Current Event: Attitudes Toward President Obama

It is difficult to get everyone in the United States to agree on one thing, especially the presidency. Some people like President Obama and some people do not like him or his policies. Assassination is a serious issue and the most recent attempt to President Obama involved ricin-tainted letters. This is not the first time there has been a threat to Obama's life. This is a sociological issue due to people's perspectives and behaviors towards the presidency and race.

This scholarly article is an interview with John Dovodio from Yale University. He discusses the view of race in regards to the new president, Barack Obama. He states that the power has not shifted, but that African Americans are more accepted, hence the election of our first African American president. I think the most interesting point of this article is that people do not lose prejudice overnight. It takes time to lose the prejudice that a number of people in America have. http://www.apa.org/monitor/2009/04/race-relations.aspx

Figure 1: Congressional Black Caucus (Source: The Last Refuge, 2012)

In this YouTube video, a speech that President Obama had recently made is being dissected. He made a comment concerning how his white grandmother regarded African Americans, and said that that view is typical of white people. They hold prejudice and racism for years. This is why Obama might be seen negatively as a President, through the eyes of the white American.

This article from the University of Michigan states that anti-racial sentiments have become more common since Obama took the presidency. This could be because a large number of Americans still disagree with the election of Obama, due to his skin color. America has come a long ways in terms of racism and prejudice, but some people still might not think we were ready for an African American president. http://www.ns.umich.edu/new/releases/20943-attitudes-toward-african-americans-have-worsened-since-2008

Another article from the Boston Globe states that the racial divide between blacks and whites is likely to persist for years to come. Even though President Obama was thought to "bridge the gap" between whites and blacks, anti-black sentiments have increased. It is true that we have come a long ways regarding segregation and racism compared to 50 years ago, but we still have a ways to go. http://www.bostonglobe.com/news/nation/2012/11/20/despite-obama-presidency-racial-divide-expected-persist-united-states/ONPO9LRIasUfGrLYWM3m7H/story.html

The following quote relates the African-Americans of America to the children of Israel, because even though we have abolished segregation and outlawed racism, we still have quite a ways to go to have racial equality.

“I liken it to the biblical exodus. After Moses led the children of Israel out of Egypt, they still had to wander the wilderness for 40 years until they could truly reach the promised land."- Charles Stith

(Source: The Boston Globe, 2012)