President Obama and the "Black Agenda"

The recent radio “spat” between Al Sharpton and Tavis Smiley was entertaining, and most assuredly fodder for many in the African American community who are addicted to black talk radio, yet what the African American community needs is a reality check – we have enough “entertainers”. At the center of their on the air “cat fight” was whether or not President Barack Obama should include on his already large plate a “black agenda”. I recall during the 2008 Presidential campaign then Senator Obama was challenged in Florida by a young black man to take a more proactive and assertive pro stand on issues facing the black community. Candidate Obama addressed the “heckler” by reminding him that first as a community organizer, and throughout his career, he has been an advocate for change. At the time, I wrote that an Obama administration would be challenged on several levels, that his plate would include the management of two wars, a health care agenda, a restoration of America’s image, and unsustainable national debts. Moreover, I wrote that having a black agenda would be politically divisive, and would turn off many supporters, as well as become an issue that the GOP and conservatives would use to create a wedge within the Obama coalition. I believed that then, I believe that now. Yet a discussion of a black agenda championed by the first black president is troubling for reasons far beyond the political dimension. It is troubling because when two African American individuals with the capacity to influence, debate what truly should be a non issue, it serves to distract the black attention from the type of soul searching needed for our community to evolve.

For a generation, the African American community has successfully integrated themselves into the American mainstream to such a degree that for millions of African Americans, our problems are no longer “black” problems. The near economic meltdown that occurred in the fall of 2008 was ostensibly one of credit. As a nation of consumers whose consumption was built on the back of credit, a calculation was made by the federal government that massive infusion of federal money was needed to keep the flow of credit flowing, needless to say, millions of blacks were beneficiaries of that decision. Furthermore, when the Obama Administration passed the massive stimulus bill within days of his swearing in, millions of Americans including a large percentage of African Americans were impacted by the largess of the Obama Administration via new tax credits, withholding reductions, mortgage modifications and the like. Therefore to assert a need for a presidential agenda that includes black America ignores that reality that many African Americans have become so immersed into the economic fabric of this culture that an American agenda equates to a black agenda. Which by the way, isn’t that what we wanted?
Secondly, this discussion ignores the political reality that President Obama operates in, and it ignores the policy changes that have taken place within the Obama administration that impact the African American community. And I have to give Reverend Sharpton kudos for pointing this out the former. Reverend Sharpton aptly noted that President Barack Obama is probably walking the thinnest of tightropes of any modern resident. With the emergence of the 24 hour news cycle, and the vitriol of conservative commentators, the Obama administration has to be both vigilant and focused so they don’t create fodder for the right that will ultimately serve as a distraction. With nod in the direction of that reality I criticized this summer President Obama for injecting himself in the Louis Gates controversy when his health care agenda was lying in the balance.

On January 20th 2009 Barack Obama took the oath of office to be the President of all Americans, not just black Americans. So let’s be clear Barack Obama ran to the White House, but as his stirring speech in Philadelphia proved, not away from his blackness. Yet, as the 2008 campaign proved, voters were extremely skeptical about a black man running for President, and many were susceptible to wild eyed conspiracy theories that suggested that Mr. Obama was a radical. Indeed many in the so called “Tea Party” are graduates of those anti Obama rallies. Governance in this volatile vortex where truth and lies are often blurred images of each other means staying the course and avoiding the traps of needless distraction. Those traps expend valuable Presidential time in defending what ought not to be defended rather than pushing major initiatives. The issues facing this country are simply too big and demand too much time to be wasted on constant counter punching.

That said, the Obama Administration has had the wherewithal to forge ahead on many core policy agenda items, namely health care. Therefore, for the millions of blacks to fail to see how health care reform does not benefit the African American community is pure folly. To assert that the Obama administration is ignoring the African American community means one is choosing to ignore the myriad of actions taken by the Justice department in housing, civil rights, hate crimes and the rest. It means that reforms in the banking and credit card industry will impact only non blacks. With millions of blacks suffering from obesity, surely African Americans can find solace that Michelle Obama has taken up this cause. Can’t an intelligent people read between the lines or in our lust for attention, we must demand that Barack Obama wave some mythical “I love black people” flag to assuage our fears and/or doubts?

