The Persistence of the Color Line
Racial Politics and the Obama Presidency
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4.0 • 4 Ratings
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- $5.99
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- $5.99
Publisher Description
A “provocative and richly insightful new book” (The New York Times Book Review) that gives us a shrewd and penetrating analysis of the complex relationship between the first black president and his African-American constituency.
Renowned for his insightful, common-sense critiques of racial politics, Randall Kennedy now tackles such hot-button issues as the nature of racial opposition to Obama; whether Obama has a singular responsibility to African Americans; the differences in Obama’s presentation of himself to blacks and to whites; the challenges posed by the dream of a post-racial society; the increasing irrelevance of a certain kind of racial politics and its consequences; the complex symbolism of Obama’s achievement and his own obfuscations and evasions regarding racial justice.
Eschewing the critical excesses of both the left and the right, Kennedy offers an incisive view of Obama’s triumphs and travails, his strengths and weaknesses, as they pertain to the troubled history of race in America.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Harvard law professor Kennedy (Sellout) turns his kaleidoscopic perspective on race in American life upon an engrossing and nuanced analysis of "the racial issues that have surrounded Obama's election and presidency." Kennedy balances his admiration for Obama's achievement with an awareness that the president is "a professional politician first and last." He looks at Obama's courtship of black voters and white voters as a "tightrope" requiring that he be "black enough to arouse the communal pride and support of African Americans but not too black' to be accepted by whites and others." Challenging knee-jerk responses from the left, right, center, and fringe to media tempests (e.g., Henry Louis Gates's arrest, the Shirley Sherrod "debacle," the "attacks" on Sonia Sotomayor), he manages to look beyond race without overlooking race, placing events in a historical political context. Distinguishing "racial from nonracial criticism," he finds, surprisingly, "considerably less racial misconduct in 2008 than much of the election commentary has contended." Kennedy's own tightrope to walk is his view that Obama avoids confronting race and his recognition of "the symbolic power of example." That he does so successfully makes his account both provocative and informative, arguable and absorbing.
Customer Reviews
Offers some Insight
Provides a current perspective on race surrounding President Obama and society as a whole. At times the author gives biased opinions that are not supported by facts. Overall a pretty good read that provides some insight on race in American politics.