I am again here in our nation’s capital and I cannot help but reflect on how my life and the lives of millions of other Black African Americans have changed since President Obama has been in office. Like tens of millions of other Americans in general and millions of Black African Americans in particular, I was caught up in the political frenzy at the possibility of Barack Obama becoming America’s first openly “Black African American President.” In case you did not know, President Dwight David Eisenhower was the first Black African American to become President because his mother, Elizabeth Stover Eisenhower was a Black African American. (All underlined words are links.)
When then Senator Obama first announced his candidacy, I immediately jumped on his bandwagon and bought hundreds of dollars worth of Obama tee shirts, hats and other paraphernalia. I encouraged every Black African American to immediately register to vote and do everything they could to give Barack Obama all of their support.
I along with millions of other Americans as well as people of other countries, braved the D.C. cold and came to witness the inauguration of America’s first professed “Black African American President” on that very cold January 20, 2009 day. I was here because I had to be a part of history in the making, and I knew that the tide would finally shift in favor of Black African Americans for the first time since our recorded history in this country.
Sadly, I was naive and gullible enough to believe the hype that the newly elected first openly Black African American President would have the best interest of the rest of us Black African Americans at the forefront of his agenda.
I remember going to the movies in 1969 and seeing “Putney Swope” where the “token” Black African American defied the odds and became the new Chairman of the Board of a White American Advertising Agency. Once in office, he flipped the script and replaced most of the White American Board members with Black African Americans. Of course, I did not expect President Obama to do anything as radical as that, yet I hoped he would put the interest of Black African Americans on the top ten list of his priorities – foolish me.
Like all other Black African American politicians who campaigned for “Change” on the backs of Black African Americans, once elected, it immediately became business as usual. As it was throughout our history in America, we continued being the last hired and the first fired.
Since becoming America’s first openly Black African American President, President Obama has taken an aggressive stance in support of the Gay community as well as the Hispanic community. Both of these groups piggy-backed into prominence off of the backs of Black African Americans, resulting in our backs being broken and we are still on our knees begging for crumbs.
Last week, President Obama said he would be issuing an Executive Order on behalf of the 5 million undocumented illegal immigrants who are currently in our country.
Mr. President, what about the tens of millions of American citizens who are currently being both demonized and victimized by America’s Prison Industrial Complex? The U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics figures for 2011 indicated that there were 2,266,800 adults incarcerated in America’s jails and prisons and nearly 72,000 juveniles incarcerated in juvenile detention. During the same year, there were 4,814,200 adults on probation or parole. We must also take into account the millions of victims of America’s forty-four year “War on Drugs” which “I’m not a crook” President Nixon declared in 1971.
With an Executive Order, President Obama can rescind Nixon’s war against Black African Americans by ending this so-called “War on Drugs,” because it is nothing more than a veiled disguise, targeting the Black African American race. If there were truly a “War on Drugs,” the overwhelming majority of people arrested and convicted would be White Americans, because they are the biggest users and dealers of illegal drugs in America. Everyday, we see advertisements about in-patient Drug Treatment facilities, costing over $20,000.00 per visit, targeting White Americans. Also everyday, we see America’s war against Black African Americans under the guise of this so-called “War on Drugs” being aired on the nightly news.
Both President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama are lawyers, so they know first-hand how racist and illegal this so-called “War on Drugs” is, yet, they both have remained silent throughout the Obama Administration. Why?
The answer is blatantly obvious. The rise or fall of the Black African American race is inevitably connected to America’s so-called “War on Drugs. There would not be an illegal drug trade without White America being at the forefront. How can we have faith in the agency we call, “Homeland Security” which our tax dollars have spent trillions of dollars on so far, yet this agency is unable to prevent hundreds of tons of illegal drugs from entering our country every month?
With felony drug convictions, it becomes extremely difficult for American citizens to obtain the following: jobs paying living wages; receiving housing assistance; food stamps; educational as well as medical benefits; nor do they automatically have voting rights. In essence, once an American citizen is caught-up in this Prison Industrial Complex, they only have one benefit that illegal aliens do not have-they can not be deported. At least not for the time being.
Furthermore, since Obama’s nearly six years in office, the Black African American population has lost economic ground in every aspect. In fact, proportionally speaking, we, as a race have done worse under the Obama Presidency than we have under any president going back to President Reagan.
In 2010, the Bipartisan Policy Center reported that Black African American homeownership rates were lower than they were in the 1980s. In addition, the rate of foreclosures for Black African Americans in 2011 nearly double that of White Americans. It also stated that between 2009 through 2011, there were nearly an increase of 16.6% in Black African American minimum wage workers.
Even worse, the National Urban League reported that the annual household income for Black African Americans dropped over 11% between 2009 and 2012. In comparison, White Americans only had a 5.2% decline, while Hispanic Americans decline was only 4.1%. Do you suppose that this is the “Hope” and “Change” that we Black African Americans were counting on when we cast our votes for Barak Obama?
President Obama’s hometown of Chicago, Illinois, has become the murder capital of America. This is the same city where he began his career as a “Community Organizer.” The first openly Black African American President has done absolutely nothing to stop the genocide that is occurring in America among the Black African American race. Although his former Chief-of-Staff, Rahm Israel Emanuel, a Jewish American has become Chicago’s 55th Mayor, Black African Americans are still teetering on the lowest rung of the socio-economic ladder, not only in Chicago, but in every other American city. However, Mayor Emanuel’s solution to the “Black-on-Black murders in his city is to call out the National Guard.
One would think that with the election of President Obama and his appointing Attorney General Eric Holder, there would be a significant decline in blatant police lynchings of Black African Americans. Tragically, the opposite is the case. Every Black African American who is gunned downed by the police should be documented. However, for some unknown reason (wink-wink), national statistical records of these shootings are not maintained. In this high-tech age that we are currently living in, we should be able to obtain any statistical data we wanted with just a key-stroke. I am convinced that the reason this data is not available is because if it was, America would have to answer to the “World Court” for systemic human-rights violations.
For instance, look at the city of Oakland, California between the years of 2004 and 2008. During this four year period, there were 45 shootings by the police and 37 victims of these shootings were Black African Americans. None of the remaining 8 victims were White Americans. Suffice it to say that none of these police officers were convicted of a crime. In America, the police can lynch Black African Americans with impunity and not be held accountable.
As Ferguson, Mo. is preparing for the Grand Jury’s decision to not indict on the Michael Brown lynching, their police department has purchased over $170,000.00 worth of riot gear in expectation of a “not guilty” ruling in favor of the White Police Officer, Darren Wilson.
Why do you suppose the first openly Black African American President, whose wife and daughters are also Black African Americans are turning a blind eye to the plight of American citizens in general and citizens of his own race in particular?
I can only conclude that he is adhering to historical policy as well as the national agenda of ensuring that the Black African American race will never become independent or self-sufficient.
As Michael Jackson sang, “The Don’t Care About Us.”
Oh what a blessing it is that my people don’t read, think or use common sense says the Pimps, Politicians and Preachers.