Barack Obama's Place Among African-American Leaders and American Presidents
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Barack Obama--Historical Perspective
Barack Obama has been called post-racial as a result of his inclination to reach out to people of all races, religions, and political persuasions. Some critics unsuccessfully tried to tag him with the fiery rhetoric of the Reverend Jeremiah Wright and the anti-semitism of Louis Farrahkan while others claimed he was "too white" and not a true African-American. But the mud didn't stick. Since his decisive election, commentators are comparing Obama to Kennedy as a culture-changing icon, to Roosevelt and Lincoln as a leader in a time of crisis and even to Ronald Reagan, rather than to his African-American predecessors on the stage of American history. I will leave the comparisons to presidents Lincoln, Kennedy, Roosevelt and Reagan to the historians and attempt to put him in context among some of the African-American giants of our country's history.
Obama clearly is inclined to reach out to others including those with whom he disagrees. When he was criticized severely by liberals and gays for inviting the homophobic Reverend Rick Warren to give the inaugural invocation, Obama responded by inviting gay Episcopal Bishop Gene Robinson to do the invocation at the Lincoln Memorial and The Reverend Dr. Joseph Lowery to pronounce the inaugural benediction. Obama gave his first formal television interview to Arab TV's Al-Arabiya. Obama's personal views and conciliatory inclinations clearly are closer to those of Frederick Douglass, Martin Luther King, Jr., Nelson Mandela, Booker T. Washington than they are to those of Malcolm X, Louis Farrakahn or The Rev. Wright. However, Obama defies being pigeon-holed by the left or the right.
Obama is a gifted lawyer whose views are more in the tradition of our first African-American Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall than those of Justice Clarence Thomas, the current African-American on the high court.
Going back in history, Obama's eloquence matches that of fiery abolitionist Frederick Douglass, but in many respects his conciliatory political inclinations also resemble those of Booker T. Washington.
Barack Obama appears to have less in common with other notable but more militant African American leaders. Like Paul Robeson, Obama is a talented lawyer, but his athletic skills are no match for those of football All-American, Robeson, let alone Robeson's formidable talents as a singer and actor. Without doubt, Paul Robeson was among the most multi-talented individuals, white or black, in American history.
Robeson, like Malcolm X, was a much less conciliatory figure than Barack Obama. He was an indomitable, heroic world peace and civil rights activist who as a result of the Red Scare in the 1940s and 1950s was surveilled and persecuted by the FBI and CIA for more than 30 years until his death in 1976. His reputation has since been rehabilitated and a postage stamp issued comemorating his life. Robeson and Malcolm X had great intellectual capacity which is shared by Barack Obama. Malcolm X initially was a militant, black separatist supporter of Elijah Muhammad, but he mellowed later in his life and was assassinated in Harlem by Muhammad disciples.
Barack Obama's place among African-American giants of our country's history is secure. Only history will determine his rank among American presidents and other historical figures. In my opinion, he has the potential to rank in history among the very greatest American presidents. Time will tell.
10-9-09 NY Times Obama Awarded Nobel Peace Prize
- Obama Awarded Nobel Peace Prize
OSLO President Obama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples, a stunning honor less than 9 mos.after he made U.S. history in the presidential election. - http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/10/world/10nobel.html?_r=1&hp
Obama wikibio
- DR. Martin Luther King, Jr. - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Martin Luther King, Jr. is considered by many the greatest African-American historical figure as a result of his leadeship of the civil rights and anti-war movement until his assassination in 1968 in Memphis. He was an inspiring orator and leader.
Thurgood Marshall wikibio
- Thurgood Marshall - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Thurgood Marshall was the first African-American Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. Earlier, he successfully argued the Brown v. Topeka Board of Education case before the Supreme Court which invalidated the Plessy v. Ferguson separate but equal case.
Clarence Thomas wikibio
- Clarence Thomas - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Thomas is currently a Supreme Court Justice. His appt'ment by Pres. G.H.W.Bush was opposed strenuously in Senate confirmation hearings. U of Chicago Law School says he's the most conservative member of the Court since 1937, batting .822 conservative.
Dr. Joseph Lowery
- Joseph Lowery - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Joseph Lowery with Martin Luther King, Jr. founded the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and organized the Montgomery bus boycott.
Dr. George Washington Carver
Frederick Douglass wikibio
- Frederick Douglass - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
In 1872 Douglas became the first African-American candidate for vice president of the United States as the running mate of women's suffragist candidate Victoria Woodhull, first woman candidate for president.
George Washington Carver wikibio
- George Washington Carver - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
George Washington Carver(1864-1943) Born a slave; became a scientist, botanist, educator, inventor at Tuskegee Institute. Made significant contributions to agronomy and agriculture in the South.
W.E.B. Du Bois Wikibio
- W. E. B. Du Bois - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
William Edward Burghardt Du Bois (pronounced doo-BOYSS)[1] (1868–1963) was an American civil rights activist, public intellectual, Pan-Africanist, professor of sociology, historian, writer, and editor. At age 95 he became a citizen of Ghana.
