I disagree. Bill Clinton triangulated when he should have argued for a liberal inclusive philosophy to replace Reaganism. When Barack Obama came around, he chose to rely on targeting and taking advantage of demographic shifts, rather than trying to convert or convince the Fox-watching portion of America. While I thought my liberal rant would explain the error of their ways to right-wing America, two politicians far smarter than I decided that enlightening and converting people who vote for Republicans is a futile endeavor. I demurred.
But now I'm convinced we need to make our arguments and if we (and they) had, we would not be living in this Trumpian nightmare. So bravo to Michelle Obama, who offends you with her attempts to deal with the unseemly philosophical swamp of racism and bigotry. Good for you for pointing out how hateful a position that bigotry, and responding to that bigotry places her. I get it. I just think that in articulating the problem and her response, Michelle Obama offers a better tactical approach. We are at a point where a racist surge has placed that "behavioral cause" back at the forefront. If you think the battle can be won on a more universal argument, then you need to tune into Fox News and see where those cave men have brought us. What's your plan?
13
Have we learned nothing from Obama's run for the Presidency, and the glaring lessons of his tenure? At the end, many of the same people that he had inspired with a message of "yes we can", comfortably chose a racist, misogynist birther, rather than his Democratic successor. He was falsely labeled as someone who preferred open borders, and some simply withheld their vote. Obama's coalition broke. He left no activist movement of right minded people from the broad political spectrum that had supported him. Charles, if Michelle Obama is as capable as you claim, that is her opportunity, to create and deliver something that is uniquely hers, instead of stooping to a mud fight in Washington DC, across from the rotten likes of Lindsey Graham and Mitch McConnell. To paraphrase the late Elijah Cummings, she is better than all that. And in the spirit of Robert Burns, and a'that and a'that. Yes, I expect Ms Ms Obama to take her own advice, by going high. To choose that swamp, is to go low, very low. I can see her doing more good in communities across America, where the downtrodden and forgotten are still without a voice, as a result of gerrymandering and other flagrant forms of voter suppression that disenfranchise the poor. They say it takes a village to raise a child. It will take a leader with moral authority to undo what Trump has wrought. Such moral authority must be generated from the ground up, not a morass where the Supreme Court ruled that Corporations are people. Ask Barack.
9
I’m so moved by this, its deep truths. Thank you.
13
Regarding Mrs. Obama's statement: “...but maybe if I show up every day as a human, a good human … maybe, just maybe, that work will pick away at the scabs of your discrimination.”
As an openly gay white man, I hope that she continues her work as an immensely positive role model and tireless advocate for tolerance and understanding. I wish this not so that it will somehow "pick away at the scabs" of entrenched racist ideologies and discrimination, but rather because of her unique gift to inspire people (particularly young women of color) to dream big and live with unbounded pride, purpose and the confidence to change our world for the better.
20
What I recall it Michelle saying "they're still running from us! It really struck a cord. I suggest that we find a friend in the "other". It is through these friendships that the poison of racism opens us up to our humanity. The "other" is no more..We become one..
8
The Presidency is hers if she steps forward.
9
You and I often disagree, Mr. Blow. But this is wonderful. I share in your wish for our beloved former First Lady.
9
Cavemen they are indeed, those who criticize Mrs Obama and do not see that First Lady Michelle Obama is true to her beliefs. I can think of many cavemen, the Orange Orangutan in the White House for one, whom I would love to see debate and question this wonderful, smart, gutsy and empathetic lady. Lady with an L. She deserves every bit of recognition and respect. Mrs Obama is an example for us all. Many Americans need GOOD examples right now in order to survive the aberration of history we have been suffering under since November 9th 2016. Thank you Mrs Obama for all you have done for us. I was proud of volunteering for the Obama campaign. I really enjoyed reading " Becoming " and recommend it to all Americans.
18
Did she try to convince George W. Bush? What possible other reason could there be for her to become friends with a dreadful politician like him?
3
Blow ignores the fundamental axiom that to deal with a enemy it is alway best to understand your enemy. Racism is everywhere. My next door neighbor in Costa Mesa, CA, told me not to trust Chinese or Jews. He's an African American sheriff's deputy. I thanked Dale, and told him I would be careful when dealing with my four year old grand daughter who is half Chinese and half Jewish. Dale and I have not spoken since. I understand my enemies very well.
28
What an honor it was to have had the Obamas in the White House. Oh how I miss the intelligence, the decorum, and the dignity of both both President Obama and Michele. Never was there a hint of scandal about either one of them. I am 74 years old and from arguably the "reddest" state in the union - Alabama. I am ashamed of my state's past history and ashamed of its people embracing the vile racism encouraged by the Trump administration now.
I will never forget the ugliness and the horror of what transpired in Alabama during the Civil Rights era. I will never forget the courage of those who courageously and with dignity peacefully demonstrated for their rights. I will also never forget that the mayor of Birmingham turned fire hoses on the demonstrators and let dogs loose on them. I will never forget the little girls in Sunday School whose lives were taken from them by a vicious hate crime that was in fact a terrorist attack. I fear we are headed back to those days, and indeed racist violence against Blacks has risen with the election of Trump.
Trump lifted the veil of racism in this country and encouraged it. His actions at Charlottesville were unconscionable. Michele Obama is courageous to peacefully seek to fight back against this unleashed hatred. However, I agree with you Charles, she should not lower herself to deal with those who are willfully ignorant, and blind to the truth about white supremacy. Her accomplishments in life speak to the lie that white supremacy is.
22
Perhaps it’s time to start being more vocal about the fact that this country went from being an unimportant, agrarian backwater in the early 1800s (while the first world European superpowers were already well on their way to full industrialization) to a budding superpower itself by the end of that century for one reason and only one reason: the unpaid work of black people. This should be written into every single high school textbook. Every town square should contain statues honoring black slaves—the people without whose work the US would still be a third world country, rather than the second world country it is today (first, second, and third world referring to waves of industrialization). It’s time to disabuse white Americans of this fantasy that free labor on a massive scale had nothing to do with America’s transformation over the course of the 19th Century.
23
Perhaps changing the opinions of wrong-headed people is not worthy of good people's attention. I hope you are mistaken. I think that Ms. Obama does not speak to the worthiness or even the unworthiness of the whites who are racist, but to the worth of the non-racist (or even "less" racist) persons whom her audience might become. I think that HOPE fuels her efforts... fun word for her, huh? Hope that racism can be diminished. My parents were passive (as opposed to active) racists. They did make progress against that fault as they moved forward in life. Moreover, my children are not racists. That means someone changed "my" mind, somewhere along the way, from the things I was told when I was a small child. The media, and some kind and loving individuals, did a lot to push me in the right direction. Thank you all. The type of hatred that fuels racism is often based in ignorance. And as crazy as it sounds, perhaps the false power of racism and hatred can only be destroyed by giving people legitimate power and love. I think she is doing that, giving faith hands and feet. Michelle has a unique visibility for this issue, and she uses the legitimate power she has, in the effort to raise the status of all Americans, including the people who are perhaps racists today, but may perhaps "not be" racists tomorrow. I deeply admire this woman (and her husband). I am only saddened that she has no desire to run for POTUS. Let us all GO HIGH when the racists GO LOW.
12
Mr. Blow, as much as I admire your writing, you are mansplaining. As I listen to *all* of her comments, I hear Michelle Obama saying that people should not fix other people's brokenness, but keep doing their own excellence. She doesn't need your well intended advice. I feel that she said *maybe* black excellence "picks at the scab" of racism, but in any case, keep doing the work (your own work) and she'll keep doing hers.
13
My wish is that she run for president.
7
Bigotry is a reaction to a perceived threat - if a person feels threatened and powerless, he may place blame to feel some sense of control. So a black person making nice with a white bigot won't necessarily change his opinion, because it's a systemic believe. Which is the reason "one of my best friends is black" is bunk - that black person is the exception, not the rule. You can have a clack friend or like a black person and still be a bigot.
3
When I came out as gay in college, I decided I would just be myself. I'd never been given to flamboyant clothing or behavior, and was never interested enough in my "gay identity" to join the gay students' association (it wasn't the LGBTQ+ association back in the day).
Lots of people took a while after meeting me to figure out I was gay. That still happens --- people who've known me for months will glance at my wedding ring and ask about my wife. I don't do this in order to convince homophobes that gay people can be just as normal as they are; BUT I have gotten feedback from a few people over the years that I changed their perception of what a gay man was, simply by not conforming to the limp-wristed, effeminate stereotype they'd been fed since childhood. That makes me feel good, but it's not the reason I walk around just being myself.
I think if she wants to "show up every day as a good human" she should obviously do so... but because that's who she is, not in order to convert racists, which will never happen anyway.
13
My wish is that she continue to be the example I can point to when discussing race and politics with my racist family members who truly lack the exposure to see through the stereotypical descriptions of "those people" (ie. non-white and democrats) they have grown up fearing.
Sorry Mr. Blow but your article smacks of divisiveness and though you flatter Michelle Obama, do you feel that tone represents OUR Super Woman? It seems obvious she is doing what she believes has a chance at unity. After all, she was this white guy's first lady as well, and I continue to be proud, and thankful for her.
12
Racism and prejudice, the belief that anyone is inherently worse because of their genes or skin color, is disgusting. It is irrational. It is vile. But a larger rational problem that Mrs. Obama is not addressing is the logical fear that many people have of young black men between 18 and 40, because of the high crime rate in this cohort. 30% of black men have a felony conviction on their records, and logic indicates most of those were committed between ages 18 and 40. When felony rates among the races all drop to the level of Asians and whites (about 8% for white men), fear of young African-American men, and by extension, African-Americans, should dissipate. Bottom line: I wouldn't send my child to a school with a 30% juvenile crime conviction rate among the students, whatever race those students were!
7
Charles, you should have picked up the phone and called Michelle. She knows you and would have welcomed the opportunity to discuss this and any other subject. You are both important voices!
This column (unlike most of your columns) is beneath you and is needlessly inopportune. It will not advance the more important goal of EQUALITY for ALL.
5
A minor point, most of the Africans were not stolen from Africa.
European slave traders bought them from Africans leaders.
It was international trade.
The African leaders wanted weapons from Europe and the Europeans wanted slaves from Africa.
8
How to say this?
I don't think Michelle Obama needs a whole lot of advice from Charlesd Blow on how to shape her public persona, just as Mr. Blow does not need a whole lot of advice from Michelle Obama on how to shape his.
Nor does Pope Frances need Ross Douthat to give him advice.
5
Chuck, maybe you or Michelle can help Mayor Pete in SC to get past the homophobic views held by AA voters - see lates focus group insights. But of course that would be contrary to your never ending platform or race baiting. Sad
9
“No one should endeavor to live their life as an exemplar for the white gaze.”
Probably, no one should endeavor to live their life as an exemplar for anyone’s gaze.
I love Blow’s opinion column. By far my favorite. Smart, edgy and look at the structure of that gorgeous sentence. Articulate, but a ton of subtext to make you think. Beautiful.
Couple things, though. Telling a woman what she ought to do is not acceptable at all, ever, no way, no how, no, don’t do it. And for a dude who so attuned to racial inequities, to step into the hot steamy pile of sexism, with both feet, is crazy. Then to memorialize it in a column, well that’s just Trumpian. The other thing, Ms. Obama is a bridge builder and Mr. Blow is not. By and large opinion columns are polarizing, not unifying. Thank nature and nurture for Michelle Obama. May she thrive and change the world with her positivity.
(Still love you Charles, can’t be right all the time.)
11
AMEN!!!!!!
1
Your argument is illogical, sir.
Minorities living in a majority society must needs consider the majority reaction at all times, no matter how race-sick said reactions might be.
If you are a crime-free minority habitually losing jobs to felonious majorities, you'd need to be quite daft not to consider why such losses occur that you might succeed the next time.
If that means another degree, so be it. If it means leaving, say, Ohio, so be it.
Finally, the president has proven beyond the shadow of a doubt, that majority advantage is a real, if more than a bit twisted thing.
25
Hear, hear! The problem isn’t Michelle Obama’s, or any other person of color’s, skin tone. There is nothing wrong, second-class, inferior, etc. about it. The problem lies in the fear of “the other” that drives bigotry. When cave men who happen to be Caucasian are the ones assigning meaning and social acceptability based on skin tone—or sexual orientation, or any other characteristic that differentiates humans—their natural, unevolved response is fear and then lashing out in anger, rejection, stigma, and violence to mask their fear. Trump’s base is driven by this fear and the casual bigotry it spawns.
3
Toni Morrison wrote that the critical function of racism, discrimination was distraction.To distract.It keeps you from doing your work she wrote.It keeps you explaining over and over again your reason for being.To prove them wrong.Someone says you have no language you spend 20 years proving you do she wrote and gave more examples..That was a major aha moment for me,what the intention, the purpose was.In a few sentences it became so clear for me.
5
Something I, as a gay man, have learned over the years is that while bigots are always willing to seize upon any handy rationalization in order to claim their bigotry has a rational basis, in fact their bigotry never actually requires a rational basis.
6
Michelle, throw your hat in the Presidential ring. You don’t have Hillary’s baggage and your husband is not a philanderer - plus he’s still liked by voters. As this author states you have important work to do but what you’re doing now isn’t it.
With Trump leading in key states against the current Democratic contenders you maybe what the Dems really need to get Trump outta office. Also it would be so fitting for you to beat Trump after he’s gutted all your husband’s good hard work. Come on Michelle get in the race!
6
Charles:
Your words cut close, are insightful (as always) and I cannot disagree, but I ask: what should she have said: "I cannot do one thing about what racists believe or do. I will not waste my time trying to convince them of my worth, but I CAN do something about me and what I see as my purpose, & the way I choose to operate in this world is my way. Others in this struggle may have a different approach."
Does that pass your test? Your piece reminds me of MY wish: that many voices & struggles were respected:
*Those who are highly woke –like you. You push us, thankfully, to the edges of our consciousness about equity, inclusiveness, & courage.
*Those of us who consider ourselves woke but are out there working in small ways to make our world more equitable & inclusive. Yet, we are working side by side w/ racists: those who know they are and those who don’t. The luxury of working w/ perfect people is not ours; we are chipping away at their sensibilities daily–not because THEY deserve it but because WE do. We embrace our agency to do SOMETHING for the marginalized and for those peers who will follow us.
*Then there are those who are too tired, too dogged, & busy to even notice the racism operating around them; may be once in a while they challenge it when they see/hear it & move on; are they the “unwoke”?
I doubt that any of us can pass your test if Dr. Obama couldn’t. Shall you condemn us all, Mr. Blow? I’m not feelin’ the love; I’m only feeling your derision.
3
it seems that racism will exist no matter what, but so does misogyny, anti_semitism, homophobia... but all those things are not yes-no but natter-of-degree, and decent people like Michelle Obama do help reduce (but not eliminate) such things. That one cannot succeed 100% is no reason not to try to improve things, and indeed racism, misogyny, anti-semitism, and homophobia are less virulent today than in the past thanks to such efforts. The problem is all those hatreds are being stroked by the Trump regime and if he is re-elected they are likely to become so normalized that decency will be overwhelmed.
What saddens me is that this woman isn't where she belongs.....at the front of the pack in the race for the presidency.
7
Take a tip from a white person. I don't care what anyone else thinks of me and neither should anyone else - especially Michelle Obama. I'm an identity of one, a culture of one. I'm not ignorant of the fact that my privilege has allowed me to cultivate and operate with such a mindset but it's my sincere wish that all people of all races share in it.
3
"The Diversity Delusion" reports that blacks attending elite colleges usually end up in the bottom 10% of their classes, especially in law schools. What was Michelle's class standing in law school? Neither she or her husband have made that public. If she is really brilliant her class standing should support that.
4
"Blaming white racism on black people’s behavior is an intellectual violence. It’s a crime."
Hmm . . . I agree that white racism is instinctive, so is Asian racism and so is black racism. There is no easy remedy but whatever chance there is begins with behavior.
I have a sneaking suspicion that if black men worked more, committed less crime and took a more responsible approach to the children they father there would be less white racism.
Playing the race card in these articles is an easy way to trumpet self-rightuousness but not helpful.
6
Yep. She's impressive.
Mr. Blow, please stop telling Michelle Obama what you think she ought to do. You're right, she is brilliant. She doesn't need direction from anyone.
4
Michelle Obama should run for President. Seriously.
2
>Michelle Obama is an extraordinary woman by any measure.
Huh?
She was the wife of the president, what else has she done?
6
"Why should this brilliant black woman spend even a second of her time considering the mind-set of a racist? She shouldn’t. No black person should. No person who suffers the sting of racism should."
In theory, I agree wholeheartedly. But in reality, it's the racists in the white house and the senate and the congress and the law enforcement agencies across the country that are responsible for passing laws, for upholding them, for enforcing them, that affect the lives of minorities. Michelle Obama is an ever shining beacon, and her frustration comes from her inability to shed her light in the darkest corners of our society. Her point is this: if she, in all her dignity, her intelligence, her poise, her compassion, cannot change the minds of these racists about the worth of a human being, who happens to be black, what possible hope does any of us have? If eight years of Obamas' presence in the white house has proven anything it's this: that the racists among us didn't care. For them, it was an abomination that a black family dared. They will go to any lengths possible, support any measure that will ensure that another Obama does not happen. Moscow Mitch and his posse are a prime example of how far they are willing go. The shameless support these people are throwing for the current occupant of the white house should prove that.
124
lets be clear mrs obama wasn't trying to convince anyone or bridge a gap. she was calling out her neighbors from 40 years ago who had the gall to move out of her neighborhood. does moving out of her neighborhood make those people racists? what about when she and barak moved out of that neighborhood? are they now racists?
the pages of this once fine newspaper spend altogether too much time parsing who is the purest among us; who is the most "woke". the question is does this dialogue do anything? does it convince those who are truly racist to stop their bad deeds/attitudes? i dont think so. what it does do is alienate the white population, 99.9% which have never committed a racist act.
5
I don't know if, as a white person, I can empathize with Mr. Blow's feeling but, as Jewish man, growing up in a Christian town and nation, I felt that I could never be good enough in their eyes.
One night, about 35 years ago, I went to a party at my former roommate's house, where his fiancee got rather drunk. She kept telling my I was "a good Jew", as if I had some obligation to be in this anti-Semite's good graces. My (now former) friend was very embarrassed. I tried to re-assure him, hoping, privately, he'd finally seen what she was.
He didn't, and married her, and AFAIK, they are still married.
Being "good enough" for her, and other anti-Semites and racists, was not, is not, and should never ever be my goal, or Mr. Blow's goal, or the magnificent Michelle Obama's goal.
9
Nobel Peace Prize for you, Mr Blow. Ever since I was a little white boy in Durham NC who had deep puzzling about what a 'Colored' bathroom was at a Greyhound bus station, and why ... ever since I was 15 years old and thought Muhammad Ali made the greatest statement against Vietnam ... ever since, ever since ... ever since my mother taught me that racism, slavery, genocide and expropriation were the most evil of human traits -- but so common -- I can think of nothing greater than people who stand against it as articulately as you do. Trump isn't the sword; he's more the bludgeon. But you, Mr Blow, have the mighty pen. I've been a lawyer 41 years; if only Ms Obama were a Supreme Court justice instead of the minority pack of racists and misogynists on there now.
6
A friend shared yesterday that a racist brother-in-law moved his family to the South to "get away from black people." Yeah, I know, go figure.
But in encountering large numbers of black people there, his world view was transformed and he became a much more tolerant, compassionate person.
Not every racist is irredeemable.
Keep shining your light, Mrs. O. -- thegamesmenplay.com
3
I am a Michelle Obama fan and I generally have stopped reading Charles Blow.
So if asked to choose between a view of Michelle Obama’s behavior as good and noble and exemplary and wise and Charles Blow’s critique of that behavior—I will always side with Michelle.
5
Michelle Obama should set an example and donate all of the profits from her book to America’s homeless .
7
You should follow and donate all of your salary as well.
8
Has she ever watched the black violence on YouTube, Facebook and etc?
I was assaulted 3 times by blacks while in the USMC/Navy during 1968. Twice in Vietnam and once in Taipei. How would that not make me a racist?
-How about the violence in South Africa between each other and the white farmers?
-How about the violence all over Africa?
-How about the percentage of blacks in prisons for violent crimes compared to the US population?
4
If there were no black criminals then white people would be a lot less scared of black people. And there would be far fewer black victims of crime.
5
@‘stralia the reality is that most White folks dont know or are ever around enough Black people to be harmed by one. Almost all white victims of crime will be assaulted or robbed by a white person. This is the point of MOs statement. The fear is irrational and inconsistent with reality. Racism makes you and others think otherwise.
5
Racism is a mental disorder of White Americans who hate and fear nonwhite Americans. Nonwhite Americans are the victims of American racism.
1
My apolitical son, who never voted in his 35 year-old life, told me if Michelle Obama would run for President he would vote for her. That is how much she is admired, even people uninterested in politics would get off their butts and vote. That is powerful and a shame that someone so qualified will not consider running.
3
Mansplaining pure and simple. First Lady Obama needs no correction or instruction from Mr. Blow.
6
Sorry Charles. This old white guy trusts Michelle Obama(.)
5
I am a couple of years older than Ms. Obama. Growing up, I often heard it said that women have to work twice as hard to be thought half as good as a man. I am white, and I know that must be doubly true for an African-American woman. There’s probably also a class issue as well, for the daughter of a blue collar worker. My own parents were teachers (and the first in their families to attend college), but I still had to educate myself about things that were out of our league financially.
I understand your perspective, Mr Blow, but I also understand hers. And I hear Ms. Obama’s comments as a very gentle way of reminding whites that we Americans still have a long way to go on issues of race and gender. She is such a wonderful role model for any American— a brilliant, well-educated person, a good spouse and parent, a best-selling author. I wish she were my friend, and I wish you were too, Mr Blow.
5
When I read the title of your article, I was hoping you would urge her to enter the presidential race at this late stage. Can you just imagine how wonderful it would be to have her against Trump?!! But I completely agree with the substance of your article and feel that your voice has been so important over these past three years. Thank you for your strength!
1
Michelle is wonderful. So is Barak.
European culture was based on a religious dichotomy:
good vs bad. And n language: white vs black.
We must think about changing our language as well as our opinions. in the light spectrum Black is all colors mixed together.
White is the absence of color.
We need to value every human. All colors, speckled and plain.
All sexes. We need to see complexity and love it.
Our brains are infinitely complex. Each one of us is infinitely complex.
6
It is up to every white American to have a long talk with themselves, to evaluate what and how they think about people of other races, and then to fully recognize and deeply accept that it is not the color of one’s skin that makes one human. What makes one human is being born.
We need to root out racial prejudice where it lives: inside our minds. It can be done. And when it is, our neighbors and countrymen will be our neighbors--no matter their color, religion, or family history.
That Michelle Obama feels a need to work toward that day is a credit to her, and we should thank her for her fellowship.
4
I don't think so Susan. You write like you think that "White People" are the cause, or are the only perpetrators across the globe. Arabs-Isrealis. Japanese-Koreans. Indians-Pakistanis. Syrians-Kurds-Turks. They all hate each other. Travel Susan, get out more. There are victimizers and victims everywhere.
2
I agree that it's not Michelle Obama's job to try to change racist hearts and minds--though she probably has influenced many garden variety (not the hard core) racist attitudes in a positive direction.
Regarding "When they go low, we go high," I think Michelle Obama is right. The times in my life when, in a discussion with racists, religious zealots, etc., I have sunk to their level (quoting contrary scripture verses, etc.), it has done NOTHING but feed energy to their already lively base instincts.
If ANYTHING will ever change their hearts and minds, going high is the best bet over time. However, we must use all the political power we can muster to dismantle racist institutions and constrain racist behavior. Hopefully, this will buy time and create circumstances that move us toward open and loving minds and hearts.
2
In my lifetime there have been two outstanding first ladies. Eleanor Roosevelt and Michelle Obama.
I wish there were some way to make her stay in public life. Our country, our government needs women the calibre of Michelle Obama.
6
I agree with this so much. Proving people wrong can take it's toll on the individual. I do not prove anything. However, I do educate even if they do not like the answer. After I have said what I have to say I am out. Being hateful for no reason causes destruction within. These people hate and give reasons among themselves why they should hate us. Then bringing God into this makes it even worse.
1
Sigh. I feel sorry for Mr. Blow. He is peddling a reality denying ideology as pernicious as the one he opposes. If his attitudes on race are indicative of where we are as a society, I feel sorry for all of us.
7
African Americans, like women of all races, have historically spent a lot of time analyzing the white men in control. It’s a survival mechanism to know the minds of those holding power over your life.
Seizing your own power means being yourself no matter the projections of others. Despite Michelle Obama’s statement cited by Mr Blow, I have every confidence that Michelle’s intention to show up every day as a good person is just her way of saying she intends to be herself.
Her hope that this might be enough to change minds is optimistic. Meanwhile, she continues to inspire the rest of us.
2
No one is born racist. So theoretically it should be possible to change the mind of a racist. But I do think it takes more than conversation. It may require taking a racist out of his segregated environment. I lived in Brooklyn, New York for 60 years before moving to Nevada. I socialized with, went to school with and worked with people from various socio-economic and ethnic groups. I don’t fear or resent people who don’t look like me. The only way to know a person’s true value is to interact with them on a daily basis. Just talk won’t do it. We need more integration to solve this problem.
