PLEASE READ THE DIARY BEFORE WHINING ABOUT NOT EVERY CRITICISM OF OBAMA IS NOT RACIST. I SAY AS MUCH IN THIS DIARY. SO READ IT BEFORE YOU COMPLAIN.
One of the big mysteries of this primary season for me has been how the canard that Obama does not have much substance has been able to sustain itself.
Obama is a constitutional law professor, considered by everyone to be stunningly intelligent and charismatic. His program is as detailed as Hillary's and he never - as far as I know - has been caught not knowing something about an issue.
Sure, his rhetorical emphasis is more on broader themes and he is hurt by running against Clinton who is a master of the minutae. But when McCain who has barely released anything concrete about his plans takes the meme over and pounds on the substance issue, and journalists who have been following this campaign for 18 months, saw him campaign in IA where candidates are asked about the most obscure of issues, read every release and plan and speech he made, repeat it, I have to wonder why the idea sipped in so easily in the zeitgeist.
Reading an op-ed in tomorrow's WP it finally struck me:
Racial attitudes have changed dramatically in the United States over the past several decades, of course, and overtly racist beliefs are much less prevalent among white Americans of all classes today. But a more subtle form of prejudice, which social scientists sometimes call symbolic racism, is still out there -- especially among working-class whites.
Symbolic racism means believing that African American poverty and other problems are largely the result of lack of ambition and effort, rather than white racism and discrimination.
Let me preface this by saying that I am not particularly keen on using the race card one way or another. While I found Bill C.'s SC comment despicably condescending, they didn't feel to me as racist per se. And most of the comments made by the Clinton campaign were tremendously race-insensitive and sometimes outrageously aimed at raising racial tensions but I do not believe they are racists.
John "I hate the gooks" McCain is probably not a racist either although I would believe someone his age would have more troublesome views on race if he talked freely in private.
Back to my point, what struck me in that op-ed is the idea that racism now takes the form of subtle prejudice (fair enough) and stereotyping rather than outright hostility.
Among these is a stereotype - that we are all familiar with - of the black man being lazy and/or a "pimp".
The black man is supposed to be lazy, not liking to work, not working hard in school and so on. Funnily enough, Hillary Clinton's message about "action, not speeches" play on that stereotype. The black man is supposed to have the gift of speaking himself up - the gift of gab - but does not really do anything. He does not deliver. Flees responsabilities. Does not like to work.
In the same vein here is Steve Schmitt, McCain's advisor about how they intend to define Obama:
"It's a combination of weakness, not being ready to be president and not being able to deliver on the things he says he will deliver on."
Charles Black:
"Both candidates are candidates of change, reform, and promising to work across party lines," Black said. "Guess who has a record of doing that? It's McCain and not Obama."
See a pattern ? Keep repeating Obama has not done much in spite of his rhetoric. Sure he has been a senator for several years and had a long career in IL before that. But you know, he probably sat on his ass and just took advantage of his charisma to advance. It possible could not be that he worked hard to go that far so fast (on that note, notice the similarity between the idea he has not "waited his turn" and the rhetoric of people resenting affirmative action who think an undeserving AA is taking the place of a more deserving white by virtue of his race - see Ferraro, Gerry). And he won't deliver on what he promises, like a deadbeat dad.
Another cliche those messages play into is the "pimp". The "bling-bling" black man who can talk people into his cons. Who likes flashy stuff and big talk. Who is loud and talkative. But without much substance behind it.
And the "suspicious" associations remind people of the "suspicious" success of those unemployed black men walking around with golden teeth.
I could go on and on. You get my drift.
Let's be clear. I AM NOT SAYING MCCAIN OR CLINTON ARE USING THESE CLICHES INTENTIONALLY. A lot of white politicians have been called these things (Where is the beef?) successfully.
I am saying however that it is my opinion that one reason these storylines that are so far away from Obama's real personality, life story and work ethics have caught on is probably partly because unconsciously, they fit into the pre-existing stereotypes we have about black men.
And of course you know that these are stereotypes and that none of the things I have described above are an endorsement of that type of thinking or stereotyping.
What do you think of that theory ?