Part 2 of 3 Series: Getting beyond the euphoria of skin color with decisive action

The best time for you and I to impact the appointments process is now, not after the President-elect makes his nominations public.

Kevin Martin, the executive director of Peace Action, Peace Blog


No new administration waits till being sworn in before deciding and enacting its priorities on war, peace, credit, housing, jobs or heath care. While many are still boasting, roasting, coasting and toasting the election results the business of governing has already begun. So too the business of holding the new administration accountable must begin without delay.

"Holding the Obama Administration Accountable"
Bruce Dixon, Editor, Black Agenda Report, 11/13/2008)


Even as we are dancing in the streets it appears that the foundation for all of the key appointments and decisions are being made, even before our inaugural show-off party. Historically, this has been the pattern of those embraced by powerlessness—dance now, act later, lose the war.

(Jerel Shaw, Hope & Victory Blog)


The people in my country just invested their hopes for a better world and a better government in their votes for President-elect Obama. However, during an unprecedented two year Presidential campaign, the exact kind of change we are to get was never fully defined. Therefore, we the people of the United States must act now with boldness and confidence. We can set the stage for the kind of change that reflects our values.

Cynthia McKinney, Former Democratic Congressman, Former Green Party Presidential Candidate, Georgia, Excerpt from intended speech to 60th Anniversary COnference for Universal Declaration of Human Freedom



Eventually, all of us, excited colored people, will awaken from an inebriated state that we are in, arguably, confused with genuine joy. However, by the time we finished tossing one another at all of those inaugurals, and giggling like drunken sailors, the damage may be done. If I can get your attention for one moment sir, it appears that all of the key appointments have been made.

So why in the hell are you still jitterbugging?

Earlier in the campaign, one of the primary charges leveled against President-elect Obama was that he was in the pocket of the AIPAC. Like all other candidates he seemed duty-bound to make sure that Israel’s influence on politicians will remain tightly intact. If symbolism is powerful, Mr. Obama’s working as an independent, freethinking African American leader has been short circuited by his first key appointment.

In announcing that Emanuel will become his Chief of Staff, he has symbolically sent the message to Israel, and to the chagrin the suffering Palestinians, that Israel will continue to have unprecedented clout in American Administrations.


While beads of sweat is rolling down the backs of African Americans as they relentlessly tap dance and rejoice to ‘old’ news, that’s right the election is over and it’s time to get down to business, Obama is methodically, for good or bad, is putting people in power who will inevitably influence the policies of his Administration for at least the next four years. While African Americans are fighting over Inaugural Ball tickets so they can strut their stuff before cameras and one another, they have opted to remain powerless and pitiful.

When the music has stopped and we remain lost, and all the major foundations and appointments have been made for this Administration, there’s only one more thing left to do. Start planning for the next party—the Inaugurals of 2012! And, just in case we don’t get that winning number, we can always go to the other extreme of our genuine emotional state, complaining and crying tears of hopelessness.


Let me be clear, I think that it is beautiful in seeing a black family headed for the White House--just in that alone, history has been made. However, if we are not able to expand on that base of recognition, and immediately, we are asking for the same old song of bondage, lost opportunities.

As the black media has impeccably played a role of hyper-prejudicial favoritism and unapologetic bias reporting doing this presidential race (They will never be accused), they should now get on their high horses to trumpet guidelines for ‘How to seize the opportunity at hand’ before the honeymoon is over.


Quantitative reporting on black faces in power versus qualitative reporting means, to me, that we are not able to critically discern our enemy because the only criteria is ‘skin color’.
The black press has proudly given us the Rices, Powells without blinking an eye, no matter how criminally they performed.

Maybe because Justice Thomas was caught up in a publicly staged fight with a black woman has he felt the sting of uncharacteristic “good black, bad black reporting’. And, because no standard of evaluation has been applied to black public faces, the black press should be found guilty of being party to allowing the black community to be disenfranchised from wholeness for such a long time.

We have been given a ‘bad’ bill of sales by the black media who are suppose to help us in screening out those blacks who are suppose to be good or bad for our community no matter the color of their face.