I was elated when I heard President Obama speak out on the Trayvon Martin case. I was actually with a client when we saw that he was taking to the airways. We stopped our meeting and with much emotion shared our sheer joy that he had the courage to tell his story as a Black man living in modern day America.
He knew that the pundits would have a hey-day, dissecting his every word and his opposers would be sure to lend their critical voices.
I was struck that the most common opposing view was that he was adding fuel to the racial debate in this country. Well yes, that is exactly what he was doing and in my opinion that is exactly what is needed. We need to hear the stories of our leaders of color who can empathize with a Trayvon Martin situation.
Sharing his own painful experiences of being followed, mistrusted and mistreated because of his visible identity was a powerful lesson to help us all understand that for as far as we have come down the road of equality, we are still trudging along and at times take long and ugly detours.
“I think it’s important to recognize that the African American community is looking at this issue through a set of experiences and a history that doesn’t go away,” Obama said, “and it’s going to be important for all of us to do some soul-searching.”
Yes, all Americans need to do some soul searching. Our racial divide is not the sole purview of African Americans to worry about and try to correct. However, if the perspective is that we live in a post-racial society, in those minds there is really nothing to work on. If the perspective is that we should not “fuel the racial fires” but rather just ignore them, then there is still nothing to talk about. And therein lies the problem. We don’t want to talk about race in this country.
I truly hope that President Obama’s testimony will allow for more authentic dialogue which will lead to real systemic change. In the meantime, I hope that President Obama’s comments will save at least one young black boy’s life because someone will think twice about labeling and profiling him as someone to be feared.
Image credit: Manuel Balce Ceneta, AP
