for Friday’s Washington Post, titled Obama has helped us peer into the racial divide.
Robinson begins by praising the President’s magnificent speech in Dallas, but ends that opening paragraph with these words:
But he was wrong about one thing: On race, sadly, we are as divided as we seem.
Ponder that for a moment, and decide whether you agree or disagree with Robinson.
Then read the next paragraph:
This condition is not due to anything Obama has said or done. He bends so far backward to avoid giving offense, even to those who richly deserve offending, that he must need regular sessions with a chiropractor. The racial divide, which has its roots in lingering claims of white supremacy, has been there all along. It was mostly silent and unacknowledged until the very fact of the Obama presidency cast it in stark and unforgiving light.
Robinson then expresses his lack of surprise that Americans think race relations are worsening, because
It is as though a dark corner has been illuminated to reveal the mess that was swept there long ago and willfully ignored.
By now you should have a real sense of the column.
Normally I would go through the column, discussing some of the key points as I did. Tonight I will not.
You will read about Trump.
You will read about the context that frames the current election cycle.
You will be reminded of Trayvon Martin and Henry Louis Gates, the President’s reaction to each, and how the likes of Rep. Steve King of Iowa reacted.
There is more, including relevant current material.
All of this is to frame what Robinson really wants to say.
He talks about unrealistic expectations placed upon this President, especially given his gift with words, but which needed to be balanced by the limitations of what he could achieve despite his historic status.
You will want to read all of that, as Robinson wrote it.
At which point you will be ready for his conclusion, which I share with you now:
When the next president is sworn in, Obama will leave office without having healed the nation’s festering racial wounds. He will not have made them worse; rather, he will have allowed us to see how deep they remain and how much healing still needs to take place. It may take years to fully appreciate how dramatically this presidency has bent the arc of history toward justice.
And yes, his final phrase is a clear indication of how much this President has advanced the vision of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Do yourself a favor.
Go read the entire column.
Peace.