Malcolm X wikibio
- Malcolm X - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Malcolm X (May 19, 1925 – Feb. 21, 1965) was an African American Muslim minister, speaker, and human rights activist. To his admirers, he was a courageous advocate for the rights of African Americans. He indicted white Americans in harsh terms.
Booker T. Washington Wikibio
- Booker T. Washington - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
First President of Tuskeege Institute, confidante of Theodore Roosevelt; first African American to dine with the President in the White House; pre-civil rights era civil rights leader.
Paul Robeson Wikibio
- Paul Robeson - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Paul Robeson (1898-1976) was a multi-lingual film and stage actor, All-American and pro football player, writer, orator, lawyer, basso profondo concert singer, civil rights forerunner, trade union leader
Obama's First Inaugural Address
Rev. Rick Warren wikibio
Bishop Gene Robinson wikibio
Paul Robeson "Old Man River"
Paul Robeson a Great American
"Don't Look Back" by Matt Bai in the NYT Magazine 2-1-09
- "Don't Look Back" by Matt Bai
Matt Bai provides historical perspective on Barack Obama, comparing him to Kennedy, Roosevelt, Lincoln and Reagan.
Which President is Obama Most Like? Slate
- Which ex-president is Obama most like? - By Christopher Beam - Slate Magazine
Presidential comparison isn't the most rigorous form of political analysis. Bill Clinton was the next JFK, until he was Warren G. Harding, and then Jimmy Carter. George W. Bush was Teddy Roosevelt until he was James Buchanan. And Barack Obama, if you
2-4-09 Bi-partisanship at What Price, E.J. Dionne in the Washinton Post
- E. J. Dionne Jr. - The Obama Stimulus: Bipartisanship at What Price? - washingtonpost.com
Will Obama give up on larger objectives in his pursuit of Republican votes?
First 100 Days--FDR & Obama
First 100 Days--Obama's Reagan Transformation?
First 100 Days--LBJ & Obama Reassuring a Worried Nation
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Comments
Thanks I considered including musicians and African-American athletes like Jessee Ownes, Joe Louis, Jackie Robinson, Muhammad Ali, Arthur Ashe, Tiger Woods and, of course Serena and Venus Williams, not to mention Kareem Jabar, Michael Jordan and Wilt Chamberlain. I could go on and on with musicians and actors. Hard to compare Louis Armstrong and Barack Obama. I could also have included Langston Hughes, Ralph Ellison and Richard Wright. However, Obama, Opra, Tiger Woods and Bill Cosby, like Obama, have achieved a sort of post-racial status in the minds of many white Americans. I probably should include Marcus Garvey and General Colin Powell.
You've become extremely prolific of late Ralph. Happily, the quantity has not diminished the quality.
Thanks for this one. I knew about Paul Robeson's singing and civil rights work but not all the rest. It's good to learn these things.
Very good. The Hub was interesting and the comparisons were indeed correct in my opinion as well. Time will tell as you say where he will fit into Presidential History's Best Presidents.
Thanks for your comment. Obama's mettle is being tested.
HEY RALPH, LOVE YOUR WRITINGS. I FIGURED IT'S GOING TO TAKE ME SOME TIME TO BUILD UP MY BASE. I'VE JUST STARTED 2 WEEKS AGO, AND LIKE EVERYONE ELSE, LOOKING TO GET RICH QUICK. SO, AFTER 3 YEARS,WHAT DO YOUR PAYCHECK LOOK LIKE? THANKS. KEEP WRITING.
Ralph you said Obama is a "gifted lawyer" what is the basis for this praise? You also said that he wasn't a product of Jeremiah Wrights teachings not in those words of course but along those lines. What do you have to say about his comments on the Cambridge Police Department without knowing the facts? I think it shows a predisposition towards a militant behavior concerning race relations.
Obama taught Constitutional law at University of Chicago Law School which is one of the top five or ten law schools in the U.S. And he was editor in chief of the Law Review at Harvard Law School. As Obama acknowledged, it was a mistake to call the Cambridge police incident "stupid." He reacted instinctively on behalf of his friend and as a black who is conscious of the historic and current police abuse of minorities in this country. Anyone who reads the newspapers and watches TV news reports about Obama recognizes that he does not resemble Jeremiah Wright in the slightest. Obama is a conciliator, a uniter.
Excellent hub Ralph, thank you.
You said he was a gifted lawyer, most people with that sort of praise would have a record that one could research and discover their many court battles and see how they won them. If your contention is he taught really good courses then that is what should be said!
"He reacted instinctively on behalf of his friend and as a black who is conscious of the historic and current police abuse of minorities in this country"
Thats a Uniter? Surely you jest!
No. I'm dead serious.
Okay, he's a gifted legal scholar.
That may very well be I do not know. He is splitting this country apart with his policies and losing a lot of votes that went to him in 2008, if he is a uniter then he better get on the ball and do some uniting dont you think?
Great orator..? hardly, when compared to MLK Jr, Lincoln, and Kennedy, who spoke without teleprompters...take away the teleprompters and he is a stumbling, mumbling, inept speaker with pregnant pauses and playbook answers.
