America is at a national crossroads in its racial and cultural history. A national firestorm was created last week when Michelle Obama, the wife of Presidential candidate Barack Obama, stated that “For the first time in my adult life, I am really proud of my country.” There were immediate claims of anti-patriotism, the most extreme of which was conservative commentator (and race antagonist), Bill O’Reilly, used racially tinged language to give critique to the situation. First, let’s get it clear—Michelle Obama never said she wasn’t proud of her country. She said she was “really proud” versus being just proud, but, of course, the inference by the mainstream was that she wasn’t proud at all-thus the cries of anti-patriotism. In America, racial pride (White supremacy, in particular) has always been intermixed with cultural pride (pride of nationhood), America being a Eurocentric nation. White people can exert race pride as national pride, and defend their nation despite its indignant racial and cultural traditions—some of which were not kind to racial minorities and women. Black people (and other people, for that matter) have always had to choose between race pride and national pride, like one couldn’t be both proud of who they are and proud of the land of opportunity in which they were born. Langston Hughes once wrote, “I too, am America.” While Blacks born in America have always been Americans, they haven’t always been treated like Americans and haven’t always been proud of the way they were treated in America. Yet, Black America was always expected to maintain an unquestionable degree of patriotism.

America has a history that is steep in racial traditions (many of which are still present in our society today) and cultural indignities of racism and genderism. America is always in a battle to shake its indignant past, most times by simply ignoring it and hoping that things change for the better. Treatment of racial minorities and women is one part of its history America is not likely to outlive. Not that it won’t try. Most perceive the candidacies of Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton as opportunities for the nation to overcome its history of racial and gender subjugation. What most people forget is that this is only two segments of one major party, in a two party system where the largest segment of voters are not affiliated with either party (34 percent of all voters are independents). The jury is still out as to whether America is really “there” yet—in terms of opening up the last exclusive all-White, all-boys club, the Presidency of the United States. In the general society, however—for the most part, women are there in terms of equality. Blacks are not and in many instances, are worse off than they worse 50 years ago (as studies around the 50th anniversary of Brown revealed). Moreover, like a drug addict in constant threat of relapse, the racial side of American culture can be invoked at any moment—as a constant reminder of what America has been, what America still is in some realms of the society and what America can revert to at any given moment. It is certainly not a history America can be proud of, but it is American history none the less. When America does make a cultural swift, it is not without great trepidation. That was the case in 1776, in 1860, in 1896, in 1919, in 1945, in 1957, in 1963, in 1992. In each of these years, “cultural shifts” occurred out of indignant events. Events that neither America, nor Black people were very proud of. In trying to change America, the country has had more than its share of shameful moments, and certainly its share of disappointments.

Black America has seen these periods of enormous euphoria before. Periods filled with hope, followed by events of social disaster and great despair. Black America has heard all the promises—and have looked over and seen the promise land a number of times—only to see those promises be unfulfilled. Yes, there has been social progress and we’re proud of that advancement. But there hasn’t real economic progress, nor has there been any real political progress (beyond racial and gender representation—both underrepresented at that). Yes, we are all thankful that America is not what it once was, but we know America is not yet what it could be. And in a period of social retrogression and resegregation, there’s really not a lot to be proud of. Yet, there’s hope in this candidacy of Barack Obama that America just might be ready to make the kind of changes it has long promised. Changes that most Blacks thought they would never see. The most frequent statement I’ve heard, associated with Obama’s success, has been simply, “I’ve never thought in my lifetime...not even a remote possibility...of a Black President of the United States. It’s almost as if it’s too good to be true, and everyone is waiting for the other shoe to drop...the one that has historically dropped on the dreams and aspirations of Black people seeking to be full partners in American society. Black America’s cynicism has turned to optimism as they watch White people in Wisconsin, Virginia, North Dakota, Washington, Montana, Minnesota, Missouri (the land of Dred Scott) vote for a Black man. America is on the verge of doing something radically great.

Though we know the Republican “right-winged” conspiracy is still out there, and the so-called “progressive” Democrats with passive—aggressive racial tendencies, and vote Republican when convenient, are still out there—you get the impression that many White Americans are prepared to be fair and do what’s right (two adjectives that can be rarely used to describe America’s relationship with Blacks) in this Presidential election. While we must continue to point out the social ills and economic disparities associated with the vestiges of America’s historical race caste system, it somehow makes it more difficult to criticize a nation that seems to be trying to do the right thing. It’s not something just to be proud of. It’s something “really” to be proud of, when a racially tinged nation overcomes its longest and most perverse legacy to put of a member of the historically oppressed at the head of its government. Most find it remarkable that America is even thinking about it.

So when Michelle Obama said what she said, every Black person in America knew exactly what she meant. It was never about not loving her country. It was about America being ready to finally, finally—two generations (40 years) after the assassination of the last man to call for America to be true to its promise, one generation (20 years) after an African American mounted the first serious challenge for President—make good on its creed that all men were created equal. Even in that statement, there are those who wanted to use it as an opportunity to take us backwards. O’Reilly’s comments that if he discovers that Michelle Obama has a reason to believe that America is a “bad nation” or a “flawed nation” then he’d send a “lynch party” after her. Well, we all know America is in the midst of some bad engagements (the Iraqi War, only being one), and America has been a flawed nation from the outset, but whether used literally or figuratively, the term is inappropriate and another example of the kind of race baiting some segment of American society is still willing to engage in to maintain the status quo. O’Reilly and his media counterpart, Rush Limbaugh (who continues to insist on calling Barack, “the Magic Negro”), understand how shallow racial sentiments are buried in America. They’re just beneath the surface, which is why symbols (nooses and references of bygone eras) continue to appear throughout our racial society. An ugly side is still out there. We see it everyday.

However, many in America are trying to rise above it, and that’s something to be proud of. Despite our doubts about whether it is really going to happen, Blacks in America are witnessing the rest of America trying to overcome its racial and cultural past, and that’s something “really” to be proud of. In a moment of candor, even the candidate’s wife had to acknowledge that what she’s witnessing, given America’s past, is unbelievable.

And she’s right. When America does right, a national pride comes about and some memories of past racial indignities subside. Not forgotten, but even Blacks have to acknowledge that, at this euphoric time in history, change in America just might be real.

Dr. Anthony Asadullah Samad, Ph.D. n is a national columnist, managing director of the Urban Issues Forum (www.urbanissuesforum.com) and author of the new book, Saving The Race: Empowerment Through Wisdom. He can be reached at www.AnthonySamad.com.

Published in : Op-Ed, Between The Lines

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