“Is Black Support for Obama Racist?” by Jerome Hudson
With poverty at an all-time high, daunting black unemployment levels and Obamacare threatening black babies, black support for Barack Obama remains surprisingly strong. Why?
Blacks are not uniformly as radical as Obama. So why do 91 percent of blacks still support him when only 79 percent of his Democrat constituency does? It’s a black thang. Again, why?
Some say Obama’s support comes from “black solidarity” — that birds of a feather flock together. That is racist in itself. After all, imagine if white voters similarly lined up in “racial solidarity.” This is compounded by the facts.
Under George W. Bush, black unemployment was actually lower than during the Clinton years and much lower than the 16.3 percent it is today. Under Obama, black unemployment rose from 12.6 percent to 16.3 percent as of August 1, 2010.
Despite promoting black upward mobility, Bush only enjoyed a black approval rating in the low 30s at a similar time in his presidency. Bush also made historic cabinet-level appointments of blacks and dramatically increased funding to fight AIDS in Africa. Much to Kanye West’s chagrin, President Bush did care about black people.
Furthermore, after nearly two years of Obama’s reckless spending, 43.6 million Americans (one in seven) live in poverty — a 51-year high. Blacks, who account for only 13 percent of the population, make up 22.6 percent of those now receiving food stamp benefits. And, after a promise there would be no federal abortion funding in Obamacare, tax dollars for abortions may be provided through high-risk insurance programs in Pennsylvania, New Mexico and Maryland.
Polling shows blacks are overwhelmingly pro-life. We undoubtedly want jobs and freedom from poverty. So why the blind loyalty to someone who hasn’t delivered? When a constituency clearly provides loyal support, as blacks are to progressives, it begs to be taken for granted. So is it any wonder that, after 50 years of conceding support to liberals and letting Uncle Sam be their “baby daddy,” we are mired in an anti-empowerment culture of dependency?
Liberals can argue racism causes black stagnation, but is a 70 percent illegitimacy rate among blacks (90 percent in some inner cities) due to racism or a lack of accountability and personal responsibility? It’s also a painful truth that blacks kill more blacks (by gun, unhealthy lifestyle and abortion) than racists could ever accomplish. So-called “civil rights leaders,” pseudo-intellectuals and liberal lawmakers must know this, yet they insist on pretending racism is more responsible for sluggish black advancement than behavior they foster.
It’s time for a frank discussion about the folly of black Americans’ monolithic support of liberalism. When 91 percent of any racial group votes one way, it’s either out of racism or blind groupthink. Neither is good for America.
Jerome Hudson is a member of the national advisory council of the black leadership network Project 21.