African- American..? Why the hyphenation..? There are no African-British, no African-Canadians, no African-Cubans...so why are they defined as African-Americans only in the USA..? As long as we continue to perpetuate this division of race and nation, of a class of victims, we will never get past the issue of race being injected into every discussion concerning American culture...
I, for one, am getting a little tired of the hypocrisy of race in this nation... We are all Americans without being hyphenated...
For the same reason as we refer to Irish-Americans Italian-American, Mexican-Americans, Polish-Americans who are also proud of their heritage. BTW, there are many who refer to themselves as Afro-Cubans. And have you ever heard someone refer to himself as Scots-Irish or Scotch-Irish?
I'm a Texan-American, is that OK?
Whatever floats your boat!
That's a specious argument, lacking substance...When was the last time you heard of Irish-American Studies, Polish-American Scholarships, or a Chinese-American Professorship at ABC University..? Sure, I'm proud of my Irish heritage, but I don't proclaim it by hyphenating my American loyalty with some other nation, or religion, or race...
I have never heard of PHd's being awarded for Hungarian-American Urban Studies...What would be the uproar if Cal decided to have a White Students League...? I am not talking about personal references, but public pronouncements of group designations...keep 'em separate, keep 'em controlled, that is the liberal agenda...If you think using the term African-American makes you more culturally sensitive you are deeply mistaken,my friend...That is pure political correctness that most thinking black Americans do not ascribe to as a general appellation for all black Americans...
It's a free country. There are all kinds of affinity groups.
I don't see anything improper or sinister about African-Americans so designating themselves. I had an uncle named Edward Francis Murphy. Born in Hartford, educated in Boston--Holy Cross and Harvard Law School. He was a rock-ribbed Republican. When I was a freshman he advised me to read Time Magazine (the Time of ultra-conservative Henry Luce and Helen Booth Luce) every week and pay my American Express card off in full every month. I've always followed the second part of his advice. But I've been reading the NY Times since then rather than Time, although it's much more moderate now. Anyway shortly after the 1960 election I got Uncle Ed to admit that he voted for Kennedy, not Nixon. He couldn't resist voting for the Irish Catholic Kennedy even though he'd always voted Republican. I have no doubt that a lot of African-Americans voted for Obama for the same reason.
I, too, voted for JFK..my first presidential vote...but not because he was Irish or catholic, but because he espoused conservative values that I agreed with...He would probably be considered a conservative were he to be in politics today...
I don't consider anything " sinister " about certain groups wanting to designate a particular race, belief, or political persuasion to whatever they are trying to promote...I do consider such designations as divisive and elitist when race is injected into the description...
Well, there are a lot of things I worry about more--health care, two wars, the deficit, the recession and very high unemployment, the lack of fairness in the tax system, the insecurity of my pension and so forth. Moreover, it strikes me as a bit unfair to criticize the blacks of divisiveness after we brought them over as slaves and marginalized them for a couple of hundred years thereafter.
So, your response is to cut them a little slack because, heck, they have travailed enough already..? I treat everyone I know the same, as equals until proven otherwise, regardless of social station, political persuasion, or racial heredity...illustrating their differences is to me a soft racism that I detest..
My comment re soft racism is directed at groups that use race for economic, political, or cultural advantage...
Well, not everybody "treats everyone the same as equals until proven otherwise." Far from it. When that day comes perhaps African-Americans will just refer to themselves as non-hyphenated Americans. (I don't doubt that you treat everyone as equals--you are a thoughtful, literate person who likes Dave Brubeck, a good sign.)
An interesting hub, both in terms of who was included and who was not included. I would have included James Farmer who was a major figure in resisting the draft in World War 2, and later winner of the Presidential Freedom Award. He was also a figure mentioned in the Great Debaters. I would have also included Major James Kemp Holland who was the highest ranking black in the Confederate Army along with Scott Joplin. Joplin often found that he had to blaze his own way. Jack Johnson also had a major impact on blacks in America, inspiring them during a difficult time.
Of course each of them were from Texas, and as such may not be representative of all the views that are often presented in the media.
In terms of how history will treat Obama, much depends on how he handles the situation. History and people are often fickle. The people who are the heroes today are often the statues torn down in succeeding generations. In each case, the younger generation believes that they are smarter than the previous generation.
I'm not familiar with Holland or Farmer. Jack Johnson was an interesting and admirable figure in that he was a precursor of the Black Power/Black is Beautiful movement in that he didn't take any crap from anybody at a time when blacks were taking a lot of crap from lots of people. Thanks for your suggestions!
This was very well done! When I read Dreams from my Father, it reminded me of some of the books I'd read years ago in African American lit when I discovered some of my favorite black authors - I really see Obama as deeply committed to justice, to bringing people together for the common good, and to healing the great divide in this country. But, despite the quality of this man, he's confronted with the same level of resistance and negativity any person who tries to change the status quo confronts - of course, in his case being biracial just adds racism to the mix.
True.
barranca says:
10 months ago
Excellent hub. It is a good question, although a little early to say, no? Two other african-americans you might consider for your list are Richard Allen founder of the AME church and Toussaint Levourture, leader of the Haitian Rebellion. And if you are going to include musicians, the list is endless.