2
I agree with Mr. Blow. Blacks’ actions didn’t cause the racism, so no amount of exemplary behavior will change the minds of racists. The onus shouldn’t be on the victims of racial, ethnic, or religious hatred as if they were responsible for their own victimization. I think in general we are on the right track in our country, exposing instances of racism (and other prejudice) and continuing the discourse so the broader society can see it.
1
I think you misread Michelle Obama. I believe she is saying to me, to every white person, examine the source of your fear of "the other," of people who do not look like you. Michelle knows she cannot make people see differently or change their minds. And she knows that people can change their own minds if they look closely inside themselves. She encourages us all to do this when we discover our common humanity. I think Michelle Obama believes that the inner core of all humans is good. It is our fear that prevents us from seeing ourselves in others.
2
I was in Amsterdam in April and saw play cards on sidewalks all over town advertising Michelle Obama's speaking tour that would visit the city soon. I asked a Lift driver about it and he said that since the event was sold out immediately, it was going to be broadcast on TV. He was going to take the evening off so that he could watch it live. This is probably one of the most respected people in the planet and I am proud that we are both Americans.
6
Unfortunately bigotry is not associated with just one group of people. It is rampant across population based on race, religion, nationality, ethnicity, caste, physical appearence , social status etc.
1
My wish for Michelle Obama is that she know how grateful the vast majority of all Americans are to have once had her as our First Lady. ( I'm sure she knows that, but in case she ever needs a reminder).
5
Can understand the anger but don't think it helps. I'd also argue that the author doesn't have a right to dictate how someone else should think, feel or do just because they share a common physical attribute, unless that person is saying they are superior to someone because they have different colour skin, in which case go nuts. Basically in the words of your illustrious leader she's 'got a very very large err.. Brain' let her use it as she see's fit.
Michelle Obama is beyond politics, especially the politics of today... I'd love to see her run, but I would not begin to wish that on her. I thought that would be the wish in this article, but as a mid-40s white male, I have to say this nearly brought me to tears. The ending here is quite touching Charles, and I think if there is anyone in the limelight deserving of praise in these dark times it is the first lady who goes high and stays above the fray while the lowlifes in office plunder the riches of our nation while they pillage our goodwill around the world.
2
Ms. Obama is a smart, caring, and classy (if I can use that word) lady. While I agree with Mr. Blow that it is not her responsibility to change others' hearts, each one can choose to do things that are "not my job." I trust her own head and heart to do what she thinks is the best way to live out her own principles and use her own talents in an attempt to make a better world.
3
As a 2x Obama voter myself, I very much am a fan of Ms. Obama, her persona, her eloquence, and I particularly liked her exhortation of "going high when they go low". All that said, I would NOT vote for Ms. Obama, for the same reasons I refuse to vote for more Clintons and more Bushes: we don't need anymore "political dynasties". Pres Washington himself was said to have refused serving additional terms, despite overwhelming desire by his countrymen, in order to differentiate our Republic from ruling dynastic families in Europe.
All of us should ruminate long and hard on this. As much as you like Ms. Obama...is it advisable for former Pres Obama to be in the White House again? On some level we need to refresh new ideas and view points. Throwing spouses, male or female, on a party ticket smacks of simply choosing familiarity and comfort, and moving this country closer to a dynastic model. That's not healthy in my eyes, for Democrats or Republicans.
5
Michelle is playing the long game of changing attitudes and mindsets by her own example and by creating a new definition of what it means to be an American. Charles is caught up in the urgency to defeat the Republicans and will attack anything that he feels is counter-productive or a distraction. You pays your money and you take your choice.
2
The Southern Poverty Center estimates that there are today between 5,000 and 8,000 KKK members nationwide. That is 5,000 to 8,000 more than there should be.
However, it's absolutely a mistake to spend even a moment of air time on this less than 1/1000th of 1% of the citizens in this country. The odds of any of us coming into contact with a KKK member is virtually worse than winning a monthly state lottery.
That serious people spend serious time means they aren't so serious after all. They are more likely than not attempting to attain their moment in the light of public affection through exaggeration, phony indignation and horror mongering.
tragic.
4
Still a taxpayer,
I agree that racists and KKK members are a pitifully small group within the USA. Given the social media megaphone they can grab, we need to speak out against not just these individuals, but against the racist views they hold. I don't think it is waste of time. Especially when some cowardly people, like Trump, give them passive support or equate nazis with Antifa street soldiers. That Trump claims there were very fine people on both sides, makes a mockery of our shared values.
1
She should run for president.
She is probably THE only one who can beat him.
4
this article proves exactly what I've been saying about both Michelle and Barack Obama... Both of them so desperately want to be liked. I'm at exactly why Obama's presidency hopefully with the lens and truth of History will go down as a disaster because he just continued Neil liberal policies that helped out the powerful and completely destroyed the middle class. Michelle's doing the exact same thing here she wants so desperately to be liked by others. Hopefully just like the clintons people will get sick and tired of the Obamas and they will just disappear
1
I wish Michelle Obama would run for president.
1
Why? Do you have any insights on her position on foreign policy, judges, economic policy, health care, the Federal Reserve?
3
Equality in the US won't occur under the guise of white Americans seeing black Americans as equal. That kind of thinking is backwards and implies some kind of compromise needs to take place, "Will you see me as equal if I...", or "I would see you as equal, but..." True equality will occur when white Americans start seeing themselves as equal to everyone else.
7
Charles, you're drowning in 1960s rhetoric. This is Black Separatism, not any map to African American progress. Incidentally, no ethnic group anywhere in any country has zero racism in its "heritage." So: no point targeting US whites as uniquely racist. The Slave-Owners' Confederacy, now there's a so-called heritage you can attack.
I think this offends the founding ideals of the country and of all modern states, and probably offends Michelle Obama.
2
#michelleobama2020 She'd win by a landslide.
4
Can we please banish “problematic” from the lexicon? It’s a needless elaboration on the root word, “problem.” It adds nothing of substance. Its use seems designed to gussy up the simple concept of troublesomeness with the aura of something deep and complex.
To put it simply, I take it as a clue that the writer wants to seem smarter than he is.
Just cut it out, already. Thanks.
3
As POC I stopped trying to convince racists of anything a long time ago. There are too many of them and too many of them aren't in the least bit interested of being convinced that being white doesn't bestow greatness on them. I don't owe it to them, we don't owe it to them. You become a racist by sheer willfulness and a conscientious choice to ignore facts. Just Look at our POTUS and the GOP.
1
she must be the next president of this country!
1
"Why should this brilliant black woman spend even a second of her time considering the mind-set of a racist?" While the writer makes interesting and insightful comments, I wonder why he presumes that he, or anyone, may dictate what this brilliant black women thinks about or considers?
7
"Anti-black racism and white supremacy are not predicated on black people’s behavior."
This needs to be sky-written, printed on t-shirts, a song written about it and any and everything else - it doesn't matter what we do.
4
I am so glad Blacks are speaking out in so many ways and so many settings. I have been on the planet eight decades and only now am I really beginning to understand. What joy that even the New York Times has joined in to tell all of us the facts, stories, and opinions we need to hear. How were/are we white folks to know what is/has been going on if Black voices were not published? In that regard, a new day has dawned.
It's amazing to me that Whites have thought themselves superior to everyone else on the planet. Like Obama, I grew up in Hawaii. Attending local schools where I was sometimes the only White (haole) in class, this idea would not have occurred to me. As I saw it, the Whites controlling everything on the plantations and in the government believed in Power and Land/Money. The U.S. Military overthrew the Hawaiian Monarchy and put Whites in charge. I was perhaps too young to see a sense of racial superiority in that.
Now, it is my classmates, their children, and their grandchildren, who have much of the power. The secrets: education, collective will, and the power of voting.
As was explained in an excellent New York Times article https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/28/opinion/sunday/racism-hawaii.html in June, race is thought of differently in Hawaii. More recent immigrants from the Mainland U.S. arrive with different views. Perhaps by experience, as Michelle Obama believes, they will learn something altogether more enjoyable than the absolute stupidity of racism.
1
Isn't it a tad presumptuous for any of us to tell Michelle Obama what to do?
16
"white men created the modern world and advanced culture."
Um. Probably true from 1100 to 1950 AD since they didn't let anyone else get an education.
1
If people are afraid of black people — doubtful, overall — it would be, specifically, fear of young black urban males who commit extraordinary amounts of violent crime.
No one fears the Obamas, my accomplished black colleagues, or my wonderful black neighbors.
2
"Racism is a pathology bound up by power."
1
An unbeatable presidential ticket: Michelle Obama running with Oprah Winfrey.
Trump wouldn't stand a chance. In fact, he might quit rather than be totally outclassed and humiliated by two black women.
2
Chicken little, the sky is not falling.
2
Women need to do the same! Stop trying to prove yourselves to sexists.
3
When will she run for President? If she does we will either see how smart she really is or how racist America really is; of sadly both.
This older white man thinks Michelle Obama should be on the Supreme Court.
10
Mr. Blow is advancing one huge straw man argument. The great majority of people, of all races, are not racist and don't have any problems with Michelle Obama.
6
I live in a small town of 10K that has fewer than a dozen black families. One of these families purchased a house nearby. A woman in the neighborhood stopped me one day and asked if I knew who has moved into the house. I said I did, that they were friends if mine. “Oh,” she said. “I thought they were negroes.”
That said it all.
I, too, wish Michelle Obama could see herself through the lens with which Mr Blow and so many others of us see her and her family.
As a white man, who made me the boss over you Mr. Blow?
Only racist dialog from our parents. There's a wonderful song from Rogers and Hammerstein's play South Pacific called
You've Got To Be Taught.
www.elyrics.net/read/s/south-pacific-lyrics/...
SOUTH PACIFIC. You've got to be taught to be afraid
Of people whose eyes are oddly made,
And people whose skin is a diff'rent shade, You've got to be carefully taught. You've got to be taught before it's too late, Before you are six or seven or eight, To hate all the people your relatives hate, You've got to be carefully taught!
If Michelle Obama were a few shades lighter there would be
a wonderful energy to encourage her to run for a political office. Oh dear, the MAGA crowd could never tolerate another Black person in the Oval Office.
Thank you Mr. Blow for your wonderful writing.
6
This is the second critique of an Obama I've read in the times in recent days. The first was an expression of indignation at President Obama's supposed lecturing last week. Perhaps, given all the Obamas have accomplished individually and together, it would be better to heed their words and follow their lead than rail against. Whether they should have to work to change hearts in minds is not nearly as material in the present as the millions of hearts and minds they have changed.
4
In 1968 the Southern strategy as presented by the Republican strategist Kevin Philips in an interview said all politics comes down to who hates who.He laid out a list of hostilities that would be used by Republicans.Philips said and I quote the more negroes who register as Democrats in the South,the sooner the Negrophobe whites will quit the Democrats and become Republicans.Thats where the votes are.How correct Mr.Phillips is!
5
Charles Blow has written exactly what needs to be written. I am in his camp and I am hoping many other Americans are as well. Whatever we can do to support Mr. Blow's perspective and have it form the foundation of our policies is vital. I look forward to a coming conversation between Ms. Obama and Mr. Blow because of the profound respect I have for the wisdom of both. They make us better people and citizens!
8
I have read Mr Blow for years and most of the time I agree with him. This time I think he has missed something. I do not pretend to be as smart as he or Michelle Obama but I taught everything from a Nursery school to high school and I learned a few things from the kids. Today prejudice comes from the parents but each generation learns to be less prejudiced than the one before if the kids are left alone. Little ones do not care what color you are. If a black person is new to them they may ask about skin color. Otherwise they make friends according to gender, who is nice, who can throw a ball, who is smart, who is attractive, assertive (leaders and followers) etc. Color does not play into it ( or gender identification - what bathroom to use either) until the parents get involved. If only the adults would follow their children’s example. This whole thing works when we get to know people who are different than we are and find out they are just like us.
2
The Former First Lady and the last who inspired us should continue her work, whatever she is doing. She is brilliant and knows exactly what her plan should be. We love Mrs. Obama and we trust her judgement as to what path she takes in the future. My dream would be for her to run as President....but she doesn't deserve the negativism that would take from the Right.
8
Unfortunately, somebody, who is high profile, thinks they have to keep the "race card" in play. It's sad to see so much time wasted being critical on all sides. Nobody can undo the past. If you are smart you build bridges and lift up the people around you to be better people. I won't tolerate bigotry or racism in my circles. I will correct the offender once but then I distance myself from them if they repeat the same bad behavior. I don't want to associate with small-minded individuals as you are sometimes judged by the company you keep.
4
@Jeff truer words not spoken. If one is concerned about racism they need to call out those in their immediate circle(s) of their OWN race that they believe are racists. In other words, if you are white and you work with someone or go to church with someone that's a racist in your eyes - call them on it. If you are black and work with or go to church with someone that is a racist in your eyes - call them on it. It serves no purpose today for those of one race to label others of another race as racist. It's only an effort to elevate yourself at the expense of others - it's hateful and unAmerican.
1
Charles,
I only partially agree to this view. It is true that racists will be racists no matter the character displayed by the oppressed. After all, the activists in Selma or the millions espousing non-violence in South Africa or India weren't treated nobly by the oppressors. However, I do believe that the success of non-violent movements as practiced by Mahatma Gandhi, Dr. Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela require the oppressed to show dignity and restraint even in the face of injustice. I read Mrs. Obama's statement in that light, that sometimes to get past the narrowness, the vulgarity in the mind of the racists, you have to be the bigger person. "When they go low, we go high....".
9
The author acknowledges that Michelle Obama is a brilliant and accomplished woman but then goes on to advise her as to how she “should,” and “should not” conduct herself. I imagine Mrs. Obama has thought long and hard about issues of race and has made her own decisions about how she wishes to deal with them on a day to day basis. To presume otherwise and to presume to tell her how she should behave seems patronizing to me.
15
Your main point -- that black people should never have to submit to or apologize for or even put up with racism, and that racism is the fault of the racist, never the target -- is spot on.
However, it's interesting to me that you quoted Lincoln as an example of the fixed mindset of racism. Did not Frederick Douglass, as an orator and activist, help Lincoln understand the fallacy of his racist mindset? I read Obama's comment in that context. Is she wasting her time, or leading by example? She strikes me as too practical and too hopeful, too much of a born educator, to sit by and let people stew in their own ignorance. I acknowledge the power of your argument, Mr. Blow -- but I am humbled by the power of Obama's commitment to bettering the world.
9
When Michael Bloomberg stepped down from his illegal third term, he left behind the most segregated school system in the country - worst than the south. Minority schools don’t get the same level of support than the right minority does. So, he essentially shot down any possibility for success for a long time. Bloomberg also enacted the “stop and frisk” policy as a precursor to Steven Miller’s full out racialization of Central American immigrants. Analysis showed that no advantages were found, other than stoking racism.
The only solution is not so much to go high, but vote and elect leaders who want to restructure our system. We can’t have the Sacklers selling OxyContin, getting rich and passing themselves a “philanthropists” - as the Times obit noted on the death of the Sackler matriarch a couple of weeks ago- while about 800K people have died. Unemployment may be low, but 60% of all jobs are hourly waged. This election requires strong coalitions of different people since all are barely making it.
5
I thought that Michelle Obama was calling out people who think that they aren't racist because they like her, while, at the same time, they support policies that oppress minorities or they make choices that further segregate our society. Her point, I thought, was, in part, that liking her doesn't make someone not a racist. I think that this essay's focus on her point about showing up as a good human was a bit of unfair cherry picking. In the larger context, she was talking about the way that some white people segregate themselves from non-whites, and she wants those people to realize that when they make such choices, they're depriving themselves of things that they purport to care about. It makes no sense to say that they like Michelle Obama and yet spend all of their money trying to get away from Michelle Obamas. Do they like good people or do they like people in a certain class of society? I thought that Michelle Obama was just asking them to think about that question. I took her to be trying to get others to actually care about people, and the qualities in people that matter, to live up to their purported values. I took her to be critical of hypocrisy and an unconcern for important values. She wasn't trying to convince anyone that she's good. She was urging everyone to be good, as good as we think we are. Not easy work, but hardly a waste of time. It is perhaps some of the most important work that needs to be done. Thank you, Michelle Obama!
8
I totally disagree. The column is correct as to how the world *ought* to work, and what is not owed to white people by black people. But to end racism you need to change people's minds. Things have changed since the 50's, and are getting better still today, thanks to educators like Obama. We need to keep our eyes on the ball.
3
My wish for Michelle Obama,and for the good of this country, is that she runs for President of the United States. She will will have her husband to guide her, she will have her heart and vision to guide a nation. The wonderful part of this idea,Michelle Obama is not a politician, but a pragmatic and well educated woman. A women that I would gladly support and vote for. She does not hid behind political platitudes, lies and deception, she is too pure to do that. She is the person that can heal this divided, racist, greedy, self-centered, egotistical nation.
Yes, I dearly miss Barack and Michelle in the White House.
2
Michelle Obama is not a politician, and her husband wasn’t one either. The Obama Admin. was the most highly secretive admin that we ever had in the White House. Arguably Obama & the Democratic Party are responsible for Trump. The Clinton Centrists started it all by throwing the working class and liberals under the bus and lining their respective pockets. The Obamas profited handsomely from their 8 years, and anyone who dared to question them was called a racist. Obama got $400,000 a pop per speech when he left the WH and both get million dollar book deals. For what? Obama was weak but we need a strong leader now, with the toughness to get legislation passed. Affirmative Action worked really well for a lot of Black people—the Obamas included. A lot of poor“white” people could have benefited as much.
4
@Nick Metrowsky, if you recall what Michelle Obama said, early in the years of his presidency, Obama was relentlessly faved with birther cries and all sorts of conspiracy theories. She felt scared for her life and of her children. Through 8 years in the WH Michelle saw first hand the opposition led by Mitch McConnell completely disrespecting Obama and constantly obstructing him every step of the way. Why on earth would Michele want to subject herself and her family to all this, all over again! Please do not wish upping her the burden of the presidency. The family deserves a well earned break. Good job, well done.
2
Yeah, she’d win going away. Unfortunately, having seen firsthand how things work in Washington, especially the racial abuse Barrack endured for eight years (and counting!) she would be unlikely to consider running even for a moment— that’s my opinion anyway.
1
I think this is a misinterpretation of Michelle Obama's point. Her saying that by showing up and doing good things she can whittle away at racism is not her saying that there is a behavioral cause on the part of black people for racism. It's a fact that people are more racist if they do not have any emotional connections to people outside of their own race, I think Michelle was talking about providing those connections and getting people to view something beyond their ignorant preconceived notions.
2
Correct, Robert and the best way to do that is to interact (with your family) with others not like you. Then you realize, “Hey, we’re all in the same boat.”
I hope Michelle Obama reads your article Charles M. Blow, I liked it and she will too. Because many black professionals are openly talking about racism hopefully America will do a better job of listening. I am hopeful that the nihilism and vitriolic hatred spewing in many parts our society won’t metastasize into the apocalypse, it’s people like the Obama’s, and others who can lift their voices and lead us. Second point: I saw Princeton professor Imani Perry on C-Span’s 2 Book TV this weekend, I was very impressed. Just think professor Perry graduated from Yale at age 21, and by age 27/28 has a Ph.d and Juris Doctor from Harvard, and today at age 47, she is lifting her voice to discuss racial and social justice in America, her books and writings matters greatly.
Everyone, if you have the time, read some of Mr. Blow’s work, for instance the article written on June 19, 2019 titled: Reparations:Reason and Right is a nice starting point if your not familiar with his writings.
In the words of Frantz Fanon “ What matters is not to know the world but to change it. “ ( excerpt from book: Black Skin, White Masks, 1952 ).
2
I so admire Pres. and Mrs. Obama. I also agree with you about people who are racists. Someone as amazing as Mrs. Obama may never be able to change racists. Now that makes me sad and so does this that more, lots more, very rich black people is what speaks to U.S. culturally stifled individuals.
Mr. Blow, my sister and I appreciate your articles. Thank you.
1
Perfectly said. Thank you
Mr. Blow is a very talented columnist, story teller, and thinker. He also has a very strong identification with the race. Hopefully, it is because of the experience of his family and those who resemble him with respect to racial characteristics, and not because he thinks that race has any foundation in biology.
Racists are people just like anyone else, and their deluded perceptions with respect to race are no different than the deluded perceptions which all humans exhibit when they start to divide people into us or them.
Michelle Obama is addressing the us verses them issue, I think. It's tough but it's well considered.
1
"Why should this brilliant black woman spend even a second of her time considering the mind-set of a racist?" If you're a member of an oppressed racial minority group, how could you not, especially when they constitute such a large block of voters. Mr. Blow is absolutely right that no black person has a responsibility to change the minds of racists, but those racists have a major impact on the political and economic reality of black people. What's more, racist attitudes can change, and that usually happens through positive interactions with those the person is racist against. Yes, those racist attitudes are irrational and have no basis in reality, but the socially constructed fiction racists hold onto is certainly real in its consequences.
1
Forget trying to make people like you, I wish she would run for President.
1
@Judith Molik I agree 100%.
My wish for Michelle Obama is that she run for President, immediately.
1
As Mr. Blow wrote, the white man has used "pseudoscience and supposedly observed behavioral traits to justify their brutality, subjugation and exploitation." Shouldn't scientists be studying the white man to determine why there seems to be a pathological need for such brutality, subjugation and exploitation? Full disclaimer, I am a white man and I some times wonder it myself. How can it be that the slaughter of 95mm indigenous people, 6mm Jews and 400 years of slavery could be perpetrated by white men of European descent and nobody has studied the biological/sociological basis of that?
6
The problem is not only white vs black. Look through history and you will find religion, power and a host of other prejudices pit people against one another. For example, black people and American Indians themselves had slaves. It seems tribal behavior has always been around - we don’t feel powerful or worthy unless we believe someone is on a lower rung of society than we are. How you change this behavior is a tough question but it helps to interact with those we perceive as different. Jeepers, women have dealt with some of these preconceived notions since Adam blamed us for tempting him with an apple.
1
My wish is that Barack and Michelle stop being Republican Lite corporate Dems, and become true FDR progressives.
Obama himself said his polices were those of a moderate Republican.
His failure to aggressively pursue an FDR agenda is one reason voters turned against centrist Dems and voted for Traitor Trump.
Other than identity politics and the fact that the Obamas are classy, intelligent people and Trump is a perverted, creepy goon, I don't see why people heroize the Obamas.
5
@Steve Davies
How FDR, who got klansman Hugo Black on the SCOTUS and threw US citizens of Japanese descent in internment camps, is still cited by ‘progressives’ as someone to emulate is baffling.
We do learn something when we watch people of grace being graceful, so I do hope that Michelle keeps taking the high road. The hard core racist is so blinded by hatred they will not see; but those people who don't know any black folks have a softer racism (built in to our culture) that I think can be swayed.
Charles is right about this; Michelle should not in any way think it her job to convince the klan types to view African Americans as equal. She is doing plenty helping black kids see their own worth.
There are times when I really curse white people's ignorance and petty hatreds and jealousies.
1
Live your life with kindness, dignity and grace, sure. But don't believe that racists are racist because YOU are not trying hard enough or being smart enough to unlock the goodness that must be hidden somewhere deep in their hearts. This is a nonsensical burden that one need not bear.
2
When I read that quote from Michelle Obama, I understood it to mean basically what Charles Blow is saying: that nothing she or any other black or Latino, or Asian, or gay, or trans person can do will persuade racist or homophobic people to change their minds. All that she, or any of us, can do is to keep showing up and living as honestly and humanely as we can. She’s not doing it for them. She’s doing it because that’s who she is—a truly admirable human being.
3
One image comes back to me time and again: Trump's white supremacist, online propagandists and supporters brawling on the White House lawn. That lawn is still, in my own mind, Barack and Michelle's lawn, and that rose garden is still their rose garden. I refuse to submit to this despoliation of the people's house. Of our house.
Spot on!
Absolutely spot on, Charles. The greatest fear on the part of white racists is their eventual status as a minority population. Hence they will do anything to maintain their illusory superiority, including supporting a criminally insane psychotic liar for president because he reinforces their beliefs about their whiteness. Michelle Obama will not change that. Her time, as you said, is much better spent.
3
Bravo and amen!
1
Blow has it (partially) wrong. Europeans were not stealing black people from Africa. With only a few exceptions, Africans were tje ones stealing other Africans, then selling them to Islamic Arab slave traders who then sold them to the highest bidders (some Europeans who shipped them to the New World, and some in the Middle East for their own purposes.. T But for a long, long time - Africans were enslaving other Africans for their own purposes, Asians were enslaving other Asians, Europeans were enslaving other Europeans, and Native Americans (north, south and central) were enslaving other Native Americans. Some used as slaves, some for human sacrifice and some for food. My great, great, great uncle was an English sailor, captured and made a slave on Spanish slave ship for two years until he escaped. But there were also Spanish and Dutch slaves on English ships. No one was innocent. Some point out the the Russian serfs were basically slaves as well. About as close as you would want to get to the Czars's empire. Then again, we are not counting the Nazi use of slave laborers to run the Reich. Of course, in the case of Germany, the purpose was most often to work the slave laborers to death - 20,000 died under the command of Werner von Braun.
