Barack Obama , Black Male Voters, Longstanding Historical Realities and the Complex Intersection of Racial and Gender Politics!

Elwood Watson, Ph.D.
The Polis
Published in
5 min readOct 14, 2024

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Wikipedia Commons

Former President Barack Obama delivered his message supporting Kamala Harris in Pittsburgh on October 10, by making an on-site appearance at the Harris-Walz campaign offices. “Part of it makes me think that, well, you just aren’t feeling the idea of having a woman as president, and you’re coming up with other alternatives or other reasons for that,” he told the assembled staff and volunteers, referring to a specific kind of Harris-skeptical Black man he anticipated encountering during their voter outreach. “You’re thinking about sitting out, or even supporting somebody who has a history of denigrating you?” Obama likened this attitude to betrayal. “Women in our lives have been getting our backs this entire time,” he said. “When we get in trouble and the system isn’t working for us, they’re the ones out there marching and protesting.”

Not surprisingly, such direct and blatant commentary ignited various reactions from numerous quarters. The larger Black community has viewed Former President Obama as a complex spokesperson. His most recent remarks conjured up times during his tenure when, as an upscale, elite, educated (Columbia and Harvard University) Black man, he was — and still is — perceived to be condescending in his rhetoric to…

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Elwood Watson, Ph.D.
The Polis

Historian, Syndicated Columnist, Public Speaker, Social-Cultural Critic. Professor of Black Studies and Gender Studies, at East Tennessee State University.