America and Post-Obama: What's the Score Now?

Obama is President now and the euphoria has mushroomed across this powerful country. Some say that this is the post-racial era in America. We have arrived. Have we? Years ago a white college friend challenged me to prove that affirmative action was still needed. I used the analogy of a road race to make my point. The starting line was drawn over 400 hundred years ago. White people ran the track without even a hint of black people even at the start line. They ran and ran, accumulating all the power and resources. Black folk were not even in the race because we were considered chattle and property--and then we were freed. Free at last---but the race was far gone by then. Even more, stumbling blocks such as a monster called Jim Crow were created to ensure that we never got too far in the race. You get the analogy, I trust.

This debate I had with my friend came back to me while hearing how Obama's Presidency would elevate the status of black folk in America. For the sake of inclusion, I added others to the race. Here is the score so far:

American Presidency

White 43
Asian 0
Black 1
Latino 0
Female 0
Male 44


Looks to me as though the score, the race, is still favors white men. When I debated with my friend, I was reading the classic text Institutional Racism(Knowles and Prewitt) for a senior thesis. They defined institutional racism (as opposed to individual racism) as a systematic arrangement of privileges and resources that favors one racial group. Whether intentional or not, systems of privilege and exclusion in politics, education, housing, health care, employment, etc. perpetuate racial inequality. I included gender in this case; institutional sexism operates on the same premise.

Don't get me wrong. I'm happy that Obama is President. The historic moment has engendered tremendous energy and hope. My oldest sister, who was eight years old when Brown vs. Board was enacted, gave me a portrait of Obama. Obama's election means something special to her. Black folk, especially those from her generation, are proud to see someone who looks like us in the White House. Children of all colors can also now dream different dreams, can imagine new possibilities.

Yet nothing has change about the institutional arrangements that foster inequalities and racism. This is why it's too soon to celebrate. Obama is one individual who happens be black---and President. Until there is change on a structural level, keep your eye on the score.