New Obama Commercial Raises Concerns

Does Obama Really Identify with Black People?

 

Sen. Barack Obama launched his first post primary commercial on June 20, without saying the words “Hope and Change” even once throughout the message.

 

The commercial entitled “The Country I Love,” aired in 18 states and has been dubbed as Obama’s “Reintroduction to Voters,” by The Washington Post.

 

In his message, Obama departs from his usual “Hope and Change” rhetoric but still maintains the sentimentality that won him mass appeal by showing images of his childhood with his mother and photographs taken with his grandparents when he was a young adult.

 

Obama begins by drawing a parallel between the strong values of America and the Kansas values that he was raised with.

 

Obama also cleverly mentions growing up in a single parent home with little resources, equating himself with the poor in America.

 

Obama continued by saying that despite not having much money, his family taught him values of accountability, self-reliance, working hard without making excuses, and treating your neighbor as you would like to be treated.

 

Obama’s latter words may see harmless, but when considered in light of prior and relatively un-noticed statements, is there cause to say, “BLACK PEOPLE BEWARE?”

 

On Feb. 28, in Forthworth, Texas, Obama addressed a crowd of mainly African Americans and said that parents need to turn off the TV, help their kids with their homework and stop letting them grow fat eating cold Popeyes chicken for breakfast.

 

His remarks earned cheers from the crowd, none of whom I’m sure was struggling to put food on the table and could only afford cold Popeyes for breakfast.

 

 This comment was clearly aimed at struggling African Americans and was possibly an attempt to score points with middle and upper class blacks.

 

His mention of “Accountability, self-reliance and working hard without excuses,” in the context of his own poverty, begs the question, what type of accountability and self-reliance does Obama expect from the child growing up in an impoverished and drug infested neighborhood? 

Does the drug dealer whose substandard public school education cannot afford him a decent job to support his family have “no excuse” as well?

 

Conversely, is the rich kid whose father gets him into Harvard “Self-reliant?”

 

While we are finally hearing from Obama campaign exactly what this candidate stands for, much of his poverty alleviation strategies seem to contradict his public comments.

 

For example, in Obama’s “Plan to fight poverty in America,” he outlines several strategies for poverty alleviation such as raising the minimum wage, improving transportation access to jobs, the placement of “high quality teachers in low-income classrooms,” and increasing public housing (by a mere 14 000 per year however.)

 

Obama’s specific strategies that we have just begun to hear about in his campaigning show some understanding of the disparities that exist in the African American community.

 

  Obama discusses prisoner-rehabilitation and has worked in the senate to provide job-rehabilitation and mental health counseling as well as a Prision-to-Work incentive program to ensure that ex-offenders have employment opportunities.

 

Obama’s plan however does not address the ridiculously unjust “Three Strikes” law in California whereby a person can get a life sentence for minor crimes like carrying a small amount of narcotics or shoplifting. This law has created a virtual concentration camp for poor black youths.

 

Additionally, what is the quality of these jobs offered to ex-offenders? Will these persons be able to work their way up the system and live the “American Dream,” or will they be shunned from higher-end jobs when they declare their record? Will ex-offenders finally be allowed access to government housing?

 

Obama’s ability to identify with the black community became even more apparent when he responded to a voter’s call-in request in the Jan. 31 Democratic Presidential debate.

 

 The voter asked both him and Sen. Clinton to acknowledge the negative economic impact that immigration has on African Americans. Obama unabashedly responded by saying that there was a huge amount of unemployment before the flood of immigration labor and that any argument made linking immigration to unemployment is a case of “Scapegoating” that he does not believe in?

 

 Scapegoating, really?

 

Is it unrealistic to expect that illegal immigrants, who are willing to exploit themselves by accepting less than minimum wage and working obscene hours per day, are contributing to the unemployment of African Americans?

 

           While Obama has the potential to be a great President, black people should not expect that their life will change overnight. While his policies if executed properly can make some impact on the level of poverty in America, black people should not expect miracles just because the new president has some “color.”