Coloring the blind spot: The urban black community as an object of racial discourse in the age of Obama

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Abstract

The emergence of Barack Obama in American politics has signified to many an important breakthrough in race relations. He has found political success by variously embodying the 'post-civil rights' cultural values of 'colorblindness', 'race-trancendence', 'post-racialism', and racial hybridity. By exploring both the racial politics of past 'post-civil rights' presidential elections, and also the practices of racial discourse animating the 2008 presidential race - particularly the 'Rev. Wright incident' - I critique the cultural logic of 'post-civil rights'. I argue that the values that constitute this cultural logic, although appearing progressive, work to Whitewash the structural realities of urban Black communities, and that particularly in regard to racial politics, Obama represents not change but a further step in the wrong direction.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)212-223
Number of pages12
JournalWestern Journal of Black Studies
Volume33
Issue number3
StatePublished - Sep 2009
Externally publishedYes

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Cultural Studies

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