6
@Mark Shyres
Sorry, I failed to mention the proud Royal British Navy's long, and proud tradition of "press gangs", basically sailors under the command of an officer, kidnapping other Brits (often from pubs or other public houses, or just off the streets) and "enlisting" them in the navy to serve up to five years or longer. Then, to add insult to injury, the Royal Navy would re-kidnap (is that even a word?) them again before they got ashore and off the went to defend the "Empire". If you didn't like it - too bad, Well, there was always flogging with the cat o nine tails or keel hauling (basically a death sentence). Oddly, the song "Rule" goes "Brits never, never, never shall be slaves." Only if they were fast enough on their feet.
1
Your final sentence here is gorgeous. What a perfect statement to sum up the two forces at odds. As always, reading your column makes my day. Thank you.
Charles you may have good intentions, I believe you are a good man, but please don't tell a woman what she should or should not do. If Michelle considers she has a duty as a public figure to be involved in the discourse about race, and if that is the way she uses her privilege chosen to tackle it, she should be able to do so without a condescending man's disapproval.
7
I'm not sure that leading by example is all that effective.
What is very effective was the experience I encountered in Washington DC.
I'm white, and worked for a while in health care in DC. Due to the city's demography, health care, like all institutions (other than Congress) in that city, is largely staffed by blacks. Working daily side by side with intelligent and competent people cannot help but knock out any pre-existing notions.
6
Why should she? Because she is trying to make the world a more loving and accepting place for all of our children. And she does this by example every day. Thank you, Michelle Obama.
12
Is it possible that Mrs. Obama is not simply posturing for the white man? Is it possible that she is motivated by compassion, which by its nature encompasses all human beings? Is it possible that she understands that hatred is suffering, and that racism creates suffering for everybody? No, it's not Mrs. Obama's responsibility to convince white people that black people are ok. But the only way we ever rid our society of racism is by embracing a compassion that sees everyone's suffering as our own. When we see each other in the context of our shared humanity, we stop obsessing on difference and using it as an excuse not to care. Michelle Obama is a role model for that kind of compassion, and I hope she always will be.
11
I want Michelle Obama to have an apartment on Paris' Left Bank. With a view of the Eiffel Tower and the Seine. I want every moment of her life to be as exquisite as she is.
9
@ND I want her to have a home in the White House. That's my wish.
1
It is not just a black-white thing, it is a human thing. I spent my childhood shut out, rejected, laughed at, sexually abused and humiliated within my white family and I have spent a lot of my life trying to be good enough to be accepted. There are many people both black and white the world over with the same history. Whether it is institutionalised or personal you are talking about the theft of power from others more vulnerable. Just as you say it is a power thing. The small minority of truly empowered people are able to respect the power of another without needing to crush and destroy. The Obamas belong to that admirable group. The real issue is the generalised insecurity of people that requires a 'lesser other', a scapegoat. It is the very easily available way to feel 'strong'
8
Mr. Blow, do you really believe that exemplary black people in America, like the Obamas, do nothing to chip away at racism? I think you're mistaken. Did Dr. King's positive example do nothing to combat racism? Of course it did. Many white Americans harbor racist thoughts because they believe the worst stereotypes about blacks. Some of them only know black people from negative news coverage, or whispered rumors, not from personal experience. But when they are confronted with positive black role models like Dr. King, the Obamas, or so many others, they learn to change their minds. It's not fair that that's what it takes sometimes, it's frustrating, but it's reality. That's why Barack was elected against the odds, even winning states the pundits had assumed would never elect a black President.
I'm afraid your piece could be read as a discouragement to black Americans to aspire to be their best selves, because, what's the point, racism is intractable. And that's a real shame. American history is a story of racism slowly diminishing, year after year, as more and more African-Americans become successful social role models and prove by irrefutable example how ridiculous the old racial stereotypes are. Maybe you wish it weren't so, maybe you wish racists simply weren't racist in the first place. But please don't discount this process.
7
@Samuel Russell What actually helped my parents and grandmother become less racist (I believe) is their exposure to many kind and caring helpers -- who happened to be POC, including immgrants -- at the nursing home where my grandmother lived during the last years of her life. I don't think any of them had had any exposure before that - ever - on an on-going basis with people who weren't lily-white.
3
Another excellent, concise, powerful essay by Mr. Blow. As a woman of colour, I often think of how white people will perceive me. It’s a kind of mental prison. Ultimately, real freedom means just being rather than focusing on how you are perceived. This is easier said than done. I sympathize with Ms. Obama’s situation and agree that she has nothing to prove to others, period.
7
I concur Michelle Obama is an extraordinary woman and she should not be trying to win the sentiments of a racist. President Obama and Michelle in the White House showed the American people who they are just as the White House is now showing who Trump is. I find it interesting that the first black president was beyond reproach. As long as racism in America finds a home in the minds of people the ability to smother its growth will be increasingly diminished. The turning point is in American's hands and the direction they go will define who they are. Racism will always be with the human race but we need to put it into the dark corners of people's minds. A skeleton in the closet if you will.
5
Mr. Blow's stance makes sense. In much the same way, women do not "deserve" to be attacked for what they wear in public, as some societies believe. Ultimately, decent people should not apologize to the indecent. Unfortunately, racists and sexists make a choice to be evil. Can their minds change? Maybe. Do African Americans and women have the responsibility to do it, no, but that is what it might take. They don't need to act different, but maybe sitting downs and lecturing the ignorant might help a little. Is there a right way?
3
The first step toward anti-racism is the recognition that whiteness lies at the root of racism and the recognition that the white individual *must* learn that they are, indeed, raced and they are of the white race. Before one can attack racism, one must come to know who one is as a white person and come to recognize the insidious and ubiquitous nature of the hegemony of whiteness.
This is not something a black person can do for a white person. It is up to white people to educate themselves.
3
Often times when I'm involved in some conversation where there is this tacit assumption or overt declaration that people of African ancestry are inferior in some way, I manage to work in the following with a smile (or smirk?): Homo Sapiens evolved in Africa some 100 to 200 hundred thousand years ago, we are all Africans.
6
Oh, this again, "From the time Europeans started stealing people from Africa..." Since it was Africans selling Africans to anyone with cash or goods, the only way Europeans, among others, could have stolen in these transactions was if they promised, say five barrels of wine, and then watered down the wine, or, slipped in bad barrels, etc. I think Michelle does well to keep showing up and presenting herself as someone who is a good person that others can get to know. Being black, white, brown, or, red should be a non-issue - let it be a non-issue. Drop it.
7
The minds of older racist are too difficult to change. Best to focus on the youngsters, through public school education.
5
@Long Island Dave Starts in the home. Period.
I first learned about this pattern in regard to native Americans. If they settled down in a little village around a church and planted fields , their neighbors came and burned them out.
You can tell there is a stigma when people try to follow the rules and other people find this irritating.
3
I miss President Obama like a dead flower misses water but what I feel for Michelle Obama goes far beyond that. What she did, continues to do, for the country as not just the first black First Lady but as First Lady Above All First Ladies is so incredibly inspiring. I must admit I was more than a little disappointed to hear that she gave air time to the people that try to bring her down, acknowledging to them and to us she allowed them to get to her. I know she is human but I so wanted her silence or a pithy, razor-sharp quip to send a message loud and clear to being lightyears above and beyond such trash. May she stare down all those that work against her like the queen that she most truly is.
1
Charles Blow asks: "Why should this brilliant black woman spend even a second of her time considering the mind-set of a racist?" James Baldwin answered that question in The Fire Next time: "The really terrible thing, old buddy, is that you must accept them. And I mean that very seriously. You must accept them and accept them with love. For these innocent people have no other hope. They are, in effect, still trapped in a history which they do not understand; and until they understand it, they cannot be released from it.... We cannot be free until they are free."
6
Mr. Blow needs to step back and to see things as a person who is not Black or White but just a person. There are only two groups of people who care about racism in anyway that affects their normal perceptions, those who think that race matters because they think it defines people and those who think race matters because they are concerned about stereotyping people according to race.
Mrs. Obama is trying to help the latter deal with their concerns about racial matters.
Race is not definitive of people. Human beings are all the same under the skin, and the special characteristics that make us human are unaffected by racial characteristics.
1
Michelle Obama is simply a terrific human being.
Her efforts to make the world a better place for all are what America is in its finest moments.
45 is a collection of unconscious behaviors, meanness and mendacity and he will use anything including racism to feed his addiction to power. He could not exist though without his army of enablers. Pitiful.
2
I think that you misunderstood Michelle Obama. She said that she couldn’t fix broken people like racists, but hoped that as a mere side effect of her living a good life for herself that racists might re-evaluate their prejudices. She is not concerned about fixing racists.
5
Michelle Obama should run for the presidency. She may be the only person who can beat him.
5
"There is nothing more painful to me at this stage in my life than to walk down the street and hear footsteps and start thinking about robbery -- then look around and see somebody white and feel relieved."
Jesse Jackson
12
@John Evan
There is nothing more painful at this stage in my life than to sit in a movie theater, school, church, etc. and start thinking about a mass shooting - - then look around and see somebody black and feel relieved.
Vanessa
1
As our first black president, her husband had the opportunity to help bring about significant improvements in race relations. Instead, after eight years in office, race relations across the country were worse than ever. What do you think Michelle is going to do for this country that her husband couldn't?
6
Opportunity how exactly?? Had he put a strong focus on racists, folks like YOU would’ve said....”of course...the BLACK President talks about racism!!”
I can just see the hysteria THAT would have brought about amongst the Jim Jordan’s, Mitch McConnell’s et all...McConnell made it his central mission to block EVERYTHING Obama attempted to pass, imagine if he’d put ANY focus on the blatant bigotry....republicans would STILL be having hearings...
It’s amusing (it’s rage inducing actually) that you place the blame w/Obama, but neglect to mention Trump....the blame belongs NOT w/the racist, but w/the only Black President??
Glad to be responding to an Op-Ed, rather than a conversation...I wouldn’t have the ability to contain myself were you standing before me.
1
Racism is a mental disorder where the afflicted feels superior to other races. Unfortunately, it is ingrained in white people, and regardless of who they are, they feel that they are entitled, and everyone needs to step aside. So one cannot try to figure out how one can cure this disorder as it needs to be dealt by professionals with therapy (and in more serious cases with medication). For people who are not white trying to deal with others mental racist disorder (so that their superiority complex and their behavior change) is a waste of effort and time. Their behavior won't change by one trying to convince them otherwise. One needs to treat racism for what it is, a mental disorder.
Black persons are the main cohort in America with a coherent cultural heritage that is shared by the community, has a common canon of great literature, and a beautiful intellectual heritage.
White racists are sick and pathological.
While I lived in Tucson, on two occasions I stopped to comfort women of color who had narrated about having been verbally abused by a white racist. Two occasions (three women) in a racially diverse city.
These three women were good, young, intellectually gifted and curious young women, and it hurt me deeply to hear their wounded feelings from a brutish racist snout.
Police violence against innocent blacks have increased.
Our nation needs healing. I am a 71-year-old white male who has vivid memories of the violent racism aflame in the 1960s, and the increasing heat of White Fear today makes me worry about our country.
But . . .
We shall overcome . . .
2
As a middle-aged white guy I’ve got no business talking about racism or the theme of this article. But if we’re talking about Michelle Obama, then surely the real prize for the US (and pretty much the rest of the world) is to get an Obama back into the White House.
6
She ain't got it.
@L. Hempelmann Your use of ‘ain’t’ speaks volumes.
"Why should cave men be allowed to occupy space in the mind of a super woman?"
Perhaps Mrs. Obama,to her credit, recognizes her humanity in those that would oppress her. Didn't Jesus exhort us to love our enemies ?
Absolutely brilliant, Mr. Blow!
A worthy and inspiring message that should steel the hearts of all oppressed and misjudged peoples.
Just as blacks should cast to the winds any anxious obligation to prove anything to whites, so should LGBTQ to straights, women to men, and any other group whose existence has been limited or ill-defined by subjugators.
I wish she would run for President. More than for any other candidate, I'd stump for her, I'd be enthusiastic about her.
Re- racism and changing people's minds. My mother told me when I was a teenager just how racist her parents were; the implication was that they were but she wasn't. A few years later, I asked her whether she'd attend my wedding if I married a black man. She said she would not. Something about "blacks and whites are too different (culturally)", whatever that meant. She was already in her 60's at the time, and I knew nothing would ever change for her.
What's been harder to understand is a former college acquaintance (early 80's) who I recently bumped into. He'd become a flaming racist, full-on "whites are the great minds and inventors, worldwide and throughout history". And "all the smart blacks have left the inner cities; the ones who remain are the stupid ones, and their children are all going to be as stupid as their parents." He wasn't that way back when I knew him as a student. I decided he was too far gone and severed contact completely. Apparently there is a replenishing supply of such people.
2
I think Michelle Obama is absolutely fabulous and brilliant to boot. Heck, I think she'd be a better president than her spouse.
That said, how's she going to help us dump Trump??
3
“Why should this brilliant black woman spend even a second of her time considering the mind-set of a racist? She shouldn’t. No black person should. No person who suffers the sting of racism should.”
Well Charles, that’s why people truly do love Michelle Obama, whereas I’m guessing few have said that about you. Michelle Obama isn’t a stellar black woman, Michelle Obama is a stellar human being and an inspiration and guide to every one of us, regardless of our race! It’s your kind of guidance that absolutely guarantees that racism will remain the despicable scourge it is today. You’re right, “racism is a pathology”, an equal opportunity pathology.
8
So Charles. Who are these racists? All white people? All non-black people? I'll readily admit that I form an opinion on somebody by what their appearance is. The police do it. Employers do it. Bank loan officers do it. I'm willing to bet a cheeseburger that you do it also. But I would hire a black person to do a job, I'd hire an Asian, Hispanic, Mediterranean, White-American, White-Euro, White-South African. I'd hire anybody, I don't discriminate. Which is as it should be. But to classify those mythical "White People" as all being racist, is pretty racist itself. The entire world is racist, that isn't going to change.
10
"[Michelle Obama] 'can’t make people not afraid of black people'.”
But why can't we all agree on the prevalence of a pervasive fear of black people, not all, only younger black men.
This is a reality. People live with it. They move away from inner-city areas fearing that they would be mugged by younger black men, creating a vicious cycle of more people moving out of inner-city areas when they can afford including better off blacks. Then businesses close. Tax-base shrinks, public services suffer and schools can't afford to pay teachers, repair work, etc. Full-fledged ghettoization ensues.
And nobody cares, including the affluent blacks who just moved out as well as people like Charles Blow & Al Sharpton.
Did Barack Obama care? Does Michelle Obama care? Does Oprah care?
Nevertheless, older black people are so decent, not all of them but a huge number of them. Black women by & large are so nice. Their dedication to their children, grand children, nieces & nephews is phenomenal.
I believe if there were a well thought-out plan, a 10 or 25-year-plan to deghettoization of inner-city areas spending large sums of money, say as a substitute for slavery reparation, the niceness of black people can be fostered.
I would add high expectation maybe a killer in this endeavor.
4
Like other primates, human beings are tribal. We are always scanning for tribal similarities when we encounter other human beings. Race is one of those quick visual clues that makes us wonder if we are on the same tribal wavelength. Human beings value the comfort, predictability and safety of their tribe just like other primates.
Political opportunists know this and they understand the power of poking all our tribal fears and comforts.
The most successful humans however are curious adapters. They are interested in a new language, for example, and they make attempts at communicating. They are interested in economic negotiation with different communities. They don’t assume that someone from their own race or tribe is more intelligent. Perhaps working with the best and brightest from another community is more advantageous. They are mentally flexible and don’t fear change or variety.
You can easily spot people who are very tribal because they don’t like change, even in small matters. They are reluctant to taste different foods or try a phrase in a different language, for example.
These thoughts cross my mind when I am at large family gatherings and there is a cringe worthy statement from an elderly aunt stating she won’t order a taxi from a company known to hire dark people. She phones the company in town known to hire mostly white people. She can’t be convinced to change taxi companies- not even for one trip to see if there is any difference.
1
The issue is, indeed, the failure to see others as fully human. No particular "good" behavior is likely to change that assumption, although "bad" behavior may be used to support it. The failure to humanize others is not just a pathology of white supremacy -- it is the basis of all human exploitation and genocide, no matter who is doing it to whom. And the treatment of this primitive response to otherness is not just a matter of redistributing power. More importantly, we all need to develop a new kind of intercultural consciousness for the future. I am afraid that otherwise there will be no future -- we will all perish in the chaos created by throwbacks marching us to their pseudo past.
3
A powerful, purposeful and precisely correct proposition this.
2
I'll start by saying I get where you're coming from, and you're not wrong. But I'll throw another perspective in there. In the white family I grew up in, racism was as casual as breathing. Absolutely every one of those stereotypes was something I was taught, from a very young age, by parents and grandparents who were raised to believe it themselves. Something in me rejected those stereotypes, and I would try to argue with the rest of the family that everything coming out of their mouths was wrong. But as a child, I didn't yet have the language to express what I was so intensely feeling. As I got older, I sought and eventually found different and better perspectives, many of them from an African-American professor who was the best mentor I ever had. I was infinitely fortunate in him; he took the time to engage me in frank, open dialogues, and he struck sparks from my mind. I like to think that not everyone raised as a racist has to become a racist. You're right, you can't reach the honest-to-God racists, and it isn't worth anyone's time to try, much less Michelle Obama's. But sometimes, you can reach their kids, the ones who are instinctively repulsed by racism, and hungry for the other side of the story. If no one engages them but the racists, that's the only perspective they're ever likely to get.
10
I’d agree, but also point out that your “enlightenment” was possible through education, and I imagine being exposed to a multi cultural group of ppl on campus.
Self segregation is the largest part of the problem, getting away from bad ideas, even if espoused by loving (to you) family members is the key.
Just as homophobes often have epiphanies when family members identify as gay...Cheney as an example...bigots can sometimes realize the error of their thinking if they expand their social group to include others not like themselves (campus study groups, class participation etc)....Unfortunately too many either haven’t the opportunity or reject the option when they do, remaining for life, w/their “own kind”
1
I need to say first that this is not a problem only faced by African-Americans. And I wish just not doing it was a solution that would resolve this problem not only for African Americans but also for Jews, Muslims and all other groups that face discrimination based on some form of ethnicity. However all of these groups have used as a strategy, at least at one time or another, that if other people only get to know us they will see that the discriminatory behaviours and attitudes that they have are ridiculous and this will change both attitudes and behaviour. If that is not a worthwhile approach, and I completely understand the collumnist's objections and how someone like Michelle Obama should not feel it necessary to follow that approach, what would the other approach be?
2
The attitudes of people about race needs to be addressed because it divides our citizenry. Right now that threatens our liberal democracy more than anything else. It will take generations for Americans to know in their hearts that race as it has been assumed is a false concept, and that racism really is just a justification to treat others badly and to exploit them. But a first step is to begin to appreciate that everyone is the same under the skin. In this view, Michelle Obama is trying to help end racism.
1
It breaks my heart to think this most worthy woman — and surely she is not alone — thinks somehow it’s on her shoulders to show up every day as a good human and that might change minds. (If one cannot see that she is worthy, then one surely must be blind.)
What if the tables turned, and
the haters had to try to convince everybody else that they were good, decent people?
There would be a certain justice in that, but Mr Blow’s point that, from Day 1, those who enslaved and others found ways to dehumanize those they stole and/or subjugated suggests they just wouldn’t get it.
1
Race as it has been passed down to us is a big lie. Race is no more definitive than eye color, and genetics proves this beyond any doubt. The characteristics which are used to determine race are unrelated to what makes people human beings and the DNA evidence shows that anyone actually has more traits in common with people outside of those sharing the same racial characteristics than with those who do.
Race is a cultural artifact and a product of a curious propensity of humans to affiliate with groups and then to treat people in those groups and all others differently. Racism is a psychological response, a rationalization, which justifies unjust treatment of others by demeaning them. It's also a comfort to assure the exploiters that the tables will not be turned on them. Human contrariness for the worse.
1
I agree with Mr. Blow’s observation that racism is no Black person’s responsibility to fight—unreservedly, 110%. But with the deepest respect, I feel as if he’s simultaneously praising Michelle Obama and subtly dismissing her intellect. He doesn’t really explore what her intentions may be before declaring them problematic. Again, with humility, I’d rather hear more about her own grasp of history and the psychology of racism, and her own choices about the life she lives, rather than see her deployed for a general essay on the theme.
8
I agree, I find it a little patronizing to suggest she has not considered these aspects in efforts to tackle racism. His implication that one would have to blame black people for racism to do this is kind of insulting.
3
@Robert V.S. Redick
The best way to fight racism is with graceful action. Plenty of people, especially blacks, lambasted the Obamas for "acting white" because they have a traditional family life and worked to get an education and good paying jobs.
I don't think the young Michelle Obama was wasting her youth crying about racism and how she can't do anything until that's eliminated. She ignored the haters, buckled down to study and made something of herself. That's why she's such a great example, and succeeded despite the racism.
Who cares if snooty sales people aren't nice to you at Barneys? It's not like the vast majority of people window shopping there could afford to buy any of the stuff they sell.
I've always liked and admired Michelle Obama even more than I do her husband, whom I like, admire and esteem a lot.
3
I was hoping this column today was about Michelle Obama running for President. I hope Ms. Obama will consider this as I know she would win with a sizable margin.
9
Theres a poular saying in my AA group: "If you keep doing what you've been doing, you'll keep getting what you've gotten." I think it applies here as well.
This is, by the way, exactly the kind of article that just feeds the Trump supporter mentality.
With all due respect to Mrs. Obama, noone will change the attitudes of a certain percentage of deeply or willfully ignorant white (or other non-African) peoples, nor should they try. Its a waste of time. Noone need change the attitudes of more "woke" people either. They probably don't need to. Most people, I suppose, base their impressions of people unlike themselves on their personal experience and what they've been told.
I suspect that many of us are relatively well-meaning and have been somewhat cultually handicapted, as it were, by our upbringing, media representations of the other, and the often segregated cultural surroundings in which we've lived most of our lives. That said, many white people I do know, myself included, are a getting more than a little put off by constantly being told how inherently racist we are.
Demonize whomever you wish. But there's more than enough blame to go around here.
8
Exactly Tom F. I get especially irritated when I called a racist by people I've never met, that assume I'm a racist because I appear to be white, but I'm mixed. You can continue to blame white people for your lot in life, but you won't move forward if you blame your life choices on someone else, not even anyone in particular, just "White People".
4
It's not up to the oppressed to demonstrate to their oppressors that they are actually okay. Going back to Karl Popper, we have the right to suppress intolerance and need to claim that right. We need to claim the right not to tolerate the intolerant.
5
When I started college (MANY years ago!) the 1st black student ever was in the freshman class. Then the US saw racial progress in equality, voting, jobs, equal pay, etc.
Now? Read Charles Blow's last column--- " Trump’s Black College Spectacle."
Quote:
"Benedict College is a historically black college in S.C. Trump spoke there at the 2019 Second Step Presidential Justice Forum organized by the 20/20 Bipartisan Justice Center, a “group of over 80 African-American mayors, city, county and state officials, prosecutors and defense attorneys, political strategists, community leaders, activists, police chiefs and other law enforcement executives,” according to the group’s website.
The irony was that there are over 2,000 students at the school, yet only a handful were allowed to attend the event. The others were on lockdown, told to stay inside. Their lunches were delivered to them in their dorms.
The 20/20 group gave Trump its “Bipartisan Justice Award” for his First Step Act, criminal justice reform legislation which...allowed for early release of a relatively small number of nonviolent federal inmates. The vast majority of inmates, however, are not federal, and therefore not affected by the law.
Still, for this group to give Trump an award of any type was an affront to anyone who has paid attention to his full record on criminal justice and to black people insisting on justice."
End of quote.
This seemed Orwellian and surreal, as is our politics. What did the Obamas think?
3
Mr Blow, like many black intellectuals, seems to subscribe to the at least latent notion that racism is a white-only disease.
I have lived in the Washington DC area now for 30 years, a Midwestern transplant. I was not exposed to any black people growing up. Zero. However, most of those I've met are just dandy, and I get along with them like the people from any other race. "Black" to me is just a physical characteristic, not a defining one.
However, I have to say that THE most racist people I've encountered in my life - hands down - have been a couple of blacks in DC and Baltimore. If I disagree with these particular people, on any topic of any consequence, I'm immediately labeled a racist and denounced in terms of my being white. It's like a rusty sword they draw whenever they feel any emotion they don't like when interacting with people of another race. Two particular individuals with whom I've interacted along these lines are even worse when dealing with a Korean colleague of mine.
Racism is racism, and by no means is it a white-only disease.
I think Michelle Obama is doing just dandy - keep talking with people of all colors in the way she does, and she will change minds. Racism is defeated by exposure.
17
@Mtnman1963 ...a couple of black you met were racist? So what? Proves what? Wonder why you even bother writing a comment about it.
You said most blacks you met were 'just dandy'. That's nice, glad you approved of them---after growing up with only whites.
2
@Mtnman1963
While racism may belong to any one person, and there are black racists I am sure, it is white racism that in institutionalized and incorporated into our society and has widespread effect on millions.
2
All people, of every color, can be racist.
I agree completely...this needs to be read over and over...
5
“Asserting that there is a behavioral cure for racism simply supports the inverse argument: that there was a behavioral cause for it. Blaming white racism on black people’s behavior” — this is logically flawed. Simply because Michelle believes she can help bigoted white people overcome racism does not oblige any belief on her part that she or other black people are culpable for it.
