “looked brown in the picture.” And it’s unlikely he’s read Leroy Vaughn¹s book, Black People and Their Place In World History, which asserts that Lincoln indeed had African ancestry. So why did he do it?
“He was a president and the President is brown.”
Wow. Wherever you stand on the debate of Barack¹s race and its relevance to us, the impact has been made and it is undeniable. Of course we corrected him and told him that not every president is brown by default, but dangit if I didn¹t smile on the inside. His mind is open to possibilities that we never imagined at his age, and that is change I can believe in.
For an entire generation of children, having an African American President will be the norm. That's just so beautiful.
I agree; his eyes may not be open however. They were simply never shut!
Posted by: tft | January 27, 2009 at 03:48 PM
True.
Posted by: Eric Martin | January 27, 2009 at 03:54 PM
Does anybody know the ethnic makeup of the various Presidents? It would seem they were primarily descendants of the United Kingdom (Scotch-Irish, British) and Dutch Calvinists. Eisenhower was the first German, I think…and Kennedy was Irish…
Posted by: someotherdude | January 27, 2009 at 05:43 PM
Oh my god, that is so beautiful. "He was a president and the President is brown." I'm cryin' here.
. . .
Tho' I admit that I am getting a little weary of weeping with joy every day from small anecdotes like this. I, too, eagerly await the post climax period.
Posted by: S.G.E.W. | January 27, 2009 at 08:45 PM
someotherdude, did you look at the link? You're right, except that genealogy sometimes reveals surprises!
Posted by: Sapient | January 27, 2009 at 09:09 PM
Um, "Dr. Leroy Vaughn, MD, MBA, Black American historian since the 1960's" doesn't seem to be a particularly renowned historian, shall we say.
Posted by: Gary Farber | January 27, 2009 at 09:27 PM
very good picture!!
Posted by: Danielle | February 13, 2009 at 09:19 PM
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Posted by: LovinEmus | May 26, 2009 at 06:51 PM