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Assuming that Obama wins, we must be prepared for the fact that our hard core issues will still remain. I love Barack. But he speaks often of the middle class and not much about the poor. We must have a strong agenda to deal with the black poor. That is the unfinished business of the civil rights movement.
Posted By: Dorrance Kennedy
Friday, October 3rd 2008 at 12:12PM
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Dorrance, I appreciate your post, and I hope this topic receives more attention. There are two realities that those of us who are advocates for the poor must recognize. The first is that when Obama is elected, the landscape will be very different that the Great Society Programs of the 60's. The Civil Rights Movement produced some key programs that were described with terms like The War on Poverty. The issues for the poor may be the same, but the solutions will be different in the 21st century. The poor will have to take the lead in becoming their own advocates. More about that later.
The second reality of an Obama Victory is that there will be a change in the path to upward mobility. What an Obama Administration will offer is a focus on Early Childhood Education, Healthcare, and Infrastructure Investments (translated, that means "government jobs" where the playing field may be a little more level). The poor will have to leverage these for improved outcomes. One of the challenges of Martin Luther King Jr. was to raise the bar for everyone. Barack Obama has performed spectacularly in jumping over every hurdle that has been placed in front of him. What that has done is raise the bar for all of us -- the poor included. For example, his programs will make it easier for the poor to get a college education. But now the bar for the poor is to strive for a college education. He will also invest more in early childhood education, which benefits the poor. The poor must become advocates for better schools, and more investments in infrastructure in their neighborhoods, and take advantage of upward mobility options to escape poverty. There won't be a tide the lifts all ships.
Back to the point of a strong Civil Rights Agenda for the Black poor. You are absolutely correct, but the authors of that agenda must be the Black poor. The basis of that agenda must be anchored in registered voters with political clout to hold the Congressional Black Caucus accountable for representing our issues. There won't be any programs coming out of the White House. That doesn't mean Obama doesn't care. It means that we have been in the game now for 50 years -- through increased representation of Black Mayors, State representatives, National Congressional Representatives (some have considerable clout on Capital Hill), and soon, a Black President. Obama states often that change comes from the bottom up. What this means is that those at the bottom must become loud, vocal, and politically active advocates for the changes they seek. The handouts are over.
This is how I see the world after an Obama victory. Others may disagree.
Saturday, October 4th 2008 at 8:27AM
Roger E Madison Jr
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Let's stop making the assumption! WE CLAIM VICTORY!
Sunday, October 5th 2008 at 10:28AM
MIISRAEL Bride
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