America's first black president has been placed in the tenuous position of being a black politician in a nation that apparently still harbors latent racial attitudes. As though trapped in a time spiral, the American president was recently flung into the polarizing loop of racial politics of past decades. “The fact that it has garnered so much attention…is a testimony to the fact that these are issues that are still very sensitive here in America,” President Obama said on Saturday.
Initially remarking as a “personal friend" of Professor Gates, President Obama explained his wording in a follow-on press conference, Saturday. Democratic strategist, Jamal Simmons, said on CNN’s Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer on 7/25/09, “Well, the political strategist in me says that he probably did the right thing…for the body politic. [But] the black man in me…wishes that he wouldn't have had to say what he said today.”
Simmons’ dilemma is exactly the quandary President Obama’s words created nationally. The unfortunate event, the individuals’ (Gates and Crowley’s) reaction, the president’s comments and the media’s response highlight the insidious, divisive and polarizing problem that still lies at the core of American society – racial perception’s influence on politics.
Racial Perception
Psychologist Peter Ruble states in his article Is Perception Reality, “…it is reality in terms of living in today's society in which interacting and relating to others is a necessity for survival and success….”
Professor Gates unintentionally presented the two contrasting forms of perception (with reference to this incident) on Friday’s The Gayle King Show. “…the people who want to protect the police…are looking for something that I could have done to justify Sgt. Crowley's actions….There's nothing that I could have done to justify Sgt. Crowley's action," Gates argued.
Political Fallout
The political consequences have been equally discordant; however, both sides address the president’s response - not the act itself.
- One political side is expressed by radio personality Rush Limbaugh. He said to Greta Van Susteren yesterday on FOX News Channel's On the Record, “…there's an undercurrent here... And we're finding out this guy's [President Obama] got a chip on his shoulder. He's angry at this country.”
- Supporters of Obama’s remarks are best summed by Simmons who supposed, “I think the president probably -- stepped up and said something that a lot of African- Americans were thinking….”
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