Stuck In The ‘60s Or Race Relations Realists

The Grand Rapids Times
8-14-2009

By Peter Bailey, NNPA Columnist

Numerous times since the emergence of President Barack Obama and “Transracialism” on the national scene, my skepticism about the whole process has led people to label me as “stuck in the ‘60s” in regards to race relations in this country.
This labeling has come mostly from young Black folks, though even a few from my generation have joined in.
Well, after several recent incidents, including the banning of 65 Black and Latino youngsters from a swimming pool run by the Valley Swim Club because their presence “would change the complexion… and the atmosphere of the club,” I wonder if those same people still consider me “stuck in the ‘60s.”
Is it being stuck in the 60s to believe that a White Harvard professor would not have been arrested as was Henry Louis Gates, Jr. at his own home, following his confrontation with White police officer, James Crowley?
I am not a card-paying member of the Skip Gates fan club but it is obvious that he was arrested for being what many Whites call an “uppity” Black person who had the nerve to not be more deferential when addressing his “superior.”
What fascinates me the most about these and other such incidents is the number of Black folks who express “shock” that such things can happen in this country in 2009.
It is understandable that young Blacks under 30 may be shocked because they have basically grown up in a fantasyland in regards to race relations.
For those over 30, one can only wonder why they are shocked at expressions of White supremacy/ racism when that condition is an integral part of the country’s past and present. No, it is not as overt as before but it is still there ready to rear its ugly head at any given moment.
Those shocked Black folks should be made aware of a survey done by a University of Michigan professor which came to my attention in a 1991 editorial in the Richmond Afro- American newspaper. When asked what they considered true integration, Whites said 85 percent White, 15 percent Black with a White person always in charge; Blacks said 50-50 with a Black or White person in charge.
This explains why Whites such as Pat Buchanan, Sean Hannity, Rush Limbaugh, Laura Ingram, Ann Coulter, Glenn Beck, and all their viewers, readers and listeners responded with such venomous hysteria when President Obama said that the police officer acted “stupidly” in the Gates case. Which, by the way, is not the same as saying that the cop is stupid.
It absolutely outrages such people that a Black man is in the White House, even a safe one like President Obama. And the fact that his wife is dark-skinned just adds to the outrage.
Every time they see the Obamas in the White House carrying out their official duties, they simply lose it. The result is incidents such as the two mentioned above.
It is highly likely that such expression of overt white supremacy/racism will become increasingly bolder. Which raises the question as to whether we Black folks are prepared to defend ourselves.
Journalist/Lecturer A. Peter Bailey, a former associate editor of Ebony, is currently editor of Vital Issues: The Journal of African American Speeches. He can be reached at apeterb@verizon.net