Over the past three years, we have witnessed the effects of what has been deemed the “Obama derangement syndrome.” Tea Party representatives, pundits and even elected officials have attacked Obama for not being a real “American” while either ignoring or offering no realistic solutions for the many issues facing this country. Fortunately, President Obama was able to silence the majority of these critics by releasing his long form birth certificate. Sadly, the syndrome has mutated into a new, more toxic form. Instead of critics questioning his origins of birth, there are self-appointed African American leaders questioning his blackness.
In a now infamous statement, Professor Cornell West stated, “[Obama] has a predilection much more toward upper middle class white brothers and Jewish brothers [and] a certain distance from free black men who will tell him the truth." He also stated that he has a “fear of free black men.”
After hearing the entire interview in which aforementioned statements were made, I will admit that Professor West did bring up serious, debatable issues such as how Obama’s policies have impacted homeowners and the poor. However, the point of this blog is not to suggest Obama should be prone from criticism, it is to proclaim that the President’s “blackness” should not be included within these debates. It is a sad, but interesting parallel to the tea party birthers. Perhaps, the tea party has legitimate criticisms about how Obama is running the country but I believe we can all agree that their issues should not include questioning the citizenship of the POTUS.
Therefore, can anyone help me locate Obama’s Black identification card? Perhaps, releasing this card will help all of us re-focus upon the serious issues Americans are facing. I am not sure this action would be the final cure for the Obama derangement syndrome, but I do have the audacity to hope that we will mature into a nation that can assess this administration’s policies on their merit as opposed to the racial identity of its leader.