Will.I.Am's Post-Election, Pro-Obama video, "It's a New Day"

Transcending Race, Once and For All

Is it possible for America to piggyback on Obama’s win and consciously choose to transcend race, and realize that it serves as nothing more than a tool to divide, rather than unite? Obama’s win clearly demonstrates that when we look past race, we actually see our commonalities, not our human divisions. As a former student of cultural anthropology at Harvard, I have studied race through many different lenses, only to come to the conclusion that race is and has always been a social construct utilized over centuries across this globe as a powerful and destructive tool to categorize, manipulate, control, stereotype and dehumanize “the other." Terrifying episodes throughout this world’s history illuminate this very issue: the Holocaust, American slavery, the Japanese American internment, and the list goes on. And unfortunately, fear of the “other” continues to manifest on a daily basis in everyday life today, from unjust racial profiling of Muslims in airports to DWB (driving-while-black), SWB (shopping-while-black), or even applying for a job while being “the other” (any minority). And as much as affirmative action and other legislative anti-discriminatory measures have sought to correct blatant and accepted racial discrimination, racism did not really go away – it just learned how to adapt and evolve, and how to cleverly use vocabulary, digging deeper into the recesses of creative expressions and measures in order to further enhance systemic racism, while simultaneously wearing a mask declaring that yes, “we truly are all equal.”

So what does Obama’s victory mean for American minorities? Does this mean that we can officially kiss racism good-bye and embrace the notion that it is a thing of the past? Only the naïve would have embraced such a concept, and clearly did not notice that there was a fairly significant portion of the American electorate that did not want to vote for Senator Obama simply because of his race. However, I will say that this nation has made tremendous progress since the days of slavery, and even the civil rights movement (there are many examples of such that I will save for a future blog post – and truly deserve mention!). Obama made it a point to run for President not as a “black man,” but as a man, who had a particular vision, and allowed men and women of different backgrounds, ages, religions, etc. to fall in love with him. He refused to acknowledge himself as “the other,” and purposely made it a point to in fact identify himself as “the same” – the same as “everybody else”: an American who truly craves change, and hopes for a better future – one that is not burdened by the systemic deficiencies and bureaucratic madness.

It is nevertheless important to note the amount of attention that his race has received in just two days post-election. Despite his efforts to detach from “the other” status, the media has officially made it a point now to talk about it in depth: “The First African American/Black President!!!” And such focus has led some people abroad (and in America) to wonder – “Was he elected because he was black?” My answer? I’m sure that played a factor for many voters, but for the most part, people voted for him because they could identify with him, with his vision, with his hope, his values. In doing so, the nation chose to “humanize” a black man in front of the world, thereby declaring its choice to humanize a person from a “race” that has been historically dehumanized for so long. And in my opinion, this is amazing progress for American culture and society! People who qualify as “the other” in juxtaposition to the majority can no longer claim that their “other” status permanently stamps them out of achieving success – because they have a very clear example of a man who would qualify as “other” and made it to the top.

But is the fight over for racial progress? Nope. Nor should we depend on President-Elect Obama to rescue the nation from the tangible and intangible traces of racism that still plague segments and sub-segments of American culture. It is up to every individual to look to Obama’s win as a symbol of what they can do – that they live in a country in which anything is possible, and they can dream as far as the stars if they wanted to – and not believe the hype that the “minority glass ceiling” exists. Why? Because November 4th, 2008, officially shattered the glass ceiling. This nation just has to be careful as it walks across the broken pieces of glass now scattered across its own foundation.

-Written By: Kris B.

The Obama Win and What It Means for Black America

Senator Barack Obama's win is a direct testament to every single American that there really is no limit to what you can achieve. It proves that through strength, tenacity, willingness, faith and relentless ambition, you can achieve whatever you want to achieve. As much as people discussed the Bradley effect and America's big problem with race, it turned out that Obama's passion, hard work, and very committed supporters nulled out the increasingly archaic concept that you can only go "so far" as a person of color. Black Americans in particular have fought over centuries with all their might for this very moment to arrive - and finally - it has come.

Yesterday was a big moment for me, and I am still feeling the effects of the excitement of Obama's win yesterday. As a black woman (of Caribbean descent) who has graduated from an Ivy League university and is about to graduate from a top law school, I am no stranger to the thrills of ambition. I have always loved the idea of success, and the idea that if I work really hard, I can succeed in whatever I do. Since my youth, I was surrounded by ambitious and successful family and friends, and shows like the "Cosby Show" and "A Different World" made me feel connected to a movement of blacks in America who loved success as well and embraced the notion that education is the best way to achieve it in this nation. Education has unlocked the doors for so many people (most recent example: Obama!), and allows dreams to be born and success to be lived.

Last night therefore made me realize something - that Black America, as diverse and wonderfully complex as it is, can uniformly look to Obama's win as a testament to success that is awaiting them right now. Although there many black Americans have achieved incredible amounts of success in their lives, it is important to note that more success is waiting to be born and embraced in the black community. History has proven that Black America has the strength, power and guts to be able to pull of what it asks for - guarantees of particular civil liberties, civil rights, you name it. Ambition, true ambition, the REAL ambition that lives in the hearts and souls of every human being, is enough to be able to inspire the most depressed American citizen to have faith that they can achieve the impossible. And I strongly believe that America rewards the hard work/labor, labor and faith that is required to achieve success in life. Now, it may be harder for some rather than others to get to a certain place in life, but that does not matter. Every individual has their own story to tell, and dreams do not have to disappear just because times get tough. In fact, dreams should be even more stamped into one's consciousness and mental framework when times get tough. They are what fuel ambition, and allow faith to push a person farther than they ever thought possible....

So thank you, President-Elect Obama - you have set a historical and well-earned standard for Black America. Now it is up to each and every individual to allow this breathtaking story in history to echo across the country and the world, and inspire dreams, fuel ambition, and remind people that with faith, hope, and unrelenting efforts, anything is possible!

More to come - stay tuned. :)

Written by: Kris B.