# Now that Obama is POTUS aren't black claims of being oppressed kind of hollow? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [November 5, 2008, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-obama-is-potus-arent-black-claims-of-being-oppressed-kind-of-hollow/471329 "2008-11-05T19:41:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Natty\_Bumppo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e480ec/32.png) [@Natty\_Bumppo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Natty_Bumppo)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2008, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-obama-is-potus-arent-black-claims-of-being-oppressed-kind-of-hollow/471329/81 "2008-11-07T16:20:29Z")
“Don’t people trying to play the racial victim card look kind of silly from ths point forward?” This is poorly worded, I think. Individuals may continue to face racism. They won’t be “silly” for playing the race card when there is actual discrimination against them. However, the larger point is that racism is no longer an acceptable excuse for black failures _in general_. If a black man can become POTUS, then any black man can succeed in anything he sets his mind to. If he fails, he can’t blame a racist society. That is not to say racism won’t crop up in individual cases. He may be justified in accusing a specific person, or institution, for a specific infraction. The notion that “America” is racist is effectively dead. ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2008, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-obama-is-potus-arent-black-claims-of-being-oppressed-kind-of-hollow/471329/82 "2008-11-07T16:36:16Z")
> [@Natty\_Bumppo](#): > > However, the larger point is that racism is no longer an acceptable excuse for black failures _in general_. If a black man can become POTUS, then any black man can succeed in anything he sets his mind to. If he fails, he can’t blame a racist society. That is not to say racism won’t crop up in individual cases. He may be justified in accusing a specific person, or institution, for a specific infraction. The notion that “America” is racist is effectively dead. Thank god somebody finally said it in words that are more befitting an adult conversation. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2008, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-obama-is-potus-arent-black-claims-of-being-oppressed-kind-of-hollow/471329/83 "2008-11-07T17:02:09Z")
> [@Nzinga\_Seated](#): > > levdrakon, I won’t speak for _you_, but I will admit this is a big deal for _me_. > > After reading his book, I realized it is a big deal to _him_. And of course it is. He is raised being considered black by every single eye that rests on him. All of a sudden, when he becomes absurdly successful he is half black? I don’t blame him for rejecting that silliness. > > I actually started a thread about this before. So yeah, it is a big deal for me. Yeah, I just don’t understand it. It’s like a necessary qualifier, but a qualifier of what? “Don’t be afraid, I’m only half-black?” “Don’t get excited, you didn’t elect a _black_ president, just a halfie.” What is it? ---
**Author:** ![you\_with\_the\_face](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/ecccb3/32.png) [@you\_with\_the\_face](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/you_with_the_face)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2008, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-obama-is-potus-arent-black-claims-of-being-oppressed-kind-of-hollow/471329/84 "2008-11-07T18:23:06Z")
> [@Natty\_Bumppo](#): > > "The notion that “America” is racist is effectively dead. This is conclusion is so bizarre to me. Did you watch the same campaign that I did? But forget about the obvious: the name-calling, the monkey dolls and “Obama bucks”, the slurs and innuendo. Consider that McCain had everything going against him in this race. He was running uphill just on the basis of his relationship to a very unpopular incubent and his own lukewarm popularity within the GOP. When you throw Palin and the economy into the mix, McCain’s loss was inevitable. A donkey could have won this election. And when I say donkey, I don’t mean the symbol of the Dems. I’m saying an _actual_ donkey could have won against McCain. Given this, Obama’s victory doesn’t defy reasonable expectations, and all it proves is that Americans as a group find the idea of a McCain White House less preferable to that of an Obama White House…either because they like Obama or because they _hate_ McCain to the extent that they’d rather hold their nose and elect black man (“hey, he’s only half black, I might could live with that”). Concluding that racism is dead because Obama won is like concluding sexism is dead because Bhuto was elected in Pakistan. ---
**Author:** ![Natty\_Bumppo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e480ec/32.png) [@Natty\_Bumppo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Natty_Bumppo)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2008, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-obama-is-potus-arent-black-claims-of-being-oppressed-kind-of-hollow/471329/85 "2008-11-07T19:41:45Z")
> [@you\_with\_the\_face](#): > > This is conclusion is so bizarre to me. Did you watch the same campaign that I did? > > But forget about the obvious: the name-calling, the monkey dolls and “Obama bucks”, the slurs and innuendo. Consider that McCain had everything going against him in this race. He was running uphill just on the basis of his relationship to a very unpopular incubent and his own lukewarm popularity within the GOP. When you throw Palin and the economy into the mix, McCain’s loss was inevitable. A donkey could have won this election. And when I say donkey, I don’t mean the symbol of the Dems. I’m saying an _actual_ donkey could have won against McCain. > > Given this, Obama’s victory doesn’t defy reasonable expectations, and all it proves is that Americans as a group find the idea of a McCain White House less preferable to that of an Obama White House…either because they like Obama or because they _hate_ McCain to the extent that they’d rather hold their nose and elect black man (“hey, he’s only half black, I might could live with that”). > > Concluding that racism is dead because Obama won is like concluding sexism is dead because Bhuto was elected in Pakistan. You’re misreading me. I didn’t say racism is dead. Racism will probably be with us forever. Most likely, to the end of days one can always find some jerk who hates for the sake of hating. My point is that, when Obama won the election, the United States of America ceased to be racist _as a country_ - almost by definition. Besides, you sell the electorate short, and assume facts not in evidence. If the market hadn’t taken a nose dive, Obama may very well have lost. ---
**Author:** ![you\_with\_the\_face](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/ecccb3/32.png) [@you\_with\_the\_face](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/you_with_the_face)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2008, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-obama-is-potus-arent-black-claims-of-being-oppressed-kind-of-hollow/471329/86 "2008-11-07T20:49:38Z")
> [@Natty\_Bumppo](#): > > My point is that, when Obama won the election, the United States of America ceased to be racist _as a country_ - almost by definition. When you make this statement, you’re implying that on Nov 3 “America” was racist but on Nov 4, it suddenly wasn’t. Can you flesh this out more? To me, the lack of a black president wasn’t evidence America was racist. So that’s why the presence of one doesn’t automatically prove it’s not racist. > [@](#): > > Besides, you sell the electorate short, and assume facts not in evidence. If the market hadn’t taken a nose dive, Obama may very well have lost. Well it _did_ take a nose dive. It hardly make sense to base conclusions about America’s race relations when objectively speaking, McCain had very little going for him and the new guy–irrespective of his race–did. ---
**Author:** ![Hostile\_Dialect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e495f1/32.png) [@Hostile\_Dialect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hostile_Dialect)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2008, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-obama-is-potus-arent-black-claims-of-being-oppressed-kind-of-hollow/471329/87 "2008-11-07T21:55:19Z")
> [@Natty Bumppo](#): > > My point is that, when Obama won the election, the United States of America ceased to be racist as a country - almost by definition. Really? I don’t see that automatic conclusion coming from a 2% margin of victory, especially when whites favored McCain by 10%. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-that-obama-is-potus-arent-black-claims-of-being-oppressed-kind-of-hollow/471329.md?page=4)