Even after Obama, black communities are still struggling
The fight for freedom is far from over
Many of us were hopeful when Barack Obama was elected in 2008. We were hopeful that we would finally have a black man in power sharing the values and concerns that we have in the black community. We were hopeful that this represented the end of the longstanding history of racism in this nation. We were hopeful for change.
Fast forward to present-day as we prepare to inaugurate Donald Trump as our next president and it’s got many of us wondering what the hell is going on? Unfortunately, we all have to accept the fact that it was all of us who contributed to setting the standard for what we want from our president.
How can we be surprised that we are now facing a president who does not value us? We allowed the first black president come in and leave doing next to nothing for the progress of our communities and we loved him for it. We got so caught up in the jokes, memes, and bromance with Biden that we didn’t seem to care about his constant inaction on our behalf. We laughed as he dropped the mic and just glossed over the fact that the Flint water crisis has yet to be resolved. We were so busy enjoying the adorable Obama family photos that we just let is slide when our black president legitimized the argument that this phenomenon of police shootings of black men were really just “isolated incidents of racism.”
By no means do I say this to throw dirt on his name. Not only do I agree that he is the most likeable president we’ve had thus far but also that his presidency holds no shortage of accomplishments. However, there’s a lot more that could have been done specifically regarding low-income black communities. As long as black people are being targeted by oppressive measures against us; we must have specific measures in place to counteract and protect against those forces. At the systemic level. So no, we don’t need to be praising Obama for pardoning 200-something non-violent offenders when nothing has been done to reform or dismantle this new slavery known as mass incarceration.
Certainly, Obama’s legacy is great. But let’s not forget that our communities are still struggling. The fight for freedom is not over. We may not be in chains but that doesn’t mean we are free.