"Blacks Lost Economic Ground Under Obama"...So What!

Tavis Smiley has done it again.  He has caused a controversy for stating that under President Obama, blacks have lost economic ground in every indicator.  He actually predicted this would happen a couple of years ago when he said, "The data is going to indicate sadly that when the Obama administration is over, black people will have lost ground in every single leading economic indicator category."  And just as it was back in October of 2013 when he made the prediction, so it is today...people really don't like what he said (well, some people, that is).



It shouldn't come as a surprise that many blacks are seemingly oblivious to this depressing economic news. To be sure, Americans as a whole have been hard hit by the recession and policies granting the government greater authority over our hard-earned money. But despite the economy's gradual turnaround, blacks have in fact been the last to experience economic recovery.

The president enjoyed broad-based support, but no other group had bigger hopes for measurable change in their lives than Obama's loyal base--black voters.  However, the president apparently knew that those hopes wouldn't be fulfilled, certainly not to expectations, because during his first term, Obama, acknowledging the lethargic economic picture for blacks, said that change for them would be slow in the making.

During a speech at the annual awards dinner for the Congressional Black Caucus in 2011, Obama told this key voting block to "Take off your bedroom slippers.  Put on your marching shoes. Shake it off. Stop complainin'.  Stop grumblin'.  Stop cryin'. We're going to press on.  We have work to do."  And blacks dutifully did as told.  Unlike other groups, blacks have refrained from criticizing the president, even as other groups were getting their demands met.  The president has heard practically no complaining, grumbling or crying from blacks.

Illinois Congressman Luis Gutierrez, among many other Latino leaders, waged a well-orchestrated campaign against President Obama in the press to force his hand on illegal immigration.  The pressure worked and the president signed an executive order delaying deportation.

Gay-rights activists also put considerable pressure on the president to change the foundational structure of marriage in America. Although Obama had long been very vocal about his support, he could not appease this voting block with words alone. Obama then took steps to further demonstrate his commitment to gay rights by ordering the Justice Department to cease defense of the law that barred the federal government from recognizing same-sex marriage, DOMA (the Defense of Marriage Act), in other words, he determined that it was unconstitutional. It wasn't until after the president had enough like-minded appointments on the Supreme Court, that gay marriage became the law of the land.

Even big business has enjoyed tremendous benefits under Obama. This, of course, includes the insurance and the healthcare industry, which has seen windfall profits under Obamacare.  I'm sure this seems ridiculous to some, but it's true.  However, it comes as no surprise, as many predicted this exact outcome.  Unfortunately, blacks appear to be the group hurt most by Obamacare.

Of course, most blacks aren't poor and most aren't looking for a government handout.  But even industrious entrepreneurs have taken several steps back over the past few years.  According to several sources, including this from the Wall Street Journal, black business owners are receiving fewer Small Business Administration loans than they have in years. After breaking out the numbers, George Curry, Editor-in-Chief of  the NNPA, the nation's largest trade organization for black-owned newspapers, said: "Obama is worse than Bush on SBA loans."

Black media probably felt the sting in a more direct way.  During Obama's 2008 campaign, so few dollars were spent with black media that many could only describe the gross lack of ad placements as a snub. Despite breaking records in fundraising and campaign ad spending ($750,000,000), Dorothy Leavell, then chairperson of the marketing committee of the Black Newspaper Publishers Association estimated that the Obama campaign spent only $100,000 in black-owned newspaper and websites during the primary.   Hopes were dashed again in 2012, after a report by the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce revealed that in just a handful of key states, democrats (Obama) spent nearly $10 million dollars with Hispanic media. Overall, nearly $23 million dollars was spent with Hispanic media. Unfortunately, I can't provide a link to what the campaign spent on black media since those numbers seem to be none existent online.  However, I do recall reading an article in a local black weekly (a so-called magapaper for the urbane) decrying how Obama ignored black media, spending an embarrassingly small amount with black media despite their wholesale support for him.

Still, despite all of this, I honestly get where many blacks are coming from when they respond to these and other facts with a simple "So what.  He's my president."  It's a level of commitment that clearly stems from a feeling of pride in having someone in the highest seat of power that looks like you.  It boils down to having experienced history that many could have never imagined.

As to those who have steadfastly responded to Tavis and others by saying that President Obama was elected to represent all Americans, not just black Americans, stop insulting peoples' intelligence. That's understood, it's not the issue.  The real issues are: 1) What fear-mongering tactics will be used this time to discourage blacks from leveraging their vote the way every other group does? Will it be that "Republicans will return us to the Jim Crow era" or perhaps "They'll take away our right to vote"? Both of these have been used numerous times, so what will be the newest scare tactic? 2) If Hillary Clinton or Bernie Sanders wins the presidency, how long will it be before blacks are asked not to make any demands because the first female or first socialist president will have enough to deal with?

Finally, the upcoming election could be the election that begins an era of real political power for blacks. But it'll only happen if blacks make the Obama era, in all its historical significance, the very last time that any candidate would dare to take our vote for granted, And this is most effectively done by either "going fishing" (a euphemism for not voting in an election in order to gain leverage) or voting for anybody other than Sanders or Clinton (this might include Mickey Mouse, or even (gasp!) a republican.  Should black voters do this one simple thing, the earth won't stop turning, nobody's rights will be rolled back, and you won't experience spontaneous human combustion (however, so-called leaders, many black clergy, and certain academics just might).  The only thing that will happen is that both the democrats and the republicans will have to court the black vote just as they do every other group.