08 changing of the guard

monDAY, jULY 28, 2008

monDAY, jULY 28, 2008

changing of the guard 09

Obamas rise highlights emotional divides

By Emily Ngo emily.ngo@am-ny.com

Bridging black
Outside the South Beach Cafe in Harlem, a mural emblazoned Great African Americans features the Rev. Jesse Jackson alongside Malcolm X, Frederick Douglass and other groundbreakers. Inside the neighborhood eatery, however, a hostess readily slams Jackson for accusing Barack Obama of talking down to black people and expressing his desire to castrate the presidential nominee. It seems petty, but Jesse Jackson wants to be Barack Obama, said Fatou Sarr, 35. Its just jealousy, because Jesse Jackson used to be relevant. Jackson has apologized to the Democratic senator from Illinois, but his arent the only inflammatory remarks to pockmark Obamas historic rise. Just months ago, Obama parted ways with longtime pastor Jeremiah Wright after a public clash about race in America. Jackson and Wright, both 66, are black leaders of a different era than 46-year-old Obama. The older generations heated rhetoric and angry resentments are almost understandable, because they experienced Jim Crow, experts said. The older black generation of the civil rights era was defined by one important issue, said Keli Goff, author of Party Crashing: How the Hip-Hop Generation Declared Political Independence. If you have to go to the back of the bus, if you have to use a different water fountain, it defines your whole life. Obama in the company of Newark, N.J., Mayor Cory Booker, 39; former Tennessee Congressman Harold Ford, Jr., 38; and Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick, 51 may appear to Jackson to be part of a new African-American political guard that has it so easy and just coasted right in, Goff said. Its like youre so sad that that could never be you, Goff said. You think, if only I had been born 20 years later. Jackson denied claims he is resentful. Why would I be jealous? Im part of a winning team.

generation gap
Obama eyes chances in red states
By David Espo The Associated Press

Black leadership in transition

Jesse Jackson had his time, and his time is now over, said Baby Face Nelson, a 41-yearold card designer in Harlem. I dont see him as a spokesperson not at all and certainly not a positive spokesperson. African-American leadership is in transition, the Rev. Al Sharpton admitted to Newsweek: Theres definitely a generational divide going on in the black community, and its been happening for a while. People who deny it arent seeing clearly. At 35, Benjamin Jealous is set to become the youngest leader of the NAACP, the nations oldest civil rights organization. Jealous will replace 62-year-old Bruce S. Gordon and share power with 68-year-old chairman Julian Bond. In Brooklyn, community activist and former reality TV star Kevin Powell is running against Congressman Edolphus Towns, who at 74, is 32 years Powells senior. The prior generation was trailblazers who were the first to serve from their particular race; thats no longer the case, said Brooklyn Assemb. Hakeem Jeffries, 37. Our generation represents increasingly diverse communities and therefore, different challenges.

The Rev. Jesse Jackson said he is not resentful of Barack Obamas success: Why would I be jealous? Im part of a winning team. (Getty)

 esse Jackson J had his time, and his time is now over
Baby Face Nelson Jacksons presidential push was based on African-American empowerment, Jeffries said. Obamas campaign has been based on the notion of bringing all Americans together.

Obama attended Columbia and Harvard universities; Jacksons alma mater is North Carolina A&T University. The younger generation has the same ambitions and same backgrounds as typical elite white politicians, Bositis said. If you didnt know they were African American, based on their backgrounds, you might think they were white.

differing views

Political issues transcend race

dramatic rise in black leadership

THEN
black elected officials (1970)

1,469

black members of Congress (1968)

black mayors of 50,000+ population cities (1968)

NOW

10,000+
black elected officials (2008)

black members of Congress (2008)

43

black mayors of 50,000+ population cities (2007)

47

Source: Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies

Political success for Obama and other young black leaders is measured in large part by their appeal across racial divides. The civil rights agenda is still a relevant political issue, but its now one among many, Goff said. They talk about inequality but not along racial lines, because the issues are no longer falling strictly along racial lines. The economy, as an example, affects Americans of all ethnicities, she said. In many places, not everywhere, voters are not seeing color anymore, said David Bositis, of the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, a think tank on African-American issues. To go further now means getting white voters to vote for you. Civil rights-era politicians found victory in black constituencies, Bositis said. They had segregated schools and black colleges and are more closely tied their churches, he noted.

