Is it permissible to vote for a candidate because of his or her race or gender but not permissible to vote against a candidate because of his or her race or gender? Is it particularly permissible when the voter and the candidate are both of the same minority community? This doesn’t seem to me to be merely an academic question as more and more black politicians who are superdelegates are turning from commitments to Hillary Clinton to support for Barack Obama.
The New York Times reports today (“Black Leader, A Clinton Ally, Tilts Toward Obama,” NYTimes, Zeleny and Healy, Feb. 15, 2008) that John Lewis, a highly respected and legendary black civil rights leader who committed to Hillary last year, now plans to cast his vote for Barack Obama. “‘In recent days, there is a sense of movement and a sense of spirit,’ said Mr. Lewis, a Georgia Democrat who endorsed Mrs. Clinton last fall. ‘Something is happening in America, and people are prepared and ready to make that great leap.’ Mr. Lewis, who carries great influence among other members of Congress, disclosed his decision in an interview in which he said that as a superdelegate he could ‘never, ever do anything to reverse the action’ of the voters of his district, who overwhelmingly supported Mr. Obama.”
To be sure, this switch is understandable. Black leaders not supporting a black candidate for president who not only now has overwhelming support among black voters but is also doing well among white voters? How does that look? It appears these politicians gave their support to Hillary at a time when they didn’t think Obama had any chance to become a viable candidate. Now that he has shown himself to be competitive, with a real chance to become the nominee, their racial pride and concern with not being out of step with members of their own community have come to the fore. But it appears these black superdelegates are taking an easy way out. Instead of talking of their own sense of black pride as a motivating force for their abandonment of Hillary for Obama, according to the Times article, Lewis (and others) are attributing it to not wanting to go against the wishes of their constituents or even reasons of political expediency, e.g., “in hopes of preventing a fight at the Democratic convention.”
This situation reminds me to some extent of that time during the 1960’s, when I was in my 20’s, when groups of black college students wanted to live in segregated college dormitories, segregated as in limited to blacks. The question at that time was whether this was little more than racism in reverse or whether it was something different – an effort by black students to find and forge a new black identity by living among a critical mass of their own race. This was not immoral discrimination on the part of blacks, it was claimed, because it was not invidious. Those wanting to live among “their own” did not look down upon the others. Rather, the argument ran, this desire to live apart grew out of a history of slavery and racism and represented only a positive sentiment and effort among blacks to find themselves, to build a new, stronger self-identity. That was then, this is now.
While Barack Obama reminds me in some ways of the attractive, bright, articulate Stokely Carmichael in his earlier civil rights years when Carmichael was committed to integration and non-violence, I am in no way seeking to suggest, either expressly or impliedly, that Obama represents or seeks to be a “black” candidate. On the contrary, he has sought to keep his distance from being identified in any such way. He cannot win otherwise. But, he certainly has sought to win widespread support among the black community and has taken steps over the months to combat any perception or claims that he “is not black enough.” More to the point, he is benefiting from and, I would suggest, eager to encourage a surge of black pride in his candidacy that has not only meant electoral support from 80 to 90% of African-American voters in the primaries but now support among black superdelegates at one time committed to Hillary Clinton. Surely these voters, and superdelegates, are making political decisions on the basis of their race. Is that to be condemned, applauded, disregarded or discounted? While I fully understand the phenomenon, it gives me concern.⌂