She’s a humanitarian, a towering figure of political history. Like her husband, she sees all the good she can do as something she should do, or at least attempt. And she’s right, the Obamas are uniquely placed to refute this evil. This isn’t lowering her, or other black people, it is elevating her mind boggling capacity for patience and compassion.
7
She's the most admired woman in the world?? Not Angela Merkel, or Benazir Bhutto, or Theresa May, or Nancy Pelosi, or Jacinda Ardern or someone who's actually been a real leader? Yikes. People need to get a clue.
3
I cant possibly imagine, in good faith, what would make Theresa May more deserving of “most admired woman”.
2
I voted for B.Obama and I have nothing against Michelle. But like every spouse of every POTUS, she, so far, is just a celebrity with Ivy League academic credentials.
Being married, going to college and getting a law degree applies to A LOT OF PEOPLE e.g. Brett Kavanaugh. I know how you feel about him. Michelle and him are exactly alike BY YOUR measurements, not mine.
So let's ease off on M.Obama's hagiographic treatment a little bit, currently she's just another celebrity.
7
@ndv
No. They are not exactly alike for having been to good schools. Not only has she "conducted her life with the utmost honor, dignity and grace" as Mr. Blow describes but she has created and volunteered her time to social programs to make things better for other people. She helped spearhead an initiative to empower girls by helping grant them access to an education.
Kavanaugh has done none of that. In fact he has stood in the way of people. And we know how he feels about women.
8
@ndv Gee, perhaps one difference is being born into privilege versus achievement solely through hard work and sacrifice both of one’s own and her family’s.
As I read this, I thought about the other part of Michelle Obama, she is a woman. And what you are saying can apply to women, too. We try to show that we are worthy of male respect. If it works, it is slow, slow, slow. In many ways, women are superior to men. Biologically and intellectually. look at some of the statistics. So what are we to do? Michelle O. is fantastic, not because she is black, or not in spite of it, but just because she is fantastic. Isn't that what you are saying, mr. Blow. Take the labels away, and let us just be humans. Non "white', or 'white', male or female, those labels don't define us. (unfortunately, they do in most people's eyes. in reality, and objectively, they don't.) Maybe someday we will figure out a way to live without stereotypes.
3
To speak frankly, at this point in time, I don't know why any person of color would trust any white person. Hasn't slavery, Jim Crow, segregation, voter repression, murders, KKK, Gov. Wallace and his political descendants, trump's comments, and on and on...aren't these enough to show that white people have mistreated minorities throughout the entire history of the US?
So no, Michelle Obama shouldn't waste her time with racists.
She should concentrate exclusively on getting more people of color to vote in their interests.
White racists are not going to do anything to help people of color.
11
Just brilliant Mr Blow. As always.
3
Charles Blow hits the nail on the head once more.
3
Those in power do not give it up nor share it by request. And the principle method to justify keeping power beyond greed and superiority is the use of prescriptive stereotypes. They differ from generic stereotypes by not only prescribing superiority but also by blinding whites into believing they ARE superior.
The only way this is broken down is for interdependent people whose lives depend on mutual respect valuing and life or death situations ie the military integrated allows for actual dropping of prescriptive stereotypes and the equality and respect of all.
For our country today racism and white nationalism are the response to the country becoming mixed rave and color ie no long white dominant.
This is Getting worse not better. We may lose our democracy. The Republican Party is turning into an authoritarian dictatorship with the goal of white rule like South Africa was.
Can we overcome this? It remains to be seen.
4
As Obama volunteers in 2008, my wife and I had the opportunity to meet Michelle Obama in a meeting with other volunteers. While she is very impressive on TV, I cannot convey to you how impressive she is in person: eloquent, compassionate, incredible memory for volunteers' names etc. She is truly a super woman, and stands head and shoulders(literally--she, like Barack, is very tall) ---above the ignorant, pathetic, white racists whose main satisfaction in life is feeling superior to someone else.
510
@george
Some people are enlightened and can see what is before them with clarity that escapes most others. People perceive with their minds and senses both, and those who have learned to understand more, perceive more.
8
@george
I bet she's even more beautiful in person, too!
7
So we now hear from @JePense, of Atlanta, GA.
3
Articles such as this fuel racism charges where racism does not exist. There were many blacks who voted for President Trump and will again in 2020. Blacks under President Trump have done better in the job market and in their economic lives then ever before. I do not see any racism in our president or the Republican Party. But if you look, it is within the Democratic Party. They want to hold blacks back by offering them entitlement programs rather than letting them reach their maximum potential. They are holding blacks back not the Republican Party.
6
@KMW One of the insidious ways racism continues is that so many refuse to see it. I hear it every day. And for you to refuse to see that the GOP has institutionalized racism as a campaign strategy since Richard Nixon proves the point. Yes, Democrats can be racist but they have not weaponized it to the fine art of the GOP and trumpists.
10
@KMW Last time I checked, it was the Democratic party fighting to uphold the Voting Rights Act and curtail gerrymandering, two hallmarks of suppressing the black vote.
13
That’s like saying men would be holding women back if they “gave” women equal pay with men instead of us being “free” to attain equal pay all by our pretty little womanish selves. Give us equal pay now and adjust sexist attitudes later. The same for racial equality. Society can’t afford to wait for racists to figure it out on their own.
3
Racism and hatred are learned behaviors. No one is born a racist or hating another person.
There's no doubt Michelle Obama is brilliant and one of the finest humans on the planet. When she speaks, it's with an earnestness and intelligence that defies our concept of an African American. She's a stand out.
We need to properly educate our youth. We need to expose all children to other cultures, viewpoints, lifestyles and show them the value of all people.
I think Michelle Obama is the right person to lead us in our quest for total acceptance of all people, regardless of skin color, disability, sexual orientation, or country of origin.
2
This article is brilliant, but is flawed from arguing from the basis of absolutes. Perhaps Michelle Obama is making her argument to the broad mass of Americans who strive to put racism behind.
5
Charles, I agree with you completely. Michelle Obama doesn't need to prove anything. Trying to convince white supremacists and racists of anything beyond their stubborn beliefs and bizarre conspiracy theories is a waste of time. I only wish I -- a white middle-age woman -- wrote that editorial.
1
Racism is incredibly superficial. You can't change any mind if they are not open to know who you are when they are fixated on your race.
Michelle Obama needs to continue to be her brilliant, elegant self. Her dignity and grace is boundless.
2
Thanks, Mr. Blow, for this insightful column.
2
Wow, I usually love reading Charles Blow, even when I don't necessarily agree with him. And I don't agree with his premise here, which seems to be that racists are irredeemable. Many, maybe even most are, but some are not.
My impression is not that Michelle Obama is bending over backward to make herself somehow appealing to white people or white racists specifically. My take is that she is simply saying that simply putting herself out there as she is will chip away at some white prejudices of some white people.
I believe studies have shown that simple exposure to those different than ourselves on a regular basis does more than anything else to blunt bigotry. She just wants bigots to be exposed to her and other people of color.
14
Everything Blow wrote is true. There is an inordinate amount of White racism towards Blacks. But, racism is a multi-path phenomenon. There is also similar racism of Blacks towards Whites, Hispanics towards Blacks and Whites, Blacks towards Hispanics. You can also throw Asians and other cultures into the mix. Ending racism is not just ending Whites against Blacks. Any solution much cast a much broader brush. And that solution must include some form of education. And who better to educate than Michelle Obama. Blow says she's too brilliant to waster her time convincing racists of black people's worth. I'm sure Martin Luther King would not have heeded that advice.
3
"convincing racists of black people’s worth." is a waste of time no matter how you spin it. That's like convincing Socialists that regulating capitalism is bad for the economy.
Is regulating capitalism bad for the economy? If so, you should do something about eliminating the big farming subsidies you have got over there
So, Mr. Blow, because of the prejudice of some, white people are “cavemen”?
4
@Ross Stuart
Why should cavemen be racist? Many scientists think they had dark skin, even in Europe.
Well said. The Obamas represent everything so called racist and non racist whites said they wished African Americans were. Good Father and Mother, with two well behaved daughters, The REAL Cosby show, Ozzie and Harriet, Leave to Beaver, etc. Yet, their skin color negated their personal and professional accomplishments. I live this everyday in the profession white collar environment.
2
As a management consultant, I once picked up a client whose top marketer was an avowed racist, someone who used the “N” word freely and frequently. To my everlasting shame, I didn’t call him on it, nor did I resign the account. As Mr. Blow suggests, it wasn’t for my Black colleagues to somehow prove their worth to this moron. Rather, it was for me - a white man - to call him out and make him uncomfortable in his own skin.
8
Our past history morphs into new forms today.
The Old South picked parts of the Christian Bible to justify owning people as slaves and depriving them of all human rights that civilization had managed to attain for whites.
They ignored Thou Shall Not Kill---and religious, law abiding white citizens attended public lynchings of blacks by whites. Any murder of blacks by whites went unpunished by sheriff’s, mayors, governors and lawmakers, into our lifetimes.
This is part of our awful heritage that contradicts our professed ideals. Today we see regular news reports of police beating, shooting and killing black people, with the excuses all ready.
Our vast incarceration system is notorious for being racially biased.
See---There's No Scientific Basis for Race—It's a Made-Up Label
https://www.nationalgeographic.com ›
NYT--- Do Races Differ? Not Really, DNA Shows.
We’ve seen, the way to keep racism going is to:
Keep economic inequality going.
Keep Americans financially insecure.
Send US jobs out to low wage countries, or let tech replace them with little retraining for new jobs.
Keep pay low, while CEO pay soars.
Keep millions without health care.
This serves to fan the flames of resentments, setting groups in competition for scarce resources. Politicians use this.
Then we get an authoritarian, racist leader, who exploits these trends to win power.
This, after our 1st black president in history.
3
@Meredith
Obama is just as much white, as he is black.
2
Charles, then of your "woke" article is so sexist. I think you meant to say
"Why should cavepersons be allowed to occupy space in the mind of a super person?"
Surely you know some women are racists. Also, why do you single out Michelle Obama for being a "smart woman"? Would you find her intelligence unremarkable if she were a man?
1
Awesome, article Mr. Blow, as usual.
2
Mr. Blow - what a sad state of affairs! but true... "She’s too brilliant to waste her time convincing racists of black people’s worth."
1
In a just world, the racists would aspire to be more like Michelle Obama instead of Michelle Obama aspiring to earn their respect and admiration.
4
Michelle is a smart lady but reality would be a great aspect to bring her popularity into focus. She's is getting this attention- not because she super anything- it's because she's black. Everyone, even Blow, gets this. She's the ex Mrs President of the USA and she's a smart cookie but there are headlines for only one reason.
Many of the readers commenting want the same thing (of course) and that's for white people who are just inherently bad; to go away. Die off, fade away, relinquish political power, and the very popular "pay reparations to blacks". We know for certain that Blow wants this. And so this type of reverse discrimination is tolerated and OK due to political correctness. Lets see now hmmm we should fix or repair discrimination by applying more of it! Yes that's the ticket!!
Reparations is of course, to any rational minded individual regardless of race, a bad idea. No one knows anything about who what how or when to do a reparations - but if it means "free stuff" lets just do it. For an example lets just say a one-time payment, and then nothing more owed...That is the only kind of reparations that could possibly be politically viable. It would also be utterly toxic, ultimately widening the racial divisions that we're trying to shrink.
Blow is a political commentary and of course he thinks Michelle walks on water - why would he not?
4
@DED
You have a problem with reparations but I’m sure you have no problem with farmers getting subsidies, which, by they way, they have been getting since the early 1930s.
Charles Blow is to commentary what Ruth Bader Ginsburg -- aka RBG -- is to law: complete mediocrities taken in by undeserved praise. Take this sentence, for example: "America downgraded erudition to indecency." It's a nothing sentence.
And last I saw Michelle, she was giving war criminal George W Bush the sweetest of hugs --
2
In every conversation I've had with a leopard about the spots, they always say, "What spots?"
1
There a huge push politically for ‘progressives’ to try to understand the ‘R base voters’ out of empathy. I agree, enough is enough. Frankly I’d guess most D voters are likely moderates, and I don’t see any Rs being asked to even tolerate us. Quite the opposite is coming out of the WH.
2
This narrative is getting old. Just because someone can point out a difference in race such as skin color, culture, food and music does not make this person a racist. People are different (yes equal) but different. Just like men and women are equal but different. The people that immediately jump to pull out a racist card are usually the ones living in fear and ignorance. I know that racism was rampant just 40-50 years ago but with each generation it keeps getting better. The more we do as a society to keep this issue front and center (mainly for political reasons) will keep the nation divided and keep if from healing from past wounds. Jussie Smollett comes to mind just now!
5
@RS
Jussie Smollett comes to your mind. Dylann Roof comes to mine.
Michelle Obama is saying something profound here, but unfortunately you're talking across her.
If you watch the video you see Obama isn't for one moment saying that it's the job of blacks to end white racism. Instead she's saying how she personally chooses to deal with the ignorance which underlies some, but certainly not all, bigotry.
At no time does Michelle Obama say, or even indicate, that she thinks she can get through to white supremacists, or that she thinks she should try to reform them. Rather, Obama has decided to meet ignorance with a startling sense of openness, and yes understanding. This is something which few in public or private life would even try to do, especially in these horrible times when a racist is president. I can’t say I’d have the courage to do it.
I for one am grateful for Michelle Obama. Despite having suffered greatly from discrimination and racism, Michelle Obama knowingly chooses to take the most idealistic path and seek redemption for others and society. It is a selfless act. It certainly isn't Obama’s job to do this, and she knows it, yet she still chooses to do it.
The only alternative is cynicism.
7
Yes, but what can white people do to address the racial problem in ourselves? Yes, I have read and have thought about this issue for well over 40 years. Yes I smile and nod at the very rare person of color in rural Maine more so than at white people. But this is woefully inadequate. Mr. Blow, point out a baby-step by baby-step manual of actions whites can do to begin to not just understand, but to do something. Without this guide many well intentioned whites are just floundering around poking at the issue. Give us a long, detailed idiot-proof list and some of us will get started. Nice column and keep up the good work.
Just read Ibram Kendi's How to Be an Antiracist. Then take action, in your own way. Please just start and don't give up. I good with whatever path Michelle Obama takes, thank you.
1
Nothing but applause to you sir, brilliant, always.Nothing but applause to you sir, brilliant, always.
1
Racists are not created by Fox news. It has been embedded deep in the hearts and souls of much of White America by parents, family, Sunday school teachers, pastors, scout leaders, teachers and politicians. Children are not born racists- they learn to become racists. Right wing politicians use racism to win elections and for personal gain.
I am astonished at the racist comments I hear, even in one of the nation's most liberal States. Light skinned Blacks are more intelligent than dark skinned Blacks. Black bodies are better equipped to deal with concussions. There are mote Blacks in prison because Blacks are more likely to become criminals, not because of social factors, but because of inherent characteristics.
Michelle Obama should speak out against racism, America's greatest evil, not ignore its existence. Every person, Black or White, has a moral obligation to decry racial bias. Attitudes will never change absent repeated harangues against the stupidity and evil of racism. Michelle Obama is a remarkable individual, regardless of her race. I would find her far less remarkable if she failed to speak out against prejudice.
1
@Disillusioned
Well tryout being a white person who knows that white racists are delusional and unjust and then being presumed to be a racist by a huge proportion of black citizens who have been raised to mistrust all white people.
Michelle O's comments referred to in this article show the depth of her compassion. She is driven to help people, even those who are filled with hate. Some of us may wonder if it's worth it. But she epitomizes " Black is Beautiful" and "Black Power". She is not compromised by hope.
This is basically a rant. It's a pretty good rant, though. Thanks Charles.
1
US suburbia seems to love the Obama clan, but they seem to have become 1% ers. Not sure why all the adulations?
3
If it's any comfort, if you ran history in reverse, you'd get the same effect (black bigotry against their former white slaves). The word "slav" means slave because Turks and the like enslaved them. By the same token, "black" people in Africa sold others to European slave traders (and anyone else).
The election and Presidency of Obama was not going to erase all of this. But it did move things -- how much remains to be seen. One thing he did (surprisingly to me) is "lance the boil." The backlash is amazing, but that's all it is.
1
@MKR
Slavs call themselves Slovian(s), because they understand each other words (slovo). Nothing to do with slavery, although you are right about Turks enslaving Slavs and other captives.
Maybe the truth is that you cannot find a solution in celebrity worship. You can cover the newspapers and magazines with celebrations of the Black elite who have "earned" their place tenfold in our "meritocratic" society, but what will that mean to folks who feel isolated and estranged from the elite.
Racism afflicts all colors.
Mr. Blow, Thank you for sharing and teaching me.
I've always thought the best revenge against racism, toward African Americans or even Native Americans, is a good education. Michelle Obama, Craig Robinson and Charles Blow are right there.
1
Michelle Obama can reach out to racists and still have more than enough talent and compassion to accomplish what most of us can only hope to imagine.
1
Did you say brilliant?
Isn't that related to being Barack's wife and a former so-called "first lady" (a term we ought to get rid of—even before a Buttigieg).
1
@srwdm
Even before a Warren or a Buttigieg. [And a Jane O'Meara would certainly be no conventional "first lady" and in fact would probably disdain the traditional term.]
1
Michelle sometimes spouts the “word salad” that Joe Biden is well known.
Racism in America is largely a generational thing. Most white Boomers support Trump’s grotesque racism. That’s just a shameful, undeniable fact about them. But the vast majority of Millennial whites don’t suffer from this affliction. They’ve grown up enmeshed in hip-hop with a black president, and they take the capacity of blacks to be just as smart as, and much cooler than, whites for granted. Besides, in the Atlantas of the world, across America, and on TV, white Millennials see the talented tenth of blacks going to the top in every prifession there is. Millennials know there’s no glass ceiling for smart blacks in any enlightened city in America, any more than there has been for Charles Blow. Trump and his fellow white Boomer racists are not long for this world. And ut’s a good thing, too.
@Fred White "most White boomers do ... X". What an incredibly ironic statement commenting in a piece on racism.
1
Mr. Blow:
You assume that 'convincing racists' is full time. It isn't. Doing what you would otherwise do with grace, humanity, respect and sympathy is what Ms. Obama means, and, with respect to you, she's smarter on this than you are. You should follow her lead.
Your preferred approach is in the direction from hers towards punching racists in the face and calling them names. That won't work. Especially as black Americans have expanded the term 'racist' beyond its traditional meaning, most white 'racists' in this country aren't vile Nazis, contrary to what you may think. They aren't white supremacists, nor are they apartheid Afrikaners. They are people with some serious misconceptions, including fears for themselves and their children. Helping them parse what is illusory, what is simply wrong, and what is true but acceptable, is our job. They are our fellow citizens; we owe our country at least that much.
Mayor de Blasio got the most applause when he said that most Trump voters aren't our (progressives) enemies. Gandhi, Lincoln and MLK, some of the most effective change creators in history, would agree. You should, too.
At this point, some angry person too often proclaims they are not "going to coddle white people." "Coddling" is one of these prejudicial words; presumably you also won't "pamper", "simper" or anything similar. Persuading is never coddling, and it is persuasion that we desperately need.
3
There is nothing any "other" can do to please a bigot. Whether they try or not, many minorities already behave more honarably than their oppressors. It is the bigots who should raise their behavioral bar.
But they never will. They'd destroy themselves and their country before they'd do any such thing.
1
I totally agree Charles. But as an aside, how about Michelle Obama fir President?
Blow continues to live in the past and constantly reminds his followers of past racist grievances. He fails to see that the future belongs to our new generation...where the young, K-12 children are oblivious to “color,” where they see as norm, the ever increasing “inter-racial” marriages in their own families and those of their friends. Hopefully, when they graduate from high school, there will be no reason for hate groups like BLM, Antifa, or any white supremest groups.
2
Michelle Obama (whom I admire) and Charles Blow (not so much) should get out of the business of reading white people's minds and focus on fighting real, proven (not perceived) discrimination, and helping black people succeed.
2
So you admit there is “real, proven discrimination”. That real discrimination starts in peoples minds.
I thought you were going to say that your wish for Michelle Obama was to run for president. That would be mine although I’m afraid she is too smart to do it.
I have no place to speak on the subject but as an observation, it seems like the best cure for racism is to amass power. Get rich, start companies, gain seats on the supreme court, put presidents in the white house.
You cant prove anything to a racist. You can only intimidate them into silence.
To dismiss that white people are afraid of black people won’t help solve anything. Many whites have no personal interaction with people of color. If you ask them to describe their impressions of black men it will be a guy dressed and acting as a “gangsta” not someone in a suit. How you present yourself to the world determines how the world sees you. If the way you dress and act gives credence to prejudices, it helps no one.
2
Brilliant!
1
Avoid the (very understandable) temptation to elevate anyone - your favorite sports figure, the Dalai Lama, the local fire department chief, Michelle Obama - to godlike status. It never works out.
4
Right on brother.
3
Nailed it...
2
Do you own any mirrors?
1
I always enjoy and respect your articles, Mr. Blow; I sincerely thank you for them.
But I have one important criticism to offer. Note that I did NOT put a comma after that opening word. But you, Mr. Blow, do that regularly.
And, it's a no-no. See that comma? Wrong! Unnecessary! It makes a retired medical editor and English professor's blood boil. Got that? Now write some more great editorials!
You’re right, Mr. Blow. It’s not the job of black people to alter how white people feel about them. Mrs. Obama should know better. I dialed back my unvarnished admiration of her a while ago after I witnessed how dependent she is on white approval.
3
I cannot believe Blow has the hubris to give condescending lectures to Michelle Obama, the first lady whose children were actually endangered by Trump's racist birther campaign! Give me a break.
I still have the column Charles Blow wrote immediately following the election up on my tackboard but sadly, Blow has allowed Trump to dominate his every waking moment since that fateful November day, to the point where Blow is now completely consumed by the rage he feels for Trump.
1
Completely agree that the brilliant Michelle Obama shouldn't try to appease or please the racists, and the description "cave men" is a right. This is my attitude towards the "woke" also, who label all white people (actually all people) who disagree with them "racists". Unfortunately, Charles Blow seems to gravitate towards the "woke" sometimes.
1
Mr. Blow, Michelle Obama's brilliance, erudition and personal bearing are what racists hated about her, perhaps as much as her color. She and her husband were aberrations of who black people were and how they were supposed to be and act.
For all of their decency, class and goodwill for all Americans, the Obamas were and are still reviled by an entire major political party and a huge swath of the country that delights in demeaning and demonizing them. There's just no cure for that kind of sickness.
Great article Mr. Blow. I learned from it. Thank you.
It would be great to occasionally see a Charles Blow column that condemned the anti-Asian and anti-Jewish attitudes, violence, and rhetoric that flows from some of the most prominent black political and civil leaders in this country. I have ceased thinking Mr. Blow cares about racism since instances where prominent black leaders are on the giving end is ignored or phrased in a "there are good people on both sides" way.
3
Indeed. The picture of black people that too many white people have in their heads is what killed Botham Jean and Tamir Rice and too many other innocent black people. It's doubtful that anything black people do can change that.
1
Oh, give it a rest already. Polls have shown that 50% of primary voters would vote for Michelle for president. Barry was twice voted president.
Enough already with the racism, unless, of course, it is all you've got to go on.
2
Sounds as though Ms. Obama runs in the same circles as those who are the most "privileged" on earth. I wonder if she is ashamed of her apparent "privilege", a word so often used by the author when whites go to the same Ivy-League schools, reside in the White House, not to mention the 65-MILLION dollars her and Mr. Obama were paid for the advance on their books. And how exactly did her and President Obama make it to the White House when, in these pages, we are constantly told that blacks basically have little hope/opportunity etc? Hmm I'm missing something--I'm a white male and by any of the normal society measures, i.e. wealth, power etc, the Obama's are in a completely different/higher universe than my so called privileged self! Just maybe they got their by education, hard work, intelligence etc? Because that is how most people of ANY race obtain their lofty positions in life! Contrary to the left's propaganda, almost all whites who are very successful are that way because of the exact same reasons the Obama's are so successful--privilege aside! "She is an attorney with degrees from Princeton and Harvard. She is the former first lady of the United States, and the first African-American one. She just came off a gangbusters book tour for her memoir, “Becoming,” which was Amazon’s longest No. 1 title since “Fifty Shades of Grey.” And, according to polls, she is the most admired woman in the world." Most admired--where is all the racism??
5
The world is full of brilliant people with good education whose time is spent furthering career goals.
Michelle Obama is more than simply a brilliant person, she is one of the most beloved and identifiable people in the world.
And she was First Lady to our first black president. Since Richard Nixon, Republicans leave the White House to private lives of infamy and attempted hagiography. Since Jimmy Carter, Democrats leave the White House to be super men and super women who continue vibrant lives devoted to public service here and around the world.
To be a Republican is to toe the party line even when that line is hooked to the great white whale of Donald Trump, smashing the ship of state to smithereens.
But to be a Democrat is to stand for something greater than party, humanity. It's to be their best selves engaged in efforts to bring people together to fix what's broken, heal what's sick and keep vivid hope that would otherwise fade.
I reject a black man counseling this black woman to abandon her efforts to elevate our experience of our first black First Lady, that she should forget about being a role model of dignity and class, passion and engagement, f intellect and heart.
