Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Dr. Leonard Moore on Barack Obama's First 100 Days



Obama's first one-hundred days in office has been what I expected when

he entered the White House in January. Many of us got caught up in the

euphoria of his election without really analyzing the dynamics that

got him elected. We were just excited to see a "black face in a high

place" and we didn't take the time to see if he had an agenda for

Black America. Although me and my wife supported his campaign

financially I really learned alot about who he was when he threw his

pastor, Dr. Jeremiah Wright, under the bus. As a pastor and a

professor, it hurt to see Obama disrespect the man who brought him to

Christ, helped him grow spiritually, married him and Michelle, and

baptized his daughters, all in the name of winning white support for

his presidential bid. Further, throughout his campaign he said

virtually nothing about how his presidency would address black

concerns and issues. Like I told the young sisters at my church, if I

dated you for 16 months and said nothing about my child, would you

think that I loved my child? Probably not.


However, with that critique let's also consider some of the realities

he's facing as the first black president of the United States. First,

he has no one to go to for advice. There is not a single person who

has been in his shoes, so his advisors can only do that, advise.

Second, he inherited an economically-depressed country. It would be

hard enough to govern as a black man with an open checkbook, but when

white middle-class citizens are struggling to make ends meet then one

understands the depths of the economic collapse. Third, he's also

facing unrealistic expectations from black, brown, and white voters. I

would've liked to see him become mayor of Chicago instead of

president. Why? Because as mayor of the 3rd largest city in the

country, and the second largest black population, he would've been

able to make immediate improvements in the lives of people. As

President he needs the cooperation of people across the aisle, and of

people in his own party to pass meaningful legislation. Last, the most

obvious, he's a black man. Enough said.

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