Elaine Brown led the Black Panther Party until it disbanded in 1977. Just as Harlems Nelson, and 72 percent of young blacks polled by Goff, do not believe Jackson speaks for them, Brown does not consider Obama a representative black voice. Hes a black man who doesnt have history in the black experience, Brown, 65, said from her Savannah, Ga., home. Hes just a black face running for president. Ideology, more than age, alienates younger black politicians from their predecessors, Brown said. For instance, Obama pressing African-American fathers to accept more responsibility fuels racial stereotypes, she said. When you have Bill Clinton saying the same things as to the dysfunction of black men, I dont see that there is a generational difference. there is an ideological difference, Brown noted. When there are ideological similarities, generations can be bridged. Manhattan Democrat Charles Rangel, 78 and the citys longest-serving U.S. congressman, acts as a mentor to some younger black lawmakers.

Sen. Barack Obamas political success has a lot to do with his appeal across racial divides. He shows them that a path through longevity, seniority and accomplishment can lead to real success in politics, said Rangel spokesman Kevin Wardally. Rangel had already been shattering race barriers for two years in the state assembly when Martin Luther King, Jr., was assassinated in 1968. Some leaders of the new political generation were not even born yet; and others are too young to remember the tragedy. Nobody younger than 44 years old has a consciousness of the life of Martin Luther King, Bositis said. To them, Martin Luther King is like George Washington. This isnt to say the politicians of Generation Obama the post-racial period and the hip-hop generation do not understand the impact their predecessors had on their culture. The younger generation should be grateful to the older generation, said Sarr, glancing around the Harlem restaurant, but the older generation should be proud of them, too.

(Getty)

Quick glance at black politicians in NYC

Charles Rangel, 78
Office: U.S. representative since 1971 manhattan district includes: Harlem, Washington Heights, Inwood Education: NYU, St. Johns University facts: First black to chair the House Ways and Means Committee, earned Purple Heart in Korean War

Helen Marshall, 78
Office: Queens borough president since 2001 Education: Queens College Facts: First black to hold Queens borough president post, first minority and woman from her district to be elected to the City Council

Ed Towns, 74
Office: U.S. representative since 1983 Brooklyn district includes: Fort Greene, BedStuy, East New York Education: North Carolina A&T State and Adelphi universities Facts: Serves on House Energy and Commerce Committee, first black to hold deputy Brooklyn borough president post

Helen D. Foster, 41
Office: City councilwoman since 2002 Bronx district includes: West Bronx, Morrisania and Highbridge Education: Howard University, CUNY-Law Fact: First black woman elected to NYC office from the Bronx

Hakeem Jeffries, 37
Office: State assemblyman since 2007 Brooklyn district includes: Fort Greene, Prospect Heights Education: SUNY-Binghamton, Georgetown University and NYU

Karim Camara, 37
Office: State assemblyman since 2005 Brooklyn district includes: Crown Heights, Flatbush Education: Xavier University of Louisiana, New York Theological Seminary

With 100 days remaining in the race for the White House, Democratic presidential contender Barack Obama says he has succeeded in expanding the electoral map in his race against John McCain, principally in southern and southwestern states but also in Montana and North Dakota. It doesnt mean were going to win all those states, but at least were making it a contest and giving voters something to choose from, Obama said aboard his campaign jet on the way back from his overseas trip. Virginia, North Carolina and Georn Politirazzi gia are all states blog keeps where we are comyou up-topetitive, he said, date on the adding he is going election. toe to toe with his rival in New Mexico, Colorado and Nevada. Before leaving Europe on Saturday, Obama told reporters he might suffer a small drop in the polls after being out of the country for more than a week. He intends to shift his focus quickly toward the economy and other domestic issues in the coming days. Depending on actions the current administration and Congress take, he said a new economic stimulus package may be his first legislative request from lawmakers if he takes office as the 44th president in January. He has called previously for additional tax rebates and other measures to help revive the economy, and intends to convene a meeting on the subject today in Washington. With little pause after his trip to two war zones, the Middle East and Europe, Obama resumes campaigning later this week in the swing states with stops in Missouri and Iowa as well as a fundraising visit to Texas. One month before the Democratic National Convention opens, he declined to say whether he has personally interviewed any potential vice presidential running mates. Obama has a narrow lead over McCain in many polls, but the race is won in a series of stateby-state races.

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