It must not go without saying I find abhorrent all who counsel "let Trump be Trump," spewing lies and nonsense, retweeting Klansmen and equating Nazis to those standing against them.
We must all believe we are engaged in healing our nation, or we will all be complicit in its agonizing death.
1
I understand it Mr. Blow - both Obamas speak truth to POC and the apologists really... really... hate it. They have done it for years now and the blowback has been quick and unfair.
Rather than cherry-picking one line, it is useful to parse her actual entire' conversation.
“I want to remind white folks that y’all were running from us. And you’re still running,”
She talks about what is ACTUALLY happening on the ground in Chicago - especially the South side.
Barrack spoke on Tuesday and I hope he is as nuanced and thoughtful as his wife was - like he was explaining 'real life' to the young outrage-twitter-activists.
They both engage with Mr. Blow's 'racists' because they know that is a false label in most cases used to silence and vilify many folks who simply don't understand what they are seeing and actually experiencing every day in Chicago.
“I can’t explain what’s happening in your head, but maybe if I show up every day as a human, a good human … maybe, just maybe, that work will pick away at the scabs of your discrimination.”
Is this any less than what MLK did. Bravo Michelle for staying in the fight.....
‘Y’all were running from us’... says the lady who now lives in a gated community far from South Chicago. Her rebukes would ring with any level of truth if she still lived amongst that community.
4
"From the time Europeans started stealing people from Africa"
Just for the sake of accuracy, perhaps one should remember that other blacks and (non-white) Arabs were often involved in that slave trade, which was not an exclusively white, European affair.
“I (= Michelle Obama) can’t explain what’s happening in your head, but maybe if I show up every day as a human, a good human … maybe, just maybe, that work will pick away at the scabs of your discrimination.”
Mr. Blow has a very low threshold for his definition of "racism". With no disrespect for what Mr. Blow describes, I think that her approach and attempts are far more positive and helpful at chipping away at the manifestations of racism or discrimination than Mr. Blow's attitude.
This approach of course can be somewhat depressing as the results are not immediately apparent. It is like watching a tree grow. You can't see growth but it happens.
2
Mr. Blow who gave you permission to publicly chastise Mrs Obama? While I understand the point you are making, why was it necessary to make it at her expense? To lord your male superiority over her? She is the very best version of herself. She lives with grace and honor. She has my respect and she deserves yours. Shame on YOU.
She's a beautiful bridge for those who don't even know they are bigots--and there are many, many of them out there. My two best friends of decades belong to that group-sigh. I had a copy of her book Becoming on my end table, my friends saw it, actually complimented her, saying, "she's a very smart lady." It's it's a ridiculously small gesture, but it is a nod to her power to influence. It matters, it counts, it helps.
1
Michelle Obama is an exemplary roll model for all women. Brilliant women are, however, sadly still a threat to many men, of whatever race. Nevertheless, all that is needed for brilliance to flourish is education. equal opportunity and effort, and that goes for all races and all genders. Enlightened nations foster this in their citizenry, knowing it is to their long term advantage to do this. But in many places, the old white men of privilege at the pinnacles of power are ruthlessly clinging on to that power with a death grip, regardless of their innate intelligence or aptitudes to wield such power. Witness Trump and the Republicans as a symbol of America's decline. Attrition will help though. If we all use our collective intelligence we can make this a better country in the future.
1
Charles, thank you for this article. As a fellow HBCU graduate, I share your perspective of not "wasting time" to fix the flaws of oppressors. The problem is that the majority of BLACK people do not share this point of view as their undergraduate educational institutions teach them to support assimilation (i.e. soft genocide of the minority), thus fostering a mindset that creates a "need" to be accepted by their historical oppressors, and ultimately remain happy to forever remain a minorty without any control of the major institutions of power in this country.
The only solution is for Blacks to either 1) leave America altogether or 2) concentrate themselves in 1-3 states where they would be the majority of the population and control the political, religious, economic, and educational advancement of such states for the benefit of our own kind. Sadly, this will ultimately require a violent solution -- true power is never freely given.
1
There is tremendous value in persisting.
It is a shame when the most talented among us feel compelled to take up a strategy that depends more on effort than brilliance, but part of brilliance is recognizing when a specific strategy is the best among several unpleasant choices.
Many crimes, racism included, are only sustained by decent people's fatigue with confronting them.
I'm not sure the example of Lincoln supports Mr. Blow's point, as most historians agree that Lincoln's views on the question of race changed dramatically over the course of the Civil War.
Until I read Dr Joy de Gruys book Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome I had no idea how inured I am in white supremacy. My discovery of the historic pseudoscience that allowed white people to cope with the extreme cognitive dissonance around people being treated differently because of their race was both revelatory and dismaying. All the micro and not so micro aggressions, strange assumptions and downright prejudices I have endured came into context. Recently I watched an interview with Lupita Nyongo and Oprah Winfrey where Ms Nyongo recalled a makeup artist who said "Your skin is so tough it can take anything you do to it" and intended it as a compliment. Unfortunately this view of the black body being physiologically somehow tougher than the white body just because of the darkness of the skin, has been passed down through many generations. The "black skin is tougher" lie is rooted in the work of people like Linnaeus who in addition to creating our system of taxonomy also codified in his "Systema Naturae" a race classification system that assigned moral and intellectual capacities to each race. His opinions were presented as fact and used by others such as Blumenbach to separate races based on skin color, facial characteristics and skull shape. Their specious claims were the basis of the 18th century assumptions that led to the 3/5 rules and treatment of black people as less human than white people and systems like apartheid. Awareness of our history can help in the present.
1
The problem with racism is that people are often raised with it and they don't even know why they believe it. I grew up in the south in the 1960's/70's when desegregation was at it's height. I was taught not to see blacks as different, while at the same time being told they were separate. As a child this didn't make any sense to me. As a teenager, it started to break down, but only after several times not recognizing it in high school , when two young women had been attracted to me and I did not return their interest, not because I wasn't interested, but because I thought it wasn't allowed. Bowing to social pressure without even knowing it was happening.
As parents, as developing human beings, we have to peel off and shed those layers of what society has put on us without us seeing it happening to us. Children don't see race, and they see each other as just other children each uniquely different but the same. I think Michelle should just say that. Her husband was raised as a child in a loving family, that overcame their earlier views. The Obamas just need to help people see this by being who they are, without trying to convince anyone. They are good, decent human beings, if you can't see that, then you're just blind.
Mr Blow: I like your adjectival noun choice at the end, ie the 'cave' before men, which is exactly how some of our 'countrymen' and 'countrywomen' behave, unfortunately.
2
I am a fan of Mr. Blow's columns and look forward to reading his work but as a racially mixed person who grew up and lives in Manhattan with a myriad of friends and colleagues of different backgrounds, I respectfully disagree with an issue the column discusses. We must continue the dialogue of confronting racism where you see it. No dialogue at all means people will be able to reinforce the anti-social nature of racism. Booker T Washington was correct in his thinking. In fact, I would argue, he was ahead of time with his thinking. It distresses me that you would somehow find fault in someone who wanted to challenge racist behavior. I have and will continue to do so. I applaud Ms. Obama's work because if America is going to move forward, all people who persist with repugnant thinking must be challenged so we can truly have a more perfect union....
4
You’re right Mr. Blow.
Thank you
5
It can be hard not to spend even a second of your time considering the mind-set of a racist when the racist is in charge of something you need.
And there are a whole lot of racists.
4
This may true for the most virulent of racists. But for the silent majority, Ms. Obama is wise to keep showing her face and, by default, her goodness. Holocaust scholarship by the late Zygmunt Bauman looks at how the German public--who at first opposed anti-Jewish violence, and who were repulsed at kristallnacht--were able to be distracted, and therefore lulled, once Jews were removed from public and commercial activity, and thus separated from the "moral universe" of people whose treatment we think and care about. Michelle Obama's goal of continually reasserting her inclusion, and by extension the black community's inclusion, in who the American public considers when it considers the morality of its own and its government's actions is therefore far from misguided but instead essential. I do not believe her goal is a misguided attempt to persuade neo-Nazis but a wise effort to ensure her people and their oppression is not forgotten.
291
@Fluffy Dog Lover I have to disagree. Throughout American history, black men and women have repeatedly had to convince many whites of their integrity and intelligence.
During the numerous wars fought by this country, beginning with the Revolution, whites tended to regard blacks as unsuitable material for soldiers, cowardly, undisciplined and of low intelligence. In each case, African American men refuted such lies by their courage and sacrifice in battle, but their vindication usually impressed only the generation fighting each war. When conflict broke out again, they had to prove themselves all over again, in ways not demanded of whites.
Neither Mrs. Obama nor any other black American has the obligation to repeat a lesson ceaselessly for people to stubborn to learn.
12
@James Lee I think he's simply saying how valid he finds her thinking about expanding the moral universe, and that this is indeed a thing one can do, and do well (assuming this is something like what she may think). It's unfair, it often doesn't work (your examples are good ones) and it's definitely not an obligation. Still.
12
Charles I'll be eagerly awaiting your future column on racial inequality and bias in the realm of US athletic endeavors, and how this culture of permissiveness of violence & intolerance and utter lack of diversity has created an environment where players feel emboldened and empowered to racially impugn and threaten to shoot (literally) members of the media and fans, as was the case for a player on the Cleveland Browns after Sunday's game.
As you seem to be laser-focused on all pockets of society where racism and lack of diversity create problems, I know that you will someday turn your attention away from White Privilege long enough to pen some thoughts on how US sports, at ALL levels, high school thorough professional ranks, could benefit from a more diverse, inclusive environment.
4
There many mean spirited and hateful people who only seem happy when else is hurt by their doing. (Just look how the Republicans say on one hand LGBTQ people have the same rights as everyone else, but then on the other have been working hard to take their rights away in courts and legislation.) It is not a prerequisite for being a Republican, but it is the party that attracts mean and hurtful people as evidenced at rallies and twitter. Since facts are meaningless to them it does no good to explain or demonstrate your or anyone else's worth. It simply legitimatizes them as the arbiters of society where you are asking their permission to be.
3
“Why should cave men be allowed to occupy space in the mind of a super woman?”
Trump is a pathological liar and racist. His electoral victory was aided and abetted by his appeals to racism, sexism and xenophobia. He is the cave man in the Oval Office whose singular focus is to degrade, insult and vilify those who oppose him. He has sunk to the lowest depths of behavior and speech unbefitting a human, no less the leader of the free world.
Michelle Obama was called “an ape in heels” by a West Virginia official. There was a cartoon-like magazine cover of her with a huge Afro and a machine gun. Trump insisted her husband was not a US citizen.
In her speech at a university in Mississippi, she advised the graduates to respond to racism in this way: take a deep breath and refrain from lashing out at the offender. Think about how Trump responds to even subtle slights. She also told the graduates to lift their heads high and said of herself, “ when they go low, I go high.”
Mrs. Obama does not need to modify her behavior for the white cave man or woman. They are unworthy of her and the cave man in the Oval Office is the exemplar of the ugliness of racism and uncivil discourse. When I hear the daily cringe-worthy Trumpism, I remember the grace and dignity of the Obama’s.
My hope for all of us is that as the country becomes more diverse, the voices of the cave man will be silenced and isolated. Racism is a disease and diversity is part of the cure.
3
@Patricia Caiozzo now your dabbling in your own hypocrisy. Calling Trump a cave man seems to be making fun of indigenous people (like making fun of the native Americans).. See, where does it stop.
1
I think you misunderstand Michelle Obama. She wishes to live her life as an exemplar because we should all wish to live our lives as an exemplar, not to hold oneself up for the judgement of others, but to meeting the criteria of self-criticism, and/or the judgement of God, depending on what you believe [Believing in a higher power is a good way to pursue self-discipline, which is partly why religion is both useful and retains its popularity]. White racists will not change their minds; few people over the age of 14 change their minds. Racists will be with us until they die, but they will die. Whether change happens depends on their children. Will their children see black people who are proud, who do not feel the need to emphasize their black identity, who work and love and give to their communities, who find the hatred of racists to be beneath their notice? That child might learn to be less of a racist. Michelle Obama wants to be a good person, a person who does great things. The child of a racist who grows up in a world where there are black and white good people who interact to do great things might aspire to greater than the roiling pit of despair and hatred which is all their racist parent can offer. Michelle Obama isn't offering herself to be judged as a black exemplar. She is aspiring to be a human exemplar, as judged by her and those she respects; good for her.
3
Wow, you nailed it Charles. Thank you. Happy Monday!
3
"...Anti-black racism and white supremacy are not predicated on black people’s behavior."
"Their racism had nothing to do with black people’s behavior."
Yes! This concept needs to get out more. Racism has nothing to do with black people. It has to do with the racists' own issues. Racists need therapy. Not to look at others differently but to look at themselves and their lives differently. They are deeply troubled people and they need to heal. This is why we have not come further with certain groups of racists. When their interior violence persists and gets passed on to their children without ever looking within, they will not change. Racism is anger at self directed at others to avoid the work of fixing self.
3
Brilliant paean to Michelle Robinson Obama and the pathology of racism in America, Charles Blow. Thank you for your explanation of how America has come to such a terribly racist pass with our 45th president not gainsaying white American supremacists, harbingers of our shrinking white population, brandishing Confederate battle flags from 1862.
The weeping unhealed ulceration of slavery and racial divide since the 1600s is now the cancer killing our democracy. We Americans who believe in Democracy miss the presence of our First Lady Michelle Obama (a Chicagoan born and bred) and her husband, President Barack Hussein Obama in the White House. Your wish for Michelle Obama, perhaps the most brilliant and admired American woman of our time, is simply sublime. May she never stoop to wonder how she is being perceived by white nationalists. She is our North Star today.
1
As much as I agree with him, I"m glad his is not the loudest voice. I'd rather hear FL Obama and see her inspiration.
Sweet.
Michelle Obama 2020.
1
Michelle and Barak Obama are REAL people. That is enough for me.
1
Thank you.
1
Brilliant paean to Michelle Robinson Obama and the pathology of racism in America, Charles Blow. Thank you for your explanation of how America has come to such a terribly racist pass with our 45th president not gainsaying white American supremacists, harbingers of our shrinking white population, brandishing Confederate battle flags from 1862.
The weeping unhealed ulceration of slavery and racial divide since the 1600s is now the cancer killing our democracy. We Americans who believe in Democracy miss the presence of our First Lady Michelle Obama (a Chicagoan born and bred) and her husband, President Barack Hussein Obama in the White House. Your wish for Michelle Obama, perhaps the most brilliant and admired American woman of our time, is simply sublime. May she never stoop to wonder how she is being perceived by white people. She is our North Star today.
2
Michelle needs to run for President
1
This old white dude remains convinced that Michelle O. would be the best (and most humane) POTUS the US ever had.
9
There is no one better to deliver the lessons of racism than Mr. Blow. As he notes, the simple juxtaposition of a family such as the Obamas with the likes of the grifter Trump family, is frankly obscene.
With Barack and Michelle Obama, we saw two people who set the standard of how a President and First Lady ought to conduct themselves. Thoughtful, extremely intelligent, gracious, professional, and kind. We never once questioned that they had the best interests of all Americans at heart.
And yet, just a few short years later, we now have a "president" who is an infantile, racist, narcissistic tyrant just one unhinged tweet away from plunging this nation into a nuclear war. His grifter family members are as profoundly ignorant and arrogant as he is. The entire family is polluting the White House with their sickening displays.
But Mr. Blow must keep writing essays such as this one. There is an extremely good likelihood that Trump will be elected. This means, in the starkest but most realistic terms, that nearly half this nation supports an avowed racist and white nationalist. A majority of whites, both men and women, voted for Trump in 2016, and their support for him remains rock solid, despite his many crimes that ought to lead to his removal from office.
Let me repeat: a majority of white Americans see nothing wrong with the likes of Donald Trump. For those of us who are brown-skinned Americans, it is frankly frightening. But for all of us, it should be sickening.
8
Firsr lady Michelle Obama`s book selling at record number tells one what is to know about Her.
No one, man or woman in America could measure up to Her.
4
@B Sharp
Think about your last statement...it's absurd.
2
@Raz
Okay...at present I meant.
Do you then trump ?
Oh by the way i recommend her Biography, nothing political in the book, a great read. .
1
I wished she would run for President - she would have my vote
3
"Obama’s intentions are honorable, but the approach is problematic."
In a nutshell, this was the problem with the Obama administration.
President Obama should have been much, much harder on the 15 Republicans in Congress who vowed to fight every single thing he did, from their meeting at the Caucus Room restaurant in DC the night of his first inauguration.
But he chose a centrist path, and those Republicans took advantage of him and the Democrats.
Michelle's "they go low, we go high" failed miserably.
You can't have a fair fight when the other side refuses to acknowledge the rules. You need to get down in the mud with them and cause some damage. Every dirty trick the GOP used made them look unified and gained them ground politically. And now, look who we have as president.
This is a different fight. She is not being confronted. There is no closed institution with a set of protocols in place.
But if she ever is, she has to fight back by any means necessary.
3
Being intellectually smart or brilliant doesn't mean you know everything. It doesn't even mean you know some things that even an uneducated man or woman knows. Our collective belief that intelligence can free us from every fault or mistake is, itself, a huge mistake. It results, often times, in pushing people who are over-degreed to do things they are incapable of doing, leading in directions on matters about which they know little or nothing. Hey, they're smart, right? They'll catch on.
Like millions of other people, I admire Michelle Obama and the way she handled the pressures of the White House but I would think she is no more qualified to advise on how to achieve greater racial equality than anyone else and, in fact, might be less qualified than many who have lived closer to the problem, closer to the street and earth level.
We have, in fact, 150 years of literature on this subject from Frederick Douglas to W.E.B Dubois to the poet Langston Hughes to playwright Amiri Baraka, not to forget the great James Baldwin. All of these writers and more put racism at the center of the American dilemma and wrestled with ways with which it could be dealt and perhaps vanquished.
My central conclusion after years of consideration, reading and social interaction is this: racism belongs to the racist and it is up to all of the rest of us to heap that burden on him and away from ourselves and daily lives.
4
Like many others, Mr. Blow, I think your understandable (and widely shared) objection to America's longstanding Eurocentrism affected what you heard In Michelle Obama's statement. But she did not seem to me trying to appease or prove a darn thing; in fact, that is inconsistent with her adult thinking. She was simply expressing hope that her own decency and goodness might have an impact on the world. Big spiritual power without a lot of fanfare.
Racism has nothing to do with empirical fact. If it did, it wouldn't exist.
Perhaps because she receives hate mail. Perhaps because she does not want to be an ordinary woman but an extraordinary one for her daughters. Perhaps she wants to use that admiration to the betterment of something. Perhaps she is willing to sacrifice a little of her mental purity and well-being. Because perhaps she is INDEED a superwoman.
2
The most beautiful personification of love we have ever seen in public life was the Obamas dancing together a second inaugural...I too miss their presence in the White House every day...as to racism...please read Henry Louis Gates "Ending the Slavery Blame-Game" NYT, April 22, 2010...Gates, the most admired African-American historian in our country, is very honest about the role African tribal leaders played in selling their own people into slavery...stop blaming...be loving....by her very presence Michelle Obama represents those values.
Bravo!!!
Bravo!
"America downgraded erudition to indecency". Thank you Charles Blow for your prose.
3
Ignore racists unless they commit violent acts. In that case arrest them and lock them up.
2
I agree. It’s not the job of ANY black person to sway racists away from their hatred. You can’t be responsible for others who live in fear and ignorance.
2
Interesting that Mr. Blow writes that "no black person" should "spend a second of their time considering the mind set of a racist" - and then in the same column he proceeds to do just that. There are serious racial wounds in this country. God bless Michelle Obama for trying to heal them instead of relentlessly fixating on past wrongs and refusing to move forward.
Another brilliant column by Charles Blow. However, what Michelle Obama does is brilliant. The mere presence of her undeniable natural eloquence and elegance as a human being who happens to be Black is disruptive of racist stereotypes and acts like a missile landing on their soul of white supremacists. Once there, that dent cannot be undented. She doesn't have to do anything except show up because people let her in. Will that be enough to change racists? Michelle knows she cannot do that, but her presence can chip away at their armor. I heard her comment that when as a child, her family moved into a white neighborhood, whites moved out. And, she added, whites are still moving out when people like her move into their neighborhoods. Saying that makes white flight scalding.
3
I agree 100% with Mr. Blow. When people tell me that they see me as white, when I am actually a woman of color, I say that is an insult and I walk away.
Aces.
Engaging with today's vile racists isn't just pearls before swine, because these swine unceasingly demand more and better pearls. These swine want to make you dance, walk a tightrope, and extol the virtue under their swinishness.
Erasing racism in America is a vertiginous challenge - in particular for a black person like Michelle, and especially through direct engagement. The brilliant are attracted to difficult things and this? This is Annapurna. Maybe the impossible IS possible for her, but is it worth the cost?
Blow's point, as I take it, is that pre-Civil Rights white culture sure didn't do black people any favors, so why is an especially brilliant and admired black woman's duty-bound to minister to the swine?
My white person's opinion about changing white racists? Make them alone. Leave them out of the conversation. And be assured, it's an AMAZING conversation, all the better for Michelle being in it. American culture IN FULL is a world-historic party! So, get down to it and leave the trolls off the invite. They'll understand they're left out, that the message is "you are boring". In my limited experience, being Paid Attention To is central part to whole White Privilege thing, do don't pay. Certainly Michelle shouldn't.
For my part, I grew up far from black culture (in New Mexico), but you could hear it in the distance and man, did it sound sweet. And even there most of the fun wasn't gringo stuff.
Anti-Black racism has its origins in the Old Testament. As Jan Assman (Mind of Egypt, etc.) has written, after the Jews were expelled from Egypt (No, there was no Exodus) they demonized the Egyptians in many ways, one of which was to describe them as the children of Ham because of their dark skin. This was the first written denigration of Black people and it became an indelible part western culture.
6
I admired Michelle until lately. As this writer is pointing out diatribes against perceived white racism are already wearing thin. The Obamas have made out in a white dominated world and seemed to have embraced it. Yet, they move to white Marthas Vineyard and both daughters have gone or are going to prestige's white schools (Harvard, U of M). Now the hatred. What?
3
In the same way that the president’s approval numbers remain stable among his base, I believe that the white supremist/Deep State/grievance views cheered on by so many of those attending his rallies are too deeply ingrained and reinforced by right wing media like Fox, to ever change in their lifetimes, whoever the president is. My only hope is that through natural attrition, they, and the often aging politicians who pander to them, will give way to younger voters who skew toward tolerance, away from organized religion, and do not treat climate change as a joke. I’m counting on them to vote massively Democratic in 2020 and start moving us back to sanity.
817
@Susan I thoroughly agree with all that you say, but at this point I'm not convinced that the Democratic party has a viable candidate to beat Trump. The consequence of not having this is beyond imagining.
24
@Susan
Most of what you say is true, but it is not through natural attrition that we will change from a basically racist society to one that is equitable. Whites must first and foremost fully recognize the equality of the races, and both races must recognize that only through unity of purpose will equality in all things, at work, school and all social organizations be achieved.
18
@Susan I agree with Charles completely and I get your point: but, holy cow, do we have the time to wait? I thought when Barack Obama was elected, when gay marriage was legalized, we had reached a turning point. Not an end to racism and discrimination, but a significant turning point. And then came Trump. I'm not sure if there is anything we can "do" to change minds, but I'm not sure I can simply "wait" for the next generation, etc. either. Because, there is a next generation of racists also being emboldened by Trump and his followers' blatant bigotry, too.
42
There is always some new aspect of racism to learn everyday. Stuff I never thought of, but is so obvious when pointed out. So many white people want to be insulated from the awful fact of their inborn racism. Whoever says, repeatedly, I am not a racist, is certainly a racist. All I feel I can do is to condemn bad behavior, continue to learn as much as I can, and continue to do what seems to be the best thing, in the interest of my neighbor and my fellow humans.
4
The Obamas are awesome. Wonderful president, incredible First Lady.
But sir,
Behavior does matter. The Black murder rate is what? Five times higher than any other racial group? That's not the fault of white racism.
% of NY students proficient in math 2019
Black – 32.1
Hispanic – 34.6
White – 55.5
Asian – 73.4
http://www.nysed.gov/news/2019/state-education-department-releases-spring-2019-grades-3-8-ela-math-assessment-results
Those numbers look the same in states such as California, which never had slavery, never had Jim Crow. In fact, Asians were frequently lynched, not allowed in public schools, not allowed to own land. And Asian-Americans have the lowest suspension rates in school, lowest crime rates and highest graduation rates from universities.
In the 2015 SAT math scores,
2,200 Blacks scored above 700
52,800 Asian-Americans scored above 700
To pretend that those disturbing facts don't influence people's thinking is not helpful.
12
@Michael H.
To think that the stats you mention are not rooted in and the result of the systemic racism of our society shows either a complete lack of understanding of the problems of racism or is racist itself. Look at any metric of how people of color are treated in this country as opposed to others and you will get an idea as to why outcomes in the black population are not as good as in other groups.