Or is it more? Perhaps in order to run away from our own accountability, we put the beast of burden on President Obama while allowing the malfeasance and incompetence of other leaders to go unnoticed. On September 27th 1994 Conservative Republicans stood on the steps of the United States Congress and signed their Contract for America. It was their blueprint for change, which included several legislative proposals, albeit highly Conservative, but their agenda was to bring several of their core ideas to the floor of the House for a vote. While many never were made into law, their efforts led by then House Speaker Newt Gingrich, helped revive the Republican Party in the 1994 off year elections. I have often thought about that event and those efforts when I think of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC). A recent New York Times article “outed” the CBC for their cozy relationships with corporate America, and how they have become through their foundation, one of the biggest fund raisers in Washington, yet the “Times” reported that much of their donations never filter down to the program level where it can make a difference.
A perusal of the CBC website listed 42 “bills to watch” in 2009. Included in those “ones to watch” were bills on predatory lending, the Community Reinvestment Act, and Affordable Housing. Despite their import to the black community, according to government watchdog website govtrack.us.com, all three bills lay dormant and far removed from Presidential signature. As recently as December, members of the Congressional Black Caucus chastised the Obama administration for failing to direct more Presidential attention to the Black Community. With alarming alacrity they made headlines by threatening to hold up some key administration initiatives, as an expression of their concern. One would think that while they are holding President Obama’s feet to the fire, they would be mindful of unfinished business on their end of Pennsylvania Avenue. All which begs the question, where is the Congressional Black Caucus in this discussion of a “Black Agenda”?

Finally, this discussion of a need for a black agenda is most disturbing when considering that the subtext of this debate is that in order for the black community to thrive, we need an agenda with the imprimatur of the President of the United States. This debate ignores that Harriet Tubman, Malcolm X or Martin Luther King did not wait for a black agenda. It ignores the million of blacks everyday who stared down long odds, institutional impediments, racism, and simply choose to achieve. The mentality of black America must evolve where there is an audacity of hope, rather than a spirit of victimization. Believing that you can achieve, political climate notwithstanding is a huge step in that direction. Yes, affirmative action programs and other civil rights programs leveled the playing field for millions of Black Americans and should continue. Yes government should always provide a safety net for those, whose circumstances place them at the very bottom of the food chain, and yes government should provide consumer protections, and yes government should be a fierce advocate for basic human rights. I believe that on all counts the Obama administration should be given high marks. Is the Obama administration above reproach? Not by a long shot, but when the discussion centers on a President Obama Black agenda, it ignores the most fundamental and inconvenient truth – it is totally unnecessary as it already exists among millions of black Americans every day.

A Black Agenda in 2010 is simple - it’s called, get up and do something, get up and be somebody, get up and make something of your life. A black agenda is a human agenda. It’s the same agenda that has propelled many Americans of all color, gender, and backgrounds to rise to the level of greatness. That agenda calls for one to believe in yourself, embrace your genius and your divinity and let the chips fall where they may. For black America to have a discussion on the need for a black agenda is a sad, reflection on a community that has lost touch with its capacity for greatness. For the black community to suggest that in 2010, save for those who truly need assistance, that we are incapable of standing on our own two feet with out President Barack Obama standing in the Oval Office waving his black red, and green flag for all to see, means we as a community are in deep trouble. If this debate is a true reflection of the hearts and minds of black America it means that the spiritual deficit of black America in 2010 is far more pervasive than the massive federal one.

In my 2008 article when I defended candidate Obama against the charges against the heckler in Florida, I noted the billions of dollars from corporations and foundations that are available to community groups, organizations and non profits. I also mentioned that those resources are only available to those who take the time to wade through the paperwork, identify a component board of directors and apply for a 501c3. When searching for this nebulous black agenda, we do so often at the expense of the opportunities that are currently available to those who seek to be change agents for their community and are emboldened by their own sense of empowerment. A few years ago I complemented Tavis Smiley for his website Covenant With Black America, which had links to several organizations that were taking proactive approaches to issues confronting the underserved. Now it appears that Mr. Smiley needs to be reminded of the inherent power suggested in his own website.

Where is the black agenda our two media rivals ask? It is right here in front of us, it is building on the legacy of greatness, not begging for presidential attention. With a nearly two generations of blackness who have benefited from the sacrifices of thousands of blacks and whites for two influential members of our community to be bogged down in a discussion that entertains, but fails to enlighten, that narrows the focus, rather than broaden it, that suggests black impotency rather than black empowerment is a shame, and a disgrace – at a time when our community needs leadership, and vision we have egos and tomfoolery.