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I’ve mentioned before that the concept of race has both a biological and social component. Now, a case study: Barack Obama. In this clip, one Debra Dickerson makes the case that Senator Obama is not “black”. What to call him instead? She suggests “African African-American”, while personally I prefer Mr. Colbert’s suggestion: nouveau black. Trop chic !
Based on what we know about Obama’s heritage–a Kenyan father and a white American mother–it’s doubtful that any genotypic information would place him in a well-defined cluster (like those in this analysis). First, there’s the 50-50 European/African admixture. Though estimates of the amount of European admixture in African-American populations vary by geography (in New Orleans, this estimate is about 22%, while in Charlston, SC, it’s about 12% [cite]), 50% is a bit above average.
Further, there’s the fact that his father is East African, while most African-Americans (as Dickerson points out) are descended from West Africans. As allele frequencies vary within Africa, this would add a further complication to any attempt at clustering. So Obama does, indeed, lie at the fuzzy intersection between African and European, at least from a genetic standpoint. From a social standpoint, I had assumed he would just be called “black”, but perhaps the ultimate arbiters of “blackness” are waiting for some concessions on his part before they give him their approval.
In any case, if he’s going to get his own label, “nouveau black” is as good as any; who knows, perhaps it’ll catch on.
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and what of the fact that his father was a tribal cheif/ high official in kenyan Govt.
And he was raised in a white houshold in the US.
Being black in the US is not just skin color but a particular history and the socio cultural experiences that emanate from those historical roots- and I am not just talkng racisn here, I am talking about the charlatan political godfathers the black community has embraces ( jesse, al farrakhan and their ilk) the white godfathers (democratic party taking their votes for granted – including but not limited to Bob byrd- a former Klansman grand dragon. entitlement program, the complete lack of personal responsibility/ accountability- da white man did it and generally the sense that post MLK a large part of the plight of the black community is their own responsibility.
Obama did not share any of this historical/ cultural social perspective ergo he is not “black” – an oreo maybe but not black
I wonder how much of practical medical treatment ends up being race-based right now–screen blacks for high blood pressure and colon cancer earlier than whites due to relative risks, use diuretics for blacks with high blood pressure but not so much for whites, etc. And I wonder how much this drives inappropriate treatments for people like Obama, who looks somewhat like American blacks (at least, he has the right sort of skin color), but who isn’t all that close to them genetically.
Obama is one of the three most famous mixed-race people in America today. The other two handle their backgrounds in strikingly different ways: Tiger Woods takes pride in his multiracial heritage, indeed even joking about it, while Halle Berry never misses an opportunity to proclaim how authentically black she really is. By all indications, Obama is following primarily in the Woods mold, which is fortunate.
if we’re talking about the social rather than the biological, isn’t his race some combination of how he is perceived by himself and other races? i wonder if blacks and non-blacks would disagree on his race. my guess is we all think he’s black ‘cept a couple pundits. some interesting quotes:
She lived from nigger to colored to negro to black
To afro then african-american and right back to nigga
You figure she’d be bitter in the twilight
But she alright, cuz she done seen the circle of life
– Talib Kweli
D.A. try to give a nigga shaft again
Half a mill’ for bail cause I’m African
– Jay-Z
And if you think, that cause you think that being called African American set all Black people?s mind at ease…
Since we affectionately call each other ?niggah?, I affectionately say to you, ?Niggah Please?.
…
Now there are some African Americans here,
But they recently moved here from places like Kenya, Ethiopia, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Zaire.
…
And, if you go to Africa in search of your race,
You?ll find out quick you?re not an African American,
You?re just a Black American in Africa takin? up space.
– Smokey Robinson
Good point in showing the absurdity of the term African-American here.
A wag has elsewhere suggested “blackish”.
How about Kenyan-American??
How about Kenyan-American??
well, that’s no fun 🙂
Colbert’s comedic interview skills are nothing short of stellar. Deflected the “racist” charge while getting laughs; spontaneously invented the term “nouveau black”; and the “make Obama a slave for street cred” was genius. He also snuck in the obligatory MLK reference, which was easy to see coming a mile away, but hilariously delivered nevertheless.
It’s a good thing I got rid of my TV, or I’d be watching his stuff 24/7. 😉
AJ
My daughter’s got african, irish, italian, american indian, and probably other genetic sources as well. We don’t really know much since her birth father was abandoned as a child and knew nothing of his ancestry.
In America, she’s Black.
Saying otherwise is just the semantic masturbation of armchair philosophers.
When the billy clubs are swinging, when the store dick is prowling, when the real estate agent is showing houses – Obama, Woods, and my daughter are Black. That’s how it is in America.
In the wintertime my daughter’s skin gets paler, so she will have to carry documentation that says she’s not Hispanic if she wants to go to places like Elsmere (USA state of Delaware) and avoid police beatings. That’s how it is in Elsmere.
It’s not where you are from. It’s what you look like, and how you speak. Obama speaks well, and so does my daughter, so they will do OK as long as they are dressed expensively, and stay out of extremely poor communities. That’s how it is in the USA.
“so she will have to carry documentation that says she’s not Hispanic if she wants to go to places like Elsmere (USA state of Delaware) and avoid police beatings. That’s how it is in Elsmere.”
Are you talking about 21st century America? You’re raising a little victim there and making sure she’ll see herself that way. Every race, including whites, are vying now for that coveted victim status. They have statistics to prove their case. yeah, yeah, i’m not black, etc. etc. You don’t have to be black to be scared in this society. Race has caused me a lot of terror too.
– I don’t mean to dismiss your experience or that of your daughter, if you have reason to think like this. But you really need to provide stats about those billy clubs and Elsemere beatings, and aside from police, which race is beating up which race the most often these days. Maybe you should interview those cops, hang out on their beat (excuse the pun.) Find out the truth.
Most cops back off now for fear of law suits. One idealistic grad student, who volunteered teaching school in the D.C. system, got sued just for gently touching an out of control black seven year old. But I’m sure if such things are happening in Elsmere, it’s a matter of time before the film crews and book deals move in to rectify the matter. It’s also only a matter of time and numbers before the hispanics start beating up the cops.
Charlie, your daughter will most likely do just fine. She will have access to affirmative action if she needs it, and can compete on merit if she doesn’t.Her job prospects are quite good– black women especially, actually make more money than whites of similar SES, controlling for education and other usual measures of ability.
The law says she can live whereever she wants, and here in Maryland, county after county has become more and more black. Blacks move where they want. They can apply and enter any school they want, with much less stringent requirements. She will see blacks in fine positions on tv shows and advertisements and in government. She can live in a predominantly black neighborhood or a white one, and god help anyone who so much as looks cross eyed at her.
Good luck to your daughter. Good luck to Obama. Peace.
I’m pretty sure Mr. Obama would cluster as black. He has 50% African DNA, and although it is East African, East Africans and West Africans are closer to each other genetically than they are to whites. And since there’s already a certain amount of European admixture in the American black population, I suspect he would cluster with them. The only way to know for sure, though, would be to test him. Think he would go for a blood test?