Obama not exactly black ? Just what does that mean?
CHICAGO — Some people, particularly those who are tone deaf to the ironies of life, have a problem with Barack Obama's race. They have a hard time deciding what it is.
Ever since the front-running candidate for the U.S. Senate from Illinois burst onto the national stage with a riveting keynote address at the Democratic National Convention, I've been hearing from readers who question why the media, including me, insist on referring to Obama as "black" or "African-American" when he is "really" biracial.
Are we trying to render his white Kansas mother irrelevant? No, I say, we're just recognizing that the realities of race have more to do with psychology, sociology and politics than actual science.
The perspective of my questioners was well-expressed by one of my favorite political writers, William Saletan, in his coverage of the convention for Microsoft's Slate.com Web site:
"Obama isn't exactly black," Saletan wrote "His mother is white and came from Kansas. His father came from Kenya. Obama is, in short, African-American — a term that (the Rev. Jesse) Jackson Sr. has too casually applied to people many generations removed from Africa, often through other continents. Obama's father went back to Africa years ago but that doesn't change the hue of his son's skin or remove his African name, Barack. So the son embraces his blackness."
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http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/editorial/outlook/2754644Note: I have had my eye on Obama since March - and I am not even from Illinois. Thanks for choosing an excellent Democratic nominee Illinois - he will make a fine Senator. :-)