3
@hewy all one need to do to refute this mythology and false narrative that "White 'systemic racism' is responsible for all ills of the African-American in the United States" is review the academic achievement and student metrics of Asian minority groups in the US. It is an inconvenient fact, and highly damaging to this rationalization of poor African-American performance on standardized tests on blaming "The Man". Asian-American immigrants have persisted through many of the same social inequalities as Blacks, and yet they have done very well in the US educational system. It's maybe time for some introspection and hard self-analysis, rather than blaming others, to improve the situation.
2
I could not agree more, Charles.
As a privileged white man, it is my responsibility to call out racism It is my responsibility to acknowledge my privilege. It is my responsibility to "teach" other white people about the insidious and pervasive racism all around us.
People of color in this country do not, should not, carry the burden of "teaching" white folks about racism. They carry burden enough by virtue of white folks' ignorance. We broke it. We fix it.
13
I am a white female who read Michelle Obama's book and passed it on to a young black colleague. I felt so excited to offer her a glimpse of this truly super woman and she seemed equally excited to read the book. However, I agree completely with Mr. Blow's article, because as a white middle-class kid, teenager, college student, mother and teacher, I have never had to worry about what other races might think of me. I have always been able to just be. What a concept! I wish and pray that some day every child from every race will enjoy that same privilege.
2
While I am infuriated that our wonderful First Lady should have to deal with this issue, I feel everyone who understands the evil of racism should deal with it. As a white teenager in NYC I learned early on that race made no difference in who was capable and who was reliable and who was nice. Racism is perpetrated by ignorance and fear. People should not change to fit in but be appreciated for who they are and what they do. I have been working for 60 years to fight racism and I think everyone who hates it should work to eliminate it, including Michele. God bless her and her husband. But they ought to work on other issues too, as they do.
2
Amen, Sir. Go back to your Caves, Racists. You are not fit for civilized society, you will not be missed, and your hatred and spite will be contained in a deep, dark place, where it belongs.
A personal note to the Obama Family : I miss you more each and every Day. And absolutely without embarrassment: I love you all. You will be well regarded in History and Memory.
3
amen!
1
It seems to me, looking from the outside at the Obama public personas, that they have operated from the assumption that there is no significant difference inherent in the color of one’s skin. Thus they have proceeded on the.assumption that they were as worthy as any other person. One might even leap to the conclusion, based on their accomplishments rather than their skin color, that they are in fact more worthy than most.
One could, as an example, contrast that with the current President, who increased his street cred with a particular portion of the population, by illegitimately questioning whether Mr. Obama was born in this country or not. I can’t imagine that the Obamas haven’t lived the reality of negative assumption that white people have made because of the darkness of the Obama’s skin. They know, as does Mr. Blow, that reality.
One of the things that makes them special, though, is that they operate from the assumption that the color of their skin does not matter. Whether this is always true or not is beside the point. They are apostles of the truth that it should not matter.
There is a kind of positive power that the Obamas project simply by living as if the color their skin makes no difference. They have used that power to nudge our society forward. It hasn’t made us color blind yet, but he was elected and then re-elected. There is power in simply assuming that truth is true.
4
When George Bush was president I thought HE was a terrible president but that Laura seemed like a nice woman and a good mom and an admirable person in general.
I noticed that people who hated Obama also seemed to hate Michelle, despite the fact that she was an admirable first lady, gave up her career willingly to be in the white house raising her kids and promoting good nutrition. I mean she did EVERYTHING to be as non controversial as humanly possible.
So give it up dear lovely Michelle. You are a wonder, and the people who hate you will always hate you because you have more melanin in your skin than they do. Be the great speaker and leader of girls and inspiration that you are and let the racists stew in their own evil. You owe them nothing.
6
Dear Mr. Blow,
I humbly thank you for your insight. As a middle-aged, white woman I find myself constantly searching for information that will enlighten me as to the proper way to channel my ignorance into understanding of and respect for the experiences of people of color in this country. I have not read or heard the underlying issue expressed in a way that helped me to understand my participation in the problem, until today. I would like to also point out that, as a woman, I have experienced this personally from a gender perspective and can relate to the subtlety and consistence of the underlying societal suggestion that my behavior is the driver of the marginalization. Thank you again for helping me to understand the issue from another perspective and for sharing your thoughts publicly. I have a lot to think about...
2
Worthless ugly people enjoy racism just as they enjoy being conservative. There is no way to stop oppression by people who feel special or superior. To do so would make them inferior.
1
Mr. Blow, consider what happens to her when she takes the opposite stance— remember how reviled she was for even hinting that our country’s history wasn’t one that she always admired.
And, she’s a woman. Her husband got all kinds of respect for his overall awesomeness (come back, Barack!); she is equally awesome, but people seem to freely put her down for anything she does like a normal person might— the baring of her arms, the fist-bumping of her hubs. As a former high school, I had to hear daily complaints from kids that Michelle Obama ruined their school lunches by making them healthier.
There is no way for her to turn that won’t invite criticism from someone.
3
@Kay Including Mr. Blow apparently.
But Charles, what if Martin Luther King Jr. had done what you're suggesting? He very much did entertain how he was being perceived by racists. And he took action.
Part of what makes Michelle Obama an exceptional person is that she does not rest on her laurels, although she very well could. So while it may sadden her, it's by no means destroying her. She would probably take objection to you characterizing her as a victim. She most certainly is not.
4
Thanks! You nailed it, Mr. Blow! Having lived in various parts of the South and grown up in a southern state, I applaud your explanation of racism. It IS all about power, especially white male supremacist power.
All one needs to do is one question. How has the 'white man' (not to exclude white women) done on this planet? ...not so good: almost unlimited war, destruction of the planet in the name of money/power, overbearing pride and prejudice (i. e. resentment of women, increasing sexual abuse of women and children. It's still a man's world, in every sense of those words. And that's one reason all of this country's people are now aware of the depth of corruption in our government, in our corporations, in our financial institutions.
Michelle Obama need not think of them. They live in a world well below her feet.
1
And I believe she could beat Trump in 2020!
Mr. Blow calls attention to a fascinating point of interest, and as artfully as he has expressed his argument, I cannot help feeling a bit conflicted in my own reaction.
On the one hand, respectability politics is a disappointing self-imposed indignity, ensuring that one's acceptance in society will always be a conditional affair; dangerous ground for people who are naturally loathed in an unconditional way by the majority.
On the other hand, we would probably do well to recognize the extent to which Michelle Obama as we know and love her today is and was shaped by the gaze of the outside world, and unfortunately that includes the white gaze. She was poorly received and cruelly castigated when she first appeared on the scene. Everything she's done since the 2008 convention speech seems to have been about counteracting those unfair first impressions.
Because of the basic stimulus-response behaviors in all of us, we should not be surprised to see her calibrating remarks based on a sense of what will and won't fly with the public, which again for better or worse includes the white gaze. Her P.R. survival to this point has been built on her ability to hone and listen to that instinct.
Conversely, when you have a public figure who refuses to respond to the stimulus of negative reception, you get a Hillary Clinton, who is admirable in her unapologetic sense of herself but doomed to be forever polarizing because she (arguably rightfully) sees herself as above the indignity.
2
Michelle Obama could, IMO, better serve black people if she would go to the black areas in cities & towns, talking to young people directly, in person. Make them believe that they do have a choice, that they don't have to accept things as they are, that they should graduate from high school, apply for college scholarships, stop doing drugs, stop selling drugs, stop stealing, stop fathering children they will never raise, stop having babies & going on welfare, stop shooting each other, for examples. The heck with trying to change a racist's attitude. Overcome the racists by succeeding in school, college, & work. Nothing is sweeter than success.
1
@RBR
She did and does. Who knows better she grew up in South Side Chicago.
Want to help? Ask for more funding in the predominantly
African American schools in these areas/cities where the students 'have choice'. Look before you preach RBR.
Of course the greatest irony was the fact that many northern white racists never even had seen or known a black person. The south rose again through propaganda.
1
Charles makes so many excellent, poignant points. For the most part I fully agree.
This is what gave me just a little pause: If Mrs Obama, or any other positive influential person willing to challenge those on the “other side” (fixed-mind-set racists or hard core conservatives etc etc) doesn’t, at times, take a moment to express some teachable offering, then there is no voice of reason for those with any courage to challenge their fixed mindsets (rare as I personally believe it to be). It does and can happen. It’s not the gist of what she’s talking about but it serves a hopeful purpose: there might be someone she can get through to. People can change. I’ve lived stuck in a fixed mind set and painfully broken free of it. With loads of help of course. My point is that as I began waking up to the fact I’d been influenced by a white privileged, racist, ultra-judgmental narcissistic person, I was deeply impacted by those few and far between words of waking from people who spoke to the heart of the mindset itself. So if I were today still under that mind set and read/heard Mrs Obama’s words, I think it would have helped me see the divide and feel comforted that some people were speaking to a way out. Sometimes trying when the odds are stacked against you is truly worth it.
If we look at what she speaks to as a whole, this is just a small piece of it, not the cornerstone. She’s being generous where she doesn’t have to be.
2
You've got the right step one: don't worry about what other people think.
Now here's step two: do the best you can for yourself with the skills and abilities you've got. Ignore the haters, and learn as much as you can and be as successful as you can be.
Some people may still not like you. So what? If you're successful and well-off, living a nice life, you shouldn't care.
1
Michelle Obama is not "brilliant." That adjective I'll reserve for people who do something exceptionally creative, and writing a book about oneself doesn't qualify. She's basically a quasi-celebrity thanks to the accomplishments of her husband.
4
A longtime, dear friend, with a substantial knowledge of history and who grew up in a rural area, has no idea he has racist beliefs. To get him to recognize that has proven to be a waste of time and, if convinced, he'd have no idea what to do with it. Better to inform through behavior those who are fearful and unable or unwilling to see the human equality in all of us.
So true; a brilliant piece. As I read it, I thought of the way in which women of all colors often try to change a man's sexism by their behavior. "If only I did this. If only I did that. If only I were this." And how women are blamed for men's behavior. "She asked for it. She provoked him." etc. We all need to wake up as Mr. Blow writes.
3
Of course Blow is correct, but where do you go from there? Racism is a highly adaptable construct. It doesn’t disappear overnight and refusing to dialogue isn’t going to improve things. Obama’s decision to try to educate people of good faith is the only way we can move forward. While Blow may ev right, the logic of his position takes us to conflict and the abyss.
1
I think Bob Marley said it best: "until the color of a man's skin is of no more significance than the color of his eyes ...". Sadly we are still a long way off from that perfect world. Even in this supposedly "post-racial" world evidenced by the election of Mr. Obama, the reality for all minorities, by virtue of the powerlessness inherent in their minority status, remains that it becomes incumbent on them to prove to the (white) majority that they are not a threat. Whether Mrs. Obama's statement constitutes acknowledgement vs. aquiescence / acceptance of said reality may be a distinction without a difference, which I think is the point Mr. Blow is making here.
Europeans and European-Americans have for centuries considered themselves superior in every way to fellow humans with dark skin.
Even progressive European-Americans who recognize and work to eliminate racial inequality deep down consider themselves more intelligent and socially evolved than people of color.
Centuries of slavery was widely embraced because of the belief that there was nothing criminal in kidnapping Africans and subjecting them to savage bondage because blacks were sub-human.
Jim Crow laws similary were outgrowths of white supremacy.
American racism is what explains Trump's rise. He is proud to give voice to all manner of racist sentiments, and his reward has been millions of votes.
Obama is indeed wasting her time. But there's no harm in letting her try.
Racism is a crippling affliction that hurts those who suffer from it. We people of color have built up defenses and coping mechanisms. Some of us have even normalized racism, concluding, "that's just how white folks are" and getting on with our lives.
It takes extraordinary chutzpah to tell The great Ms. Obama what to think and how to live her life.
4
Michelle Obama is wonderful. I'm glad to say I voted for her husband twice.
But, Mr. Blow, you made two fundamental errors in this piece:
First, there is no such thing as "white" or "black" people. Those racist labels divide the good people of the US against each other. Everybody is different, and the differences between people present a continuum across humanity; "race" doesn't make scientific sense.
Second, speaking as a European-American (but do not call me "white"), I do dislike, and sometimes even fear, being targeted by racist attacks from people who identify "black" and their racist sympathizers. It's not just when I hear the racist phrase "white privilege" that I feel attacked, it's the physical attacks, like the one on the streets of Baltimore Ta-Nehisi Coates writes about "The Beautiful Struggle," or the Dallas police that were ambushed, shot and killed because of their "white" skin color.
Your second error is imagining that "black" people are never racist, but this unfortunately is not true.
2
I like and respect Charles Blow as much as any opinion writer I read. However I like Michelle Obama even more and in my opinion she has more than earned the right to say, think, and do whatever her heart desires. Having said that I would love to see her jump into the presidential primary. No candidate really inspires me. Michelle Obama does.
1
Growing up as a young biracial man (I am 23 now) surrounded by a sea of people that did not look like me, putting myself in the shoes of my piers only added value to my perspective of myself in american society.
Exposing myself to their world and their political ideas was not something I needed to do, it was something I wanted to do. Like anything else, added perspective regardless of how ignorant and hostile helps us understand our surroundings and our individual values. Many people I grew up with voted for the president. I can wholly say I understand why and that is because I had took the leap to expose myself to different ideas.
I guess what Im trying to say it that things have always been bad for black people in this country and we've always had to work 3 times as hard. This is another example of that.
1
I have come to the opinion that the first of these isms the original sin is sexism. As long as males, from birth, are taught they are better than females, as long as women are taught to "take it" by their male religious leaders and are not defended by male law enforcement, it leads men to think they have an innate right to be better than others by birthright without any effort on their part. They are better than women by virtue of being born male, better than those of color by virtue of being born white, better than the poor by being born to wealth. The true test is that men of color dont treat women of color any better than white men do, the newly rich the poor. I am talking collectively now, since many men were taught equality from birth. So men think it is their right to beat and kill women who get out of line, whites beat and kill those of color who they think are out of line and the wealthy rob and otherwise destroy those who are poor especially if they try to get out of line.
2
Michelle Obama should run for office, probably the US Senate first, eventually running for President.
1
Dear Mr. Blow:
The indecency and stupidity of racist attitudes belongs entirely to the racist espousing those attitudes. The man who beats his wife will never stop because the wife tries to prove her worthiness, only when she stands up and says enough will it stop. When every person subjected to the violence of racism says "no more" and confronts the racist, then and only then will the violence stop. All racism depends on the victim being too afraid to stand up and say "never again".
As for Trump: his indecency has no lower limits.
My wish for Michelle Obama is simple: that she run for President of the United States. Now.
2
Thank you for this view. It's very important
1
“No one should endeavor to live their life as an exemplar for the white gaze.” Actually, as a white woman, that is my fate.
I followed the Obamas on social media and was horrified by the level of vitriol and outright racism directed at the then POTUS and First Lady. Similar horrific attacks have recently been directed at Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex. I applaud Mrs. obama and Meghan for using their eminent platforms to speak for those who struggle against blatant racism every day.
2
As a white woman who has just begun learning the violent history of white supremacy in this country, I say Amen. The people who have a problem they need to fix look like me.
1
It has taken over 400 years for racism to germinate, spread and suffocate fairness and equality which cannot grow in its shade.
In a hundred ways large and small we have worked to separate our white selves from the black and brown peoples of the country and the globe. Drunk with power, we have bricked ourselves up in a perverse retelling of Poe's classic Cask of Amontillado. The walls we build on our borders and in our hearts will only keep us from the contributions from which we all might have benefited.
Once we brick ourselves in, we begin to believe more segregation is both appropriate and good. We depreciate women. We declare others "white trash". We build gated communities. We forge the chains which bind us up as surely as Marley's ghost in Dickens' fabled Christmas Carol and can only see them when it is too late.
Magnificent women like Michelle Obama can help us break the molds we use in casting beliefs about others but only if we first recognize our own roles in such divisions.
1
I know we’re all thinking it: Michelle for president! Don’t be coy...
1
As a white woman born in the U. S. decades ago, I am convinced that trying to change the hearts and minds of racists is akin to believing you can lose weight by adding candy and ice cream to your daily diet. It can’t be done, ever. Michele Obama, in particular, and most blacks and minorities in general, daily demonstrate their goodness and worth by living lives filled with love of, and kindness toward, others. They set an example to be followed by all peoples, notably those with the intelligence to mimic good vs poor behavior. Racists are in a category by themselves. They lack not only the ability to see value in people of color, importantly, they are the ones who add little value to society. Racists have always been among us, and they are here to stay. Blacks and minorities who try to prove their worth to people incapable of accepting them are certain to fail. People of color enrich our country simply by being the decent people that they are. That fact is the only proof of their worth the rest of us should take notice of.
3
Having been raised in a small town on the west side of Silicon Valley I hardly ever saw a black person unless the family headed for San Francisco. The biggest influence on me must have been the "Amos and Andy" radio show which portrayed the "blacks" as lazy, dumb and morally corrupt. Fortunately, I transcended such a description and was active in anti-racism political activities as a young man. Hollywood was guilty of creating stereotypes of most minorities in their movies, amazingly, being as it was Jewish to a great degree and should have been sensitized to discrimination. The seeds of discrimination have long been active in the U.S. and will be there for a long time. I, for one, have no advice for blacks being as I have never walked in their shoes, but I wish them luck in overcoming centuries old attitudes.
a
1
"Why should cave men be allowed to occupy space in the mind of a super woman?" And with that, Charles Blow drops not just the mic, but the entire audio system.
Mr. Blow:
Mrs. Obama, whom I greatly admire, really doesn't need anyone to critique her desire to change her world for the better. I believe that characteristic has stood her, her family, and us in good stead for her entire life.
I heard a homily that resonates well for all people at all times. Our work on this benighted plane is to be a good human; all of us, whatever our color, gender, age, economic demographic, etc. Discrimination takes many forms. Her recognition that the hardest heart can be swayed is wisdom, pure unadulterated wisdom.
Why do people of every strata of society admire her? She leads by action and example, not argumentation. We would all want her for an advocate, a boss, a co-worker, a neighbor. The history of slavery exists, the practice still exists. She fights the good fight every day by being a good human.
4
Michelle Obama for President! Could we ever be so fortunate? Her charm and beauty alone are enough to ease the horror of the Trump misadministration. As a representative of the US on the international scene Ms Obama accompanied by her husband would again present the world with the class and inspiration we enjjoyed under the Kennedy administration. Both Obamas represent the best of the USA both at home and abroad.
3
No one can change another person's mind if that person is convinced that his/her beliefs or opinions are right. Prejudice against others is one of the hardest issues in most countries. I say this as a white woman who is Jewish and lesbian and has a handicapped brother.
As a white woman I benefit from my skin color. But I'm not considered white by white supremacists. I've heard about how Jews killed Jesus. I've listened to educated people say horrible things about LBGTQ people. I've heard and had said to me, awful things about my handicapped brother. Again, some of the worst things have been said by highly educated people who ought to know better.
Here's what I know from my own experience. Yes, I'm prejudiced. I can't help it. Here's what I can help. I can put my prejudice aside and treat each person as an individual. I can ask myself if I'm upset about a person's behavior because of their skin color or because it's truly upsetting. I can be polite to everyone no matter what color they are. I can try to treat all people with the same kindness, dignity, and respect that I'd like to be treated with. And if I'm rude I can apologize.
Obama is African American. In this day and age it should no longer be a problem. That it is says something about America, not her. I would rather she focus on combatting discrimination than trying to prove herself to racists. They are not worth it.
11/3/2019 10:13pm first submit
6
Tremendously informative recap, Mr. Blow, of white supremacy's tenacity. And I, too, hope that Michelle doesn't stay in the place you describe.
With the help of observers like yourself, I can see her evolving beyond the need to address the "white gaze". James Baldwin eventually did that. And as we know, Toni Morrison never believed it was her duty as a black person and as an author to educate racists. Instead, it was important for each of them to direct their brilliance at 'the souls of black folk'.
Our liberation depends upon nurturing the divine presence in ourselves and for ourselves; something racists will never see or understand.
2
One irony and tragedy of our Racial Divide is that this eloquent plea for overcoming White racism had to come from a prominent Black African American. Can White public citizens or leaders with prominence equivalent to Charles Blow "Whitesplain" what could be thought and done, by both White and Black Americans of our time and in the future, to bridge this National Divide?
We would all be better served if instead she ran for President and by example elevated all in her realm.
1
The deification of both Obamas is inevitable in relation to Trump. Even the criminal acts of G.H. Bush were drowned in a tidal wave of nostalgia thanks to the ongoing horror that is the Trump Administration. He makes everyone look far better by comparison. Charles Blow is right to criticize Michelle Obama for making wildly conventional, if not reactionary statements suggesting that it is the responsibility of black people to change racist beliefs. It's like saying that a woman who was raped shouldn't have been where the rape occurred or that she shouldn't have been dressed as she was.
Michelle Obama is a very accomplished person with a most impressive CV. However, there is very little evidence that her many skills were utilized during her time as First Lady, and even less after her departure from the White House. Eleanor Roosevelt is the gold standard by which any First Lady must be measured. Ms. Obama is honorable, soigne and superficially accessible. These are fine attributes as far as they go, but for all her brilliance, she remains unworthy of the fulsome accolades showered upon her.
Ignoring racism only reinforces it. As a Jew, I never shy away from confronting anti-semites. Some of them are pathological haters who project upon Jews their own sense of inadequacy. But some are just ignorant and if told the truth about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, for example, may change their mind. The same is true about anti-black prejudice. A lot of it is based on ignorance of history, fear of cultural differences, and misunderstanding of science. I don’t particularly like Michelle Obama, though her husband was a reasonably good president, especially in comparison to his successor. But here I am with her. Talking about racism in a rational, informed and dignified way instead of shouting abuse at your opponents is the way to go.
1
I cringed listening to Michelle's comments in that setting. Where was the bold self-respecting First Lady who didn't tolerate a heckler at an event and said either the heckler goes or I do? Honesty, clarity and self-respect are a must, especially at a time when a so-called historical movie about slavery portrays a slave owner as kindly and a slave as a villain. This is certainly not the time for "We sick, boss?" commentary.
2
Entirely correct Mr. Blow. If after his eight years in office such a brilliant, cultured, generous and brave person as Barack Obama couldn't turn around our ingrained racism in our society (or even at least stimie it for a few generations), who could?
It may even be the case that Obama's undeniable successes during his years in office, in the face of the disaster that was the Bush Administration, acted as a catalyst for the paranoia and xenophobia of 'Uppity Blacks' that has underlied the racism we in this country have suffered from, for so long.
And certainly it seems clear that Donald Trump's election and his continued support has to do as much with this White backlash and irrational paranoia, as it has to do with any other single factor.
1
Trump did not win the 2016 election because of his great hair, his skill as an orator and a debater; or because voters believed that he is a good family man, an honest man who pays his taxes, a dignified man, a compassionate man, a man who cares about people in trouble, a man who treats women and minorities well, a man who knows a lot about foreign affairs, economics, terrorism, education and the Second Amendment or because they believed that Mrs. Clinton was the devil.
People voted for him because he is a lout and a zany with big appetites, a mean man, a crude man, a humorless man, an ignorant man, an unethical man, a huge crook who gets away with doing things that other people don’t get away with, who is notoriously effective at lying; and who as President maybe would do some things that would end up helping them, while spending the bulk of his time attacking their perceived enemies among liberals, minorities and refugees.
It is important in coming days that all of his failures and soon-to-be realized failures as President be understood as his own failures and his own failures alone, not as failures of Democrats or President Obama or Mrs. Clinton or the media or Muslims or blacks or anyone else who permanently or temporarily ends up on his enemies list.
3
I agree with you. And sadly that was the impression I walked away with after reading her memoir. Who cares what white people think of nonwhite people? I certainly don’t. Seeking white people’s acceptance/approval is so passé.
2
I am a 70 year old white French male raised partially in the South. Prejudice and racism were endemic. Myself and my white and coloured friends were very lucky to be 'army brats', going to school with people of all colors. Taught us that a good black or white person is a good person and vice versa; not because of color. It seems its all still there and with Trump and his enablers, the racists are coming out of the woodwork. Real integration may be a cure, it was for me and my friends. Meanwhile, Michelle Obama is a wonderful person, Barack a lucky man! Let's let her do whatever she chooses, she's earned it.
Michelle Obama? The woman who went out of her way to make fun of single fathers? As a single father myself, she lost any respect I had for her when she refused to apologize for that moment. Hardly brilliant, more like a dilletante.
3
I understand your point. It is infuriating that a person of the caliber of michelle Obama , would adapt her behavior to impress white people. Toni Morrison never compromised on that score and Ms. Obama needn’t compromise either.
2
True.
Let us keep trying to be the best we can be
For therein we will find our freedom.
The racist is not free.
Let us seek those who are.
1
What was clear in Michelle Obama’s autobiography was that she has spent a lifetime striving to be a good person. From the time she was a child until the present. And, this has made her both strong and sensitive. And, dare it be said, still shocked when faced with the evil of others. The white house years undoubtedly scarred her, leaving her still wondering why so many opposed her and her husband simply because of the color of their skin. This writer thinks what the obamas dealt with was much, much worse than either of them will ever let on. She touches on this racism in her book, but based on these comments, the insults and slights over eight years must have been brutal. My heart breaks for her.
1
I agree 99% with this column..... but reserve judgement for the other 1% . I’ve tried viewing the sentiments through three “it’s” lenses I’m familiar with: as an immigrant, as woman and as the mom of LGBTQ person.
While it’s never “her responsibility” it’s helpful to be visible. Only by offering a counterweight can you create a new image for the ignorant person who may not be bigoted so much as ignorant. It helps to have a Sheryl Sandburg lead a conversation on gender. It’s helpful to have a Michelle Obama do so on race....and it’s helpful to have a Pete Buttieg do so on homophobia. Do each of these people counter every prejudice? No. But their example and courage may begin to counteract the effects of other narratives that took hold first in the minds of people who don’t know better. It may not stop the truly racist. It may not be fair. But it will make the ignorant but well meaning think twice and that, I can’t fault.
My son and I played Obama singing Amazing Grace on our way home from church last night. We both miss him so much. His dignity, his grace and his overall goodness was so much in evidence when he spoke and sang at Rev Pinkenty (I butchered the spelling, my apologies) service.. The Obamas are sorely missed, they are a national treasure.
As much as I am with admiration for the Obamas, we Americans should get over with the celebrity worship in politics!
That's precisely how we got the present POTUS.
5
Europeans didn’t “steal people from Africa.” The majority of African slaves were originally enslaved by fellow Africans, warlords and victors in battles. Europeans bought existing slaves on the coast. Most countries in the world had slavery.
Slavery was terrible, the American version and it’s offshoot Jim Crow even worse. But it doesn’t help to obfuscate the origins.
3
"From the time Europeans started stealing people from Africa...". A couple things to say: the slave trade did not involve stealing people from Africa. The vast majority were sold by Africans to Europeans. I get it: the Europeans are bad. But let's not forget that Africans were profiting off this trade. Let's also try not to forget that slavery existed in Africa before Europeans (as it did everywhere). I in no way want to prevent the demonization of Europe, Europeans and white people in general. Just want to point out that there seems to be a little 'Europeanness' in everyone.
3
I think the entire world would be better if everyone tried to be a better human.
Q:What’s wrong with that message? A: Nothing.
Charles finds fault with it because he doesn’t just study history, he’s stuck in it. He’s always looking backward and can’t see anything but race. Most people don’t care much about race. They care how people treat them. Treat people with kindness and more often then not, you’ll get it back. The Left promotes its endless identity politics as its likes to keep people divided. It’s tiring.
3
You are absolutely right. Racists don’t deserve the time and respect from the people they denigrate and persecute. To expect this is to deepen the trauma by minimizing the racism through a dishonoring act of persuasion. It is not the victim’s responsibility to help their persecutor see a different view. It’s the racist’s responsibility to dig deep into his/her being and bring forth a new mindset that does not include abject hate. As a child of Holocaust survivors, I will never give racists the time of day. To do so would be to dishonor the trauma both my parents endured and denigrate the memory of my grandparents and countless relatives who died in the concentration camps.
Michelle Obama has so much wisdom, kindness, and talent to offer the world. She shouldn’t waste it on people who will never offer her the respect and appreciation she has earned through her many contributions and achievements.
2
You only need to add Jesse Norman singing "Amazing Grace" to your superb column.
1
When I look at my 2 year old granddaughter I wonder if racism, homophobia, anti Semitism, anti Muslim, behavior will be reduced by her generation. It is a steep up hill battle. But we must, must find a way to connect with people that are different than ourselves so we can create a just and healthy world.
I believe racism is part of human atavistic fear of the “ diverse “ that is usually conjugated with moral ignorance.
In a society such as America , that owes its wealth to enslavement of Africans and genocide of Native Americans , racism is the result of ancestral story telling magnified by ignorance and low moral compass.
I too was surprised by First Lady Michelle Obama statements, but they came straight from her wounded heart growing up in Chicago South Side .
We need to do more as a society to embrace everyone and give everyone the chance to become equal rights citizens.
We have to start to focus on the racial problems we all know , inequality in education , healthcare, imprisonments, housing etc.
We need that the most affluent African Americans get more involved with their voices and example to slowly fill in the racial gaps .
This administration is to be blamed for the recrudescence of racism , we can do better in 2020 , using the power of our vote, we can help turning the page on racism .
1
I like Michelle Obama's humility. That's part of what makes her so relatable and likable. She is authentic and she comes across as NOT angry--which is the only way to penetrate "the veil."
As a white person I want very badly to "see" and like black people, generally, (in spite of a fairly racist upbringing) but it's neigh impossible if the black person is so very angry at "whitey" (understandably) and by extension at me. I don't know what to do with all that anger coming at me.
1
I understand and fully accept why millions admire her and he personal grace in the White House but she is otherwise given to what might best be described as inartful statements. As the two of them were adjusting to life in the fishbowl, she once said that they wanted everyone to have to same opportunities they had. What?
Everyone should have the opportunity to attend Princeton and Harvard? Enrollment could increase to 500,000 per year? One million students? One might project that she meant the opportunity to SEEK the same opportunity but otherwise the statement was a clunker. Very, very few could have "the same opportunity" she and her husband enjoyed because the system is designed to admit only a few, to some degree regardless of intelligence and hard work.
The idea of placing the burden on herself to correct the white man's distortions is unfortunate. It seems possible that she has lived so much of her life above ordinary experience that she has moved away or lost touch with the realities of everyday life.
To a lessor and weaker degree than racism would impose, most of us walk through the world purposefully underestimated by many around us. The goal is to live one's life without social inhibition to the highest degree of talent, intelligence and full intention, living well within oneself and making a contribution to family, community and nation.
Doug, many people could agree with your last sentence and it seems that you try to live by that goal. I think Michelle Obama does, too.
Michelle Obama is an exemplary human being. If watching her picks the racist scabs from a few white eyes, that's not a bad thing. While she's at it, she's a role model for young girls of any background, and for every person who wants to live on the high road of integrity. She's not wasting her time.
A great article. All I want to say to Mr. Blow is "Amen & thank you!"
2
Mr. Blow presents today unquestionably correct thoughts regarding the corrosive and totally unjustifiable effects of both overt and covert White racism. There can be, as Mr. Blow clearly states, no justification for demanding that minorities demonstrate their moral and intellectual "fitness" to join the White majority on an equal footing.
But this thought was stated most succinctly by the inimitable comic/philosopher Chris Rock: "We don't need better Black people; we need better White people."
1
Interesting perspective . Especially his criticism of M. Obama. I was wondering if she was speaking for herself or the larger community when she wondered if , a continuous altering of Black behavior in order to find the right fit, would mitigate racism ? I also found that interesting on a whole lot of levels.
There's also a typo in this piece Mr. Brown. I hope that's not your fault. You know that doesn't look good for us ! Ha ! ha !
I'm so exhausted by an America where this still needs to be stated, where a couple like the Obamas can be denigrated because of the color of their skin when their value to this country cannot be overestimated. Enough already America!
Ironically, an alien from outer space observing the Obamas and the Trumps would probably conclude whites are inferior morally, intellectually, and lacking basic civil decency and empathy. The Trumps have (in some sort of beneficial way) destroyed the notion of white supremacy from every angle.
2
"Why should cave men be allowed to occupy space in the mind of a super woman?"
Let the healing begin.
2
Excellent, Mr. Blow. We must all stop wasting our energies on converting the racists and narrow-minded bigots of this country. For those who wish that Ms. Obama runs for president, I say read her book. In Becoming she makes it clear that she is a totally different kind of person than one who seeks the presidency.
Thank you Mr. Blow. Among other things, your careful analysis enables us to see some of the limits to Michelle Obama's righteous encouragement to Go High When They Go Low: White Racists are likely to be so willfully and desperately intent on ignoring the facts before them that they can't, they won't, take in the meaning of what is before their very eyes. After all, their claim to humanity is predicated on the denial of the humanity of the person whom they see and hear. That is why racists are both so pathetic and so dangerous.
1
Brilliant. Thanks.
1
I grew up in Tennessee in the 1970s, and I honestly don't believe much has changed here in terms of racism. I am white and was immersed in the racist Confederate flag flying culture my entire childhood. I have spent most of my adult life trying to rid myself of every racist belief that I bought as a child. The racism of the South has never gone away, it just went underground.
Charle's Blow is right that worrying about white racists' perception is distracting and corrosive. There's a racist "joke" that I heard many times when I was growing up, "What do you call a black man with a Ph.D.?" -answer: "N-word". That "joke" reflected the racist belief that no matter what blacks achieved in life, they would still be regarded as subhuman.
It is not Michelle Obama's responsibility to spend a single second of her life trying to change the minds of people that still laugh at that joke.
1
I think back to then-candidate Barack Obama’s speech on race.
There was an especially poignant passage in which he described how his white maternal grandmother, who loved him fiercely, was also so afraid of black men that she would cross the street in avoidance.
It seems likely that Michelle Obama shares her husband’s insights into the complications of human nature, even the indefensible ugliness of prejudice. Bias needs not be permanent. People have good sides along with the bad.
The Obamas always appealed to the better angels of our nature. So maybe instead of inferring that Mrs. Obama is debasing herself, we could see that she is, yet again, going high.
5
It is not for any one person to try to dispel the irrational/unexamined fears of a racist mindset - that’s work for the racist him/ or herself to accomplish. But as part of the mosaic of who makes up this country, and as an outstanding role model for us all, Michelle Obama is a paragon.
2
On convincing racists they are mistaken:
"Never argue with a man who Knows he is right." - Robert Heinlein
Isn't it possible for being your best self regardless of their racism to feel like "success is the best revenge"? As a woman (but white from Appalachia), I think I can identify with some element of what is said here, as I did in a conversation once with a young black male law professor and how we had both been told growing up that we had to be twice as good and work twice as hard to achieve half as much.
I agree with every word here that no black person is responsible for shaping the perceptions of racists, just as women didn't cause and therefore can't cure sexism and misogyny. But is there no progress to be had with those who merely absorbed attitudes around them without thinking through what they really want to believe? There's a difference between someone who has chosen to cherish congenital hate and someone who over time comes to know better.
But I guess I would return to my initial point: how would Michelle Obama benefit by not being her best self? There are many racists who are offended to the point of outrage if a black person excels, who say that Obama inflamed racial division. That is so astonishingly untrue that it took me awhile to understand that the Obamas' undeniable excellence was a rebuke and provocation to racists who had no excuse for not having achieved despite their privilege—the kind of people who now exult over having an ignorant slob sully the White House. Not excelling because they're going to try to put you in your place is not an option either.
Michelle Obama, thank you for giving Americans the real Camelot.
2
Charles Blow is always a clear voice of reason, and an appropriately strident one, on issues of race in America. This essay’s challenge to this particular misconception can’t be said enough. I'm once again thankful for Mr. Blow's column.
1
Michelle Obama is needed now more than ever. She should run for President of the US and save our democracy.
Prejudice is a shared psychosis.
defined as- a severe mental disorder in which thought and emotions are so impaired that contact is lost with external reality
These people need mental health professionals ASAP
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Most admired women in the world ! Give me a break. When will you learn that the world is more than just the U.S.
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Thank you for your incisive commentary.
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Surely there are racists for whom knowledge of the falsity of their ideas would not affect their racism. Nonetheless, Most bad ideas are rooted in ignorance.
The notion that setting a good example has not and will not have any effect is perhaps even more foolish than the notion that it is a cure-all for racism or other bad ideas.
Look at how many people in this country admire MIchelle Obama; if you can tell yourself that none of the non-black people in that group 1.) admire her because of her qualities, or 2.) are not less adamant in their racist notions, then you are delusional.
No, it is not a fix for racist ideas, but the Obamas (and Booker T. Washington, as well as many others) were and are right that an example counter to racist ideas is worth setting.
My father was a racist. But he was also a liberal and intellectually he was not a racist. He knew what blacks had suffered. He read the books. But he had no experience with Afro-American but watching T.V. and see lot of black faces in the criminal justice system. All he needed to overcome his racism was experience. I got the experience because of his intellectual awareness. He never did. But he could have, had more educated black people lived and worked around him. He was primed to move forward. Instead his kids did and his grand kids even more so. Humans can learn.
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Charles' alienation from society has prevented him from experiencing life from Mrs. Obama's perspective who is not alienated from society and who obviously enjoys her place in the world of highly respected, influential women.
Whatever she says and does is the product of her own life decisions and experiences.
I know she hates what happened to them at the hands of racists during their eight years in the White House. However, history has already proven both of them to be among the best who have ever occupied the White House. She has nothing to prove to anyone.
And she certainly does not require Blow to give her advice. In fact, in truth, it should be the other way around.
Mr Blow's argument Michelle Obama should be above caring what racists think, while well intentioned, is undermined by the need he himself feels to justify why such people only deserve to be ignored. There's little doubt in this reader's mind, by her intelligence and grace Mrs Obama has convinced more racists of their folly that any other public figure in recent history. She deserves wider latitude from Mr Blow for honestly voicing heart felt disappointments, not nit picking.
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Brilliant or not what does that have to do with anything Mr. Blow? For Black people to survive in this environment for hundreds of years they have had to be brilliant. I have an issue with people being starstruck and only thinking celebrities can be the spokesman for an entire race of people. Racism permeates everything in American life and sadly it will until demographics change. Our society is geared to be racist and it is time we stop dancing around that. From education, housing and drug treatment racism is built into the mix. Trump's base has not changed in three years and will not. Trump's support is not because he is a great statesman or great dealmaker. Trump's support comes because he willing to be racist and be proud of it. I think if you detest racism you should be empowering the targets of the Racist. Waiting and praying for the racist to change their ways is futile. If every person who could vote did vote things would change. Waiting for the fairy godmother to use her wand to change the hearts of racist hasn't worked. The election of Obama just gave the racist license to come from under the rocks and out into the open. Trump and his band of merry men are racist and proud of it.
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Racism is bound to power and the seemingly boundless needs of humans to feel superior to some 'other' class or race of person. For those of white lineage who believe that whites are responsible for all that is good in religion, culture, history, it might be quite the eye opener to read books like Peter Frankopan's Silk Roads or Maria Menocal's lovely Ornament of the World which chronicles the Islamic 'golden age' in Spain. Or any of numerous books which detail the sophistication and 'advanced' societies in eras well before Europeans were an insignificant rather primitive grouping of peoples. And yes, Michele Obama is a model of intelligence and grace. And courage. She should not have to carry the burden of convincing haters to lighten up and let go of their racism.
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I am surprised that Mr. Blow takes the position that all racism arises from the “cave man” class. I thought that most educated people agreed that most of us, black and white alike, are susceptible to racist thoughts, that racism arises, at least in part, from fear of the unknown, and that exposure to each other diminishes that fear.
As always Charles Blow, you put it perfectly. So many of us black people of the diaspora (especially black women) twist, contort, bend and inevitably BREAK ourselves into these flawed and corrosive molds of patriarchy and bigotry. Forgetting that our degrees, pedigrees, hushed tones and white-washed packaging will NEVER be enough. Dismissing our exhaustion as we perpetually twist and turn to appease and make comfortable people who do not give us a 2nd thought and yet take up so much space in our lives that we left with crumbs for those who take us as we are . Well I’m learning to show up as I am and claim my space, what is there left to lose? If the first black FLOTUS couldn’t break the stereotypes and hatred bigots and racists hold, then no one can and I might as well show up as I am.
Racism is a virus of the mind inherited from a barbaric past that white Europeans and Americans have contracted in their millions. Unfortunately the chance draw of history handed these sick of mind populations steel tools and gunpowder, and armed their bodies with deadly diseases that kill others but leave them immune.
The world has risen up and taken these advantages away, in no small part thanks to the other millions of white Europeans and Americans whose advances find cures for disease and solutions to political and economic problems.
Two words: right on!
Greatly admire, respect Michelle, but didn't found this article very hard to follow, not helpful.
I’m sure Ms. Obama knows that she isn’t appealing to the unmitigated racists. Let’s hope that her message reaches, instead, the millions of reasonable Whites who do not live near or interact with Black people, but who might have accepted racism in the past, as so many did, from racist misinterpretations of the so-called “Curse of Ham” in the Book of Genesis.
Upon close examination, many fair-minded Whites who had accepted the Biblical support for their racism, found that Ham himself was NOT “cursed” and skin color or race was NOT mentioned in the Biblical text.
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The more familiar I become with the history (from the 1300s to the 1800s) of the civilizations of Africa and the Americas, and the expansion of European empires - the more convinced I become that our current situation really owes more to the missionary zeal of the Catholic Church and the Capitalist demands of the King Cotton-based economy of the South, perverted & embedded over time in our Law-based approach to government.
While I love Michelle Obama......marrying well cannot be understated. Mrs Obama is a very tall, beautiful woman.
Women like her have many options for partners.
I am a 5 foot 2, curvy pale woman.....whether black people believe me or not...the same options just aren't available to women like me.
Height and beauty.....as well as intelligence and wisdom get you FAR. Good for Michelle for using her assets as well as she has.
Charles, your last line is electrifying and brilliant. Why indeed. And I hope Mrs. Obama heeds it.
It is way past time for white people to do the job of correcting the racist stain and poison in themselves. This should not in any way, shape or form be an additional burden on black Americans.
A film by the descendent of northern (yes, northern) slave traders called Traces of the Trade features a number of individuals from the same family tracing the journey made by slaves who were bought and traded by their ancestors. A very moving moment occurs when the black filmmaker who is working with the descendent says how angry she is with white people, and how cowardly she considers them for turning away from the truth of their own history, their own part in this American nightmare, and their own continuing participation in racism, if only by denying its existence.
http://www.tracesofthetrade.org
We white Americans have much work to do to make this nation healthy. Admitting it is our work is the first step.
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FWIW, Mrs Obama said "maybe if I show up every day as a human, a good human" and that in NO WAY seems to indicate that she would need to "spend even a second of her time considering the mind-set of a racist" as this column claims as it's starting point. (FWIW)
Agreed, Mr. Blow. And at the same time Ms. Obama can choose to do what she wants with her time.
The bottom line: The business of racist thought and action is white peoples' work. I am white and an anti-racist activist. You are correct. This socially constructed idea of "race" is shameless in its justification for abuse against many groups of people.
Yet we have to trust the wisdom of Ms. Obama. Her personal trajectory and all she has seen causes her to try to build bridges. Perhaps she has had luck with this.
Me, I would be the wrong bridge-builder these days to reach the MAGA bigots. I'm not feeling the compassion, but if anyone else is, it does not mean s/he is self-hating or ignoring history's wrongs. It simply means s/he has the capacity at this moment in time to act in a certain way.
Charles Blow, I don’t tend to play favorites. But you, sir, are my favorite. Thank you.
Just this weekend, a group of racists in Mississippi were caught on surveillance cameras attempting to film a propaganda video in front of the Emmett Till memorial. Although this is an extreme manifestation of racism, it also shows how deep animus can run. There is absolutely nothing any African American can say to people who revel in the murder of a fourteen year old. Similarly, there is nothing Michele Obama can say to the people who saw her and Barack Obama and imagined Muslim fundamentalists or violent Black nationalists. It is the task of white people to confront racism within their own communities.
A lot to think about. Thank you both.
Charles, I too miss Barack and Michelle in the White House, and on a daily basis. And I'm an old white guy. Racists by definition are incapable of and could never appreciate getting into the mind of black folks, so you're right in saying that Michelle Obama, with all her knowledge, class and pride of race shouldn't even bother countenancing such.
The question, from a spiritual position, might be: Are the "cave men" you mention capable of or worthy of redemption? Can they change their attitudes in their lifetimes? I think we have to allow for that possibility, no matter how Neanderthal these people are. Grace should be accessible to all of us sinners.
The truth, I suspect, lies elsewhere. For we all have our "cave man" moments, Charles, you, me, the Hispanic neighbor down the street, the friendly Nigerian cab driver, the Hindu convenience store owner. We have to keep the lines of communication open, the possibility of brotherly and sisterly love, no matter how tenuous our political and social situation. But I thank you here, as ever, for your great journalism and insights.
This piece is about racism. Our brand of racism has skin color
as a subject. Just sitting here, I don't know if there is any other kind of racism. We don't call anti non- Christian racism. We call it some kind of intolerance, but skin color has nothing to do with it. Humans tend to lump themselves into some kind of us v.s. them postures. That can be boiled down to me v.s. you. All our sports end up with winners and losers. Contests of some kind involve much of our entertainment. Who is better or worse at something...anything...is a major driving force. Humans do that.
So do other animals. Plants even do it. Life on Earth survives by eating itself. We dress up that fact with all kinds of decoration but when I try to explain some of the versions of it...like racism....white v.s. black for example...this is where I end up.
Well, I lived for three years in an African-American neighborhood in Brooklyn, and that experience profoundly changed my views of black Americans. Want to guess, for better or worse? (You know the answer.)
I would commend the link to an article from the Boston Review as further explorations of the insightful observations Charles Blow has made in today's column:
the dangerous proposition in--Succeeding While Black--
https://bostonreview.net/race/keeanga-yamahtta-taylor-succeeding-while-black?utm_source=Boston+Review+Email+Subscribers&utm_campaign=8bb7a7fdb0-Email_Newsletter_3.14.19_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_2cb428c5ad-8bb7a7fdb0-41087661&mc_cid=8bb7a7fdb0&mc_eid=9b20f03215
I understand why Mr. Blow feels the way he does, although he would likely say that as a white person I could never understand his feelings toward white people.
But I have a notion that Michele Obama is the way she is not for the sake of white people, but for the sake of herself, her own Christian religion, her soul.
She is an authentic Christian woman. And yes, she is a marvel as is her husband, the best president we have had in my lifetime.
Why worry about Cave Men, indeed?
Well, because the left will get nowhere without them. It needs overwhelming power to carry out actions on the scale of its dreams.
Or, are the dreams fluff to cover the left's victim trip?
If the victim trip is what y'all are really about, it's even grimmer.
I'm tired of my own victim trip. So are Cave People. There's more to life.
And we're tired of the broken record of the victimization of others.
The opposition to focusing our politics on somebody's defining grievance will only grow. Good for us. Bad for you.
Or maybe Cave Men are dying out? Minority-Majority will save you? Dream on. That's a myth from incompetents at the Census Bureau.
It says "non-whites will outnumber whites in about 2045".
Sure, if you count a 12% white slice of this country as non-white. Correct it and get 60% white, 40% non-white.
The labor insurrection of the 30s and Vietnam, taught non-whites and whites they could indulge their racism or could win, but not both.
Racism isn't DNA. It's from separation. Working together, protecting one another, dying together has taught innumerable antagonistic groups to trust each other.
You disagree. White people believe there "is a difference between the white and black races which...will forever forbid the two races living together".
But, for a long time, Brother Malcolm believed just this, too. He recovered.
Let's keep at it.
PS: Knock off the Hate Speech against Cro-Magnons and Neanderthals.
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She should be on the Supreme Court with her sharp legal mind.
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Obama received more votes for president than any other president,
not once, but twice. He ran against 2 highly respected competing candidates, Senator McCain and Gov. Romney. How did this happen? In such a uniformly racist country?
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With all due respect for Mr Blow, a man who's opinion I always look forward to hearing, he got it completely backwards. Obama saying, "...I can’t explain what’s happening in your head," means that it's YOUR problem, not hers. And yes, I agree with that. Any latent racism that I, an old white male, possess is MY problem. (Believe me, I've got some. Gifted to me by society as a child growing up in the late 40's and 50's. I work every day to de-possess it.) I don't need or want Michelle Obama nor Charles Blow, for that matter, to overtly try to "pick away at the scabs of (my) discrimination." Because if I can't rid myself of it, it won't go away.
I agree with you entirely. The former first lady should never waste a second on racism and white supremacy. It is as if one is trying to decide whether Trump or Nixon is the most despicable president in history. It is not a question worth asking or answering. Neither one of them is worth a second of time.
I think Michelle Obama is fabulous. Amazing.
But - the day after she made her comment about white people moving out of Chicago, a little girl in Chicago was shot while trick-or-treating in her bumblebee costume. Apparently because of a neighborhood gang feud.
According to the Chicago Tribune's website, there have been 436 people murdered in Chicago so far this year. Almost all from two neighborhoods. That's why people move away from neighborhoods like those. They move to try to live in a neighborhood where they and their children can be safe. Where there are no gangs with guns. It's not racism. It's being a good parent. I apologize to anyone this comment may have offended.
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Before we raise Michelle Obama to American sainthood, let’s consider her accomplishments: she raised two lovely daughters and wrote a book that was a best seller. How any of this makes her one of the most admired women on the planet is a mystery to me, considering the many women who have won Nobel Prizes and other awards for ground-breaking research in bio-medicine or who simply contribute day in and day out to the life of our nation. What is not a mystery is Mr. Blow’s total obsession with race. We’re never going to get to any post-racial world as long as people like Blow continue to spew the poisons of our racist past. The past doesn’t lie, though it allows us to measure just how far we have come in so many ways, including racial acceptance. And we must stop condemning our police. Many more cops are killed on duty in this country than wind up shooting unarmed black men. The police are what stands between chaos and a society of law and order, however imperfect that may be. Firebrands like Blow — or his opposites in the murky world of White Power — do not mitigate any racial discord. They are part of the problem.
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MO probably understands that it is implicit bias that is the real problem in America. Implicit bias has a racist effect, but it is not the same thing as the overt racism of, for example, the white supremacists in Charlottesville. EVERY WHITE PERSON - no matter how woke or well intentioned-has implicit bias and if the person is a police officer or loan officer or school teacher that bias can have racist effects. And showing up and being a good human is the role MO has chosen and she is so good at inspiring people and USA wonderful role model for all girls and women. And I don’t think she needs Charles Blow to criticize and mansplain about why her choices are wrong or bad. Gross!
Thank you, sir. We all needed that!
Charles, I understand what you are saying. And I admit that I have not traveled that long, tortuous odyssey that African Americans have for more than several centuries. Yet, I would like to speak as a white woman...yes, naive but nevertheless sincere. I admire Michelle Obama. This brilliant former First Lady excels in intelligence, morality and self-less love, grace, and downright class. For these reasons, for the reason of her very essence, let her voice be heard for the bigot, for the racist, to listen. Her words need to be repeated and heeded: "...maybe if I show up everyday as a human, a good human...maybe, just maybe, the work will pick away at the scabs of your discrimination." Even one changed soul is a victory. God speed, Michelle, my friend.
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Perhaps she should run for President.
To the extent that a white man, despite a long progressive history of speaking out against racial bigotry, can fully appreciate the anger and resentment felt by a black American, Charles M. Blow, I do empathize with Mr. Blow. I also share his admiration for the Obama family, especially Michelle.
I agree that no one is going to change the minds of most racists and that the stereotypes developed over many decades to justify continued discrimination against black men and women are false and disgusting.
I disagree, however, with Mr. Blow’s contention that Michelle Obama “should not spend even a second of her time considering the mind-set of a racist.” While Mrs. Obama probably would prefer devoting her time to any number of other subjects and does, she is wise enough to know that she cannot ignore the irrational fear by some Americans of black people – especially their fear of black men.
There are significant numbers of white bigots who, if given a polygraph examination and asked, “Are you a racist?” would answer “No” and pass the lie-detector test. In order to spur a bit of serious self-examination on the part of these prejudiced Americans, it is vital for Michelle Obama and other widely admired African-Americans to think and speak about these things.
The alternative is the divided America which Donald Trump tries to divide even more every day. We cannot abandon the stage to the bigot currently in the White House, simply because we happen to share Charles M. Blow’s anger.
Will it ever change?
You said a mouthful; it sounds true to me.
When I reached the level of maturity whereat my cognitive apparatus was capable of critical thinking the first axiom of my personal philosophy was not to pray to a White God. This because in a world that forced me to ride in the back of the bus, drink at the colored water fountain and not look white folks in the eye when speaking to them—I knew that the ultimate capitulation to my own subjugation would be to pray to a God that decreed it.
So each time the preacher or deacon would stand at the pulpit beneath the picture of blond haired, blue eyed “Jesus Praying In The Garden Of Gesthsemane” that hung in our little segregated church and say “Let us bow our heads in prayer” I’d bow my young head and feign prayer. This because my grandmother was the church’s matriarch and, though now dead 30 years, her wrath is still a ruminating presence in my life!
All to say, extraordinary earthly accomplishments notwithstanding, Blackfolk who see their life mission as behaving such that Whitefolk are convinced of their essential humanity are exhibiting the psychological vestige of having— too long, and too ardently—prayed, in their hearts, to a White God!
Charles Blow misinterprets Abraham Lincoln’s position. Lincoln in 1858 was running against an incumbent and before racist voters in Illinois. If he had advocated, or left unanswered charges of being for, full equality in 1858, he would most certainly have committed political suicide. As President, Lincoln approved of bills abolishing segregation on omnibuses in D.C.; for allowing black witnesses in federal courts; for equalizing penalties for the same crime; for equal pay for black soldiers; for ending discrimination on the basis of color in hiring US Mail carriers. He welcomed, for the first time, an ambassador from Haiti. He supported the activities of the Freedmen's Bureau. He approved the transfer of hundreds of thousands of acres of abandoned plantation lands to freedmen and their families. When he visited occupied Richmond, Virginia, he took off his hat and returned the bow of an elderly black man--an act of equality noted by sullen white onlookers and the press alike. In what was to be his last public address, Lincoln called for public schooling for blacks, and for the vote for black soldiers and the well educated. John Wilkes Booth, in the crowd, seethed "that means n-- citizenship", and vowed that the speech would be Lincoln's last. Frederick Douglass was "impressed with his entire freedom from popular prejudice against the colored race" after meeting with Lincoln three times in the White House, and in 1865 called him "emphatically the black man's president."
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wonderful!
Just run, we need you badly.
I am an older (57) white, gay man and I could not admire Michelle and Barack Obama more than I already do. I earned an Ivy League masters degree (Columbia) and graduated with a handful of African-American classmates who are among the smartest and most talented people I’ve had the pleasure of knowing. Nothing to prove, just intellect, hard work, and perseverance. Why even acknowledge the racists who can’t move on?
Outstanding, spot on article Mr. Blow. To paraphrase 20th Century Black intellectual extraordinaire, James Baldwin, the truth is that a large number (not all) White people, including many self described White liberals deem Black Americans as not fully human. Thus, they spend most , if not, all their lives trying to justify engaging in such perverse denial to themselves and fellow White co-horts whether subtly or overtly.
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Michelle Obama is trying very hard to do the same thing, her husband tried so hard to do.
To make the world a better place for everyone.
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I know that she has demurred, but I think that best use of Michelle Obama's intelligence and demeanor would be in the White House!
The last thing we need in the White House is someone who first began to not despise the US after her husband was elected president. As for evidence of her brilliance, I see none. Certainly she is not an unintelligent woman, but brilliance? C'mon.
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I couldn’t agree more. I feel the pain of missing President and Mrs. Obama every single day. My wish for Mrs. Obama is a peaceful, fun-filled, fulfilling rest of her life. She gave enough to this dysfunctional country. She earned our love and appreciation and I hope a racist never ever crosses her path again.
I agree with Mr. Blow on this. I too was puzzled by Mrs. Obama's comments. Her brother sitting next to her looked visibly uncomfortable as she spoke about being "better" than white people who wanted to get away from blacks. I wondered if the racism she experienced as a child had been so traumatic for her that she still felt the injustice of it today just as keenly as she did then. Which is heartbreaking, and perhaps especially so coming from someone who, as Mr. Blow rightly says, has nothing to prove to anyone.
What I heard besides the hurt in Mrs. Obama's comments was an accusatory anger and indignation at those who had abandoned her family and other black families. "Y'all were running from us." Expecting racists to own their prejudices and grow up to be better people may not be rational, but the emotional logic expressed by her comments is understandable. Mr. Blow is right: the part of her that racists object to is the part she can't change. She could cure cancer, win ten Nobel prizes - nothing would be good enough. It's a waste of energy trying to convince racists of your worthiness when the basic tenets of racism decree that you are intrinsically unworthy. She has had a glorious life by many standards. I hope she can lay down some ghosts and set herself free.
Michelle Obama should run for president. She’d win.
Agreed that Michelle Obama is bright, thoughtful and a role model.
I don’t agree with Mr. Blow, his article is cynical and doesn’t inspire the kind of thoughtful understanding(s) of racism the Obamas possess.
But above all, the ability to maintain that thoughtfulness, humility and focus when your rise to fame and wealth (I.e. power) has transcended your skin color should be our wish— but that is something they both already seem to have.
Ever wonder why Charles is always printing lengthy history lessons on racism? Because he can't cite any real injustice (i.e. not mind reading) taking place today. The best he can do is mention "mass incarceration" and cite a "behavior rationale" as if behavior has nothing to do with being incarcerated.
Disparate drug policies has been debunked. Crack was an epidemic of violence and ruined lives in black neighborhoods. It was black leaders who advocated for stiffer penalties. More unarmed white men are shot by police but there are no videos or protests.
Excellent essay. The trap of racism is always to state the exact opposite of the truth. Call black people lazy while you force them to work for you. Call black people thief’s when you steal the product of their labor and their kin. And call black people inferior when there is something deeply wrong inside any person who cannot see and respect the humanity in another. What we need is to understand why the culture of white supremacy is so bankrupt and empty that it needs to oppress others. Where does that deep insecurity come from?
My wish for Michelle and President Barack H Obama, our last legitimate president, is that they stay safe. Our tyrant is unhinged.
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I agree with Mr. Blow that Michelle Obama has nothing to prove to the racists. She is an articulate, intelligent, thoughtful woman with a delightful sense of humor. There is nothing to prove -- her record stands for itself and any parent would want their child to grow up to be like her. On the other hand, our racist president could never prove to me that he is an intelligent, thoughtful, compassionate person no matter what he did and I certainly don't want my children or grandchildren modeling themselves after him.
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My wish for Michelle: that she stops participating in the rehabilitation of George W. Bush. The candy-passimg and hugging is demeaning and ignores Bush's record as the originator of a disastrous war based on lies.
It's unfortunate that our first black president had to be expert in not scaring white people.
That's something we need to see in the rear-view mirror.
His latest tut-tutting on "woke" thinking means history has already passed him by: all his plaintive efforts to "reach across the aisle" were met with contempt and we need to learn that lesson -- even if he never did.
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@arvay, the bushes daughters reached out to Obama daughters, a gesture that was tremendously comforting to the Obamas. who perhaps realized George w Bush is not a band person, but a stupid one, who surrounded himself with mad people who made him do bad things.
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"Convincing racists of black people's worth?" This is not a responsibility for anyone who is the target of racist attitudes and actions. It has nothing to do with brilliance. This is the white man's burden.
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Michelle Obama is amazing because she believes in the inherent goodness of people. She traffics in hope. She is an optimist. She is correct to try to help people see clearly. Racists have it wrong. She has it right. When the great people, like Michelle Obama, stop caring and stop trying to lead the way, then, Mr. Blow, we are all doomed.
Let's face it, First Lady is a silly and inane job. In my lifetime, only Hillary Clinton and Michelle Obama have been able to do something with. I applaud them for their efforts.
I agree with everything except how Mr. Blow characterizes Michelle Obama's intentions, from what is admittedly an imperfect choice of words in that interview. I think she understands that ignorance creates a vacuum, and that vacuum then gets filled by racist hatred. I believe that Ms. Obama intends to address the ignorance.
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Yes; to every word, yes.
Thank you, Charles.
* * *
My encapsulation:
Intelligent racists see how they can use the racism of the ignorant racists as a base for power. They are still fighting the Civil War, i.e. are traitors.
Ignorant racists use their racism to feel better about their ignorant hapless selves by imagining they are better than an entire race of others, the vast majority of whom are more educated, more productive and actually contribute to the greater good, for no reason beyond the color of their skin. They are also still fighting the Civil War, i.e. are traitors.
(Refer to the above in any consideration of removal of Confederate monuments.)
Soon enough demographics will make these lingering Confederates and their enablers irrelevant. However we must be incessantly vigilant for any 21st century John Wilkes Booth when we actually elect a progressive President. The Hate and inclination towards violence in some racists remains beyond measure.
Please advise if you (or Michelle) ever find a way to defuse, to any extent, that perennial IED.
In the meantime, if there is anything that the rest of us can do to make "living while Black" safer, less challenging and with fewer obstacles on a path to greater fulfillment, please let us know. Many are listening.
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My wish is that, like all former leaders and spouses, and as Harry Truman showed us when Ike took office, just shuffle off, shut their mouths and practice their piano.
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Brexit is all about bigotry. Australia made the U.S. look like a paragon of tolerance. My family has been pointing to anti-Semitism as long as I have been alive. I am not sure I understand Mr. Blows column. There will always be bigots. He is right that Ms. Obama has nothing to prove and probably can't convince anyway.
I was very disappointed in the comments made by Michelle Obama. They showed a lack of wisdom about human nature. Whites hold onto their racist ideas because they need to and it would seem to me that the only people who can explain why whites need to feel superior to everyone else are white people. Once they figure out why they need it so much, then maybe they can evolve to a higher level of consciousness. Whether they do or not is none of my business, nor is it the business of Michelle Obama.
Completely agree that Michelle Obama should not worry about what racists think. Speaking as someone who is Jewish, 100 years of Jews trying to act like Germans didn't stop anti-Semitism in Germany. However, I suggest a better way to look at Ms. Obama's (and Mr. Obama's) focus on behavior is summed up by the words, "virtue is its own reward." No one benefits more from being good than the person being good, and, by extension, his or her own community.
Please Mr. Blow, continue to think on your process of understanding your self and your relational process with others. Your conclusions about others is also a statement about your self - intellectual violence being expressed. They like you and me are human and have work to do on better understand themselves. Challenge you to keep thinking and share some deeper insights about yourself that illustrate our communality as humans. Intellectual violence is not a crime, but is something we as humans all share in varying degrees. Phil Robinson
Ms Obama is right - she can not reverse the 300 years of phycological and social engineering practiced by the European colonial forces by one generation. The rise of Asia has started the process and white supremacy are challenged by the Asian people of China, Japan, Korea, India and some parts of Africa - economic success will prove the hollowness of white supremacy. It is already visible in American elite school campuses - dominant students are not white but Asian. Similar shift will come on the other fields and white supremacy will be cornered on a group of gun owning, tattooed violent brute high school dropouts. That clique will be the last power of white race - sophistication, knowledge, wisdom, human excellence and culture will be the power of others, both white and non white and Ms Obama represents that class. As Farid Zakareea recently said white is a vague concept in the mind of white supremacy group, it is not a real thing.
'Racism keeps you from doing your work. It keeps you explaining over and over again, your reason for being...None of that is necessary. There will always be one more thing.' Toni Morrison
The problem with, “To the white racist, racism is heritage. In their worldview, white men created the modern world and advanced culture. To them, whiteness is beauty and power, it is the pinnacle of human evolution,” is that it gives the racists too much credit for thoughtfulness. Most racists don’t think anything. Most of the overt racism I’ve seen, as well as the subtle racism in which I’ve unwittingly participated, comes from a place of supreme ignorance. But I’m a New Yorker. What do I know.
And the problem with Michele Obama’s approach is of course that black people are flawed too, and no matter how virtuous she may be, there will always be someone black the racists can point to.
Nelson Mandela didn't live his life for the white nor black gaze. He lived it for the human gaze. But he was ever conscious of, mindful of and attentive to all shades of gaze. Perhaps that is what Michelle Obama hopes to live.
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Thank you for this truism. Michelle Obama is in a class by herself. It seems she may just be wondering out loud and not necessarily spending an inordinate amount of time on dissecting the minds and thinking of racists.
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I'm thankful that Nelson Mandela didn't have the perspective of Charles Blow on this issue.
I would guess that the more brilliant, erudite, graceful, stylish, charming, funny, exemplary Michelle Obama is, the more she infuriates her racist critics. There is so little to find fault with, they have to make up conspiracy theories about her. And some really hateful and ugly gossip was circulated while she was First Lady. It had to hurt her; how could it not.
It made racists furious that the Obamas occupied the White House, and for eight years no less! They embodied the best and most admirable qualities of the American people, completely disproving racist nonsense. I agree, Charles. She should just keep being the wonderful woman she is. That is more than enough.
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So true, so true! I keep thinking about Trump’s racist base, and about what William Tecumseh Sherman said of similar people: “The confederates have made it plain who they are and what they want—there is no need for argument any more. Now we must simply beat them.”
"...to waste her time convincing racists of black people’s worth."
No one should ever waste their time to convince racists of the time of day.
I was appalled as a child when growing up that African Americans and Asian Indians were forced to ride in the back of our city busses.
What I found even more appalling--in the new millennia yet--was that racist bigots were parading around the country whining about not being given equal time to spread their profoundly stupid, hateful rhetoric on college campuses and on our city streets.
This continues to the present.
Trying to convince these people to drop the hate and act like fair-minded human beings is like trying to get a potato to recite the Gettysburg Address.
Our only option under the current leadership of this country is to 'Shame and Ignore'.
i agree with you on everything! Black people need to love and be proud of who they are. Once that happens, you accept other people who respect you and try to discard the opinions of those who don't. It also helps you to confront misguided comments gently and outright racist comments stubbornly.
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My wish for Michelle Obama is that she would become our next President. Oh well....
I think I understand Mr. Blow’s point. Michelle Obama was perfect as First Lady. All the time. Why did she have to be?
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This "when they go low, we go high" nonsense will help get you another four more years of Donald J. Trump.
And yet racism is declining over the generations (albeit way too slowly). It cannot be a genetic condition, or 21st century whites would be exactly like their 19th century ancestors. As Rogers & Hammerstein put it in South Pacific, "You've got to be carefully taught."
I agree that it's not Michelle Obama's job to end racism. But we need to understand what works, in schools and in popular culture, to counteract racism white children learn at home.
I believe living in a diverse environment--in the neighborhood, at school, at church, at work--does help considerably.
I take advantage of the fact that miraculously today the New York Times allows me to comment without subscription - it looks non subscribers like me have limited access to articles and comments or none at all, depending. Because of that I was so disappointed I could not join the collective mourning of Rep. Elijah Cummings recently passed away, when there were so many doing so through the New York Times; I wanted to join in and unfortunately I could not. I do now, though very very belatedly but better late than never. This comment of mine perhaps is wandering from the subject a bit or maybe not; Elijah Cummings was so committed to fight racism inside Trumpian White House and made his purpose so crystal clear I was so sad to hear the news of his being no longer. And I must also thank Charles Blow that's giving me this chance to being able to express my sorrow. May his indomitable spirit be an inspiration to all the ones fighting injustice and oppression.
Michelle Obama's legacy is intact and thriving in her two daughters and millions of young girls and their brothers around the globe. She has nothing to prove, she already has.
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Thanks so much for writing this! Black folks like myself need to hear and be reminded of the utter futility of making white people see us as human.
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Even a rational species evolves slowly.
I think understanding why this world is so messed up is every moral person’s piece of curiosity. Maybe there’s a right or exception for those who suffered the prejudices of others. Still most of us have or will be this other with a prejudice of others in our future life. It’s how people as a whole in a macro culture work. We all have seen, read, or heard too many stories without overt judgement, and I know no one who moves from here to the end of life judging constantly the prejudgements of others. Without our subconscious our brain would fry eggs on a sidewalk on the coldest morning of the year.
Thank you NYT for this comments section. It really serves as a litmus test of who theNYreaders are “the best & the brightest”. Scary much of Blow’s column was not even seen let alone read.
After 2016 elections I believed we would find out who America is. We sure have. I had heard a psychic say that WH resident would not finish his term and Obama would be called bUp until recently I said impossible then I considered maybe not Barack but Michelle.
At which point this incredibly brilliant Black woman is being asked to come in and clean up America’s mess. She’ll make her own decisions but reflecting on the attitudes expressed here. Please focus on the youth this group of dinosaurs need to die out.
I read an indirect slur that our behavior (I’m African American female) created the trash strewn, rat infested housing we are forced to live in. Do some reading and gain some understanding of the societal and economic barriers that perpetuate slums, then speak.
Then, it’s intimated that we need to go where we are wanted. Maybe haloes are not welcomed because of their colonizer mentality. Well African Americans built thiscountry and me and mine aren’t going anywhere.
God bless the Obamas for sacrifice they have made. I’m sure they will fulfill their lives work. Americans need to face who they are stop looking at easy solutions. Get your own individual relationships going across racial lines, get rid of your biases and build a system that works for all. Do Your Work Clean Your Hous
Michelle Obama's hope to reach through to and change people that hate is an enlightened one. I esteem her for holding it inside, and with her typical candor being able to say so in public.
Maybe Charles Blow sees her as a public figure who must evaluate what she says according to the needs of the times. However, she has proven repeatedly that she is too free an individual to not be a free person when it comes to these deeper issues. Does Blow himself not believ that the will to love can conquer hate, if not in racists then in their neighbors and kids who hear her words?
It’s not about appeasing bigots; failing all else, she’s hoping positive energy can counteract racism. The Obama high road.
It’ll take effort for our multi-racial culture to grow up, MO chooses to make it. Good on her.
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After MB was in the White House for a few years, she was clear she did not like being a very public figure. That is understandable.
If she is going to be a public figure, she has to be good at it. And, she has to be regularly available. She should pick a topic she can be successful and lead on. Otherwise, she could become irrelevant.
And, I would not rule out the possibility she would not be welcomed back on the public stage. You only have to look at Hillary, to see the guaranteed first ever woman president, is persona non grata this election year.
As a Trump voter, I would love to see Hillary come back.
I agree.
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When she chided white people about moving out black neighborhoods, the Washington Post mentioned that..........."The Obamas in September were in the process of buying a 29-acre estate on the Massachusetts island that had a $14.85 million price tag, according to Forbes magazine."
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Thank you for your insight.
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I get your point; several times in my life I have fallen for men who I really believed would change because love would find a way. Same thing here. As you said, it's about power, and as we've seen repeatedly, power is hard for humans to resist, regardless of the cost.
I imagine she's witnessed some remarkable examples of being charitable and being condemning in her life. She exists in a very rarefied strata of actualization. We'll just have to take her word for it. I believe she knows what she's doing.
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This column conflates those who fear black people with overt racists. I don't think that they're the same.
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Mr. Blow, I believe there is at least some real merit to MIchelle Obama's approach. Most of us, face to face, are far more decent than online discourse would have us believe. For most, prejudice, hate, and ignorance are often overcome by a personal relationship of value with someone from a despised demographic.
When Obama chooses to "show up every day as a human, a good human," rather than merely channeling some sort of plaintive Booker T. Washington theme perhaps she is simply making herself available to be known for the admirable woman you know her to be. I don't think even someone of Obama's talent can talk many racists out of their attitudes, but perhaps by just showing up as she does, modeling decency, empathy, and reason, and by refusing to reject all racists out of hand, she might—might—allow one or two to engage her long enough to see the truth.
I agree there's no cure for a huge issue like racism, but the possibility of individual transformation does exist. If Dick Cheney can accept and approve of gay marriage, if Jesse Helms and George Wallace can repudiate racist attitudes they had espoused throughout their lives, then there is surely hope that practically anyone can be seduced by the power of personal example. You can't drive a racist horse to water, but at least you can make sure the wellsprings of human kindness are there if they ever choose to drink.
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I keep coming back to the expression "to walk in another man's shoes". I think that is what the First Lady is trying to do and in so doing hopes to not only understand their racism but lead them to an alternative path by leading an exemplary life. You say that she should not spend time getting into the heads of a racist and yet that is in my opinion what you have done with a good portion of this article. I am not going to apologize for racism of any kind or try and justify it but we must recognize it, fight against it and try to change it. I wish Michelle Obama much success in her efforts.
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With a world class life as First Lady, entrepreneur, and best selling author, with all the exclusivity that entails, I imagine it might be tolerable to suffer a few fools and try to inspire someone to rethink their biases once in a while. Those that endure micro-aggressions on a daily basis, and far worse types of humiliations, should not be expected to take responsibility for fixing other people.
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Respect and equality can arise from many sources. When beginning to play basketball in my yoyth, I noticed the black players played a lot rougher with more physical contact. While I didn't like that style of game, I eventually had to acknowledge, these guys were GOOD.
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" America downgraded erudition to indecency." That sentence is one of the best summaries of the 2016 election I've read. We got stuck with one of the worst possible outcomes of an election.
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After listening to my bi-racial 17-year old son's story of three men dressing up in KKK "costumes" for Halloween last week in his home town, and a larger group doing the same in a neighboring town, and then seeing pictures in the local news of "It's OK to be White" signs hung over pictures of the first Black students to enroll at the local University, Michelle's words are helpful and healing for me. As a white grandmother of bi-racial grandchildren, racism hurts from both sides and is at times too heavy for my heart to bear.
Michelle and Barack Obama walk the line of racism courageously, with elegance and a dash of pride that is inspiring. In the many times I've read Mr. Blow's opinion column, I feel he does the same. Both approaches to the issues of racial inequality are relevant and worthy of reflection. The use of her word "scab" had taken me aback at first, but then I realized it is a good metaphor for racism. There will forever be a scar if and when the scab ever heals.
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Michelle Obama is now free of the confines of politics to speak her mind, travel the world, act on her values and stand tall as the brilliant spokeswoman she has always been.
"I have learned that as long as I holdfast to my beliefs and values-follow my own moral compass-then the only expectations I need to live up to are my own." -Michelle Obama
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Racial equality will prevail, but thinking that exemplary behavior will enlighten anyone is honorable self-delusion.
Michelle would make a wonderful president herself, but Charles is right; this tack is a waste of opportunity.
But I have to wonder what it is about the media spotlight that so fascinates Michelle, that she risks the inevitable criticism thrown at her so easily (and anonymoooshly) in our polluted "social media" environment.
She could do ANYTHING. Perhaps she's searching for that direction.
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So true. If facts and statistics mattered, we wouldn’t have the modern GOP.
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Upon reading this excellent column, I immediately thought of Tulsa in 1921. Black success in that scenario, rather than encouraging enlightenment, invoked resentment, with horrible consequences. It was only the other day, in discussing race with a friend who grew up in Oklahoma, that we both marveled about the fact that the Greenwood riot was never mentioned in our high school, or to our recollection, college, history classes. This same kind of resentment surfaced upon the election of Obama, whose success often invoked the “uppity” label, and, in the same breath, the racist trope of reverse discrimination.
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Mr. Blow is correct in his assessment of Mrs. Obama's comments. In fact, we witnessed similar obsequious behavior by President Obama with the "beer summit", after he stood up for professor Henry Louis Gates of Harvard University.
There was such a white backlash for President Obama's callout of the racist action of Cambridge cops that Mr. Obama felt compelled to demonstrate to them that he saw the error of his ways. Yes, the so-called leader of the free world had to quickly apologize for saying the right thing.