Shanette C. Porter and Gregory S. Parks
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- May 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199735204
- eISBN:
- 9780199894581
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199735204.003.0006
- Subject:
- Psychology, Social Psychology
The election of Barack Obama as the first black President of the United States is a milestone in this country’s history in and of itself. But even more, his election brings with it another first—the ...
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The election of Barack Obama as the first black President of the United States is a milestone in this country’s history in and of itself. But even more, his election brings with it another first—the first black First Lady of the United States. Toward that end, Mrs. Obama has captured the imagination of people the world over. One must wonder what impact Mrs. Obama will have as black woman who can boast so many virtues—e.g., intelligence, outspokenness, professional success, beauty, and being a fashion icon. Her image stands in stark contrast to the stereotypes associated with women and blacks. Moreover, it adds nuance and new dimensions to the intersection of race and gender, and as much how we think about black women. For centuries, black women have been shoehorned into a handful of stereotypes—i.e., the mammy, the sexual siren, the welfare queen, the matriarch, and the angry Black woman. Arguably, Michelle Obama represents a pushback against each of these, even at the implicit level.Less
The election of Barack Obama as the first black President of the United States is a milestone in this country’s history in and of itself. But even more, his election brings with it another first—the first black First Lady of the United States. Toward that end, Mrs. Obama has captured the imagination of people the world over. One must wonder what impact Mrs. Obama will have as black woman who can boast so many virtues—e.g., intelligence, outspokenness, professional success, beauty, and being a fashion icon. Her image stands in stark contrast to the stereotypes associated with women and blacks. Moreover, it adds nuance and new dimensions to the intersection of race and gender, and as much how we think about black women. For centuries, black women have been shoehorned into a handful of stereotypes—i.e., the mammy, the sexual siren, the welfare queen, the matriarch, and the angry Black woman. Arguably, Michelle Obama represents a pushback against each of these, even at the implicit level.
Ula Y. Taylor
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- April 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780252036453
- eISBN:
- 9780252093487
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of Illinois Press
- DOI:
- 10.5406/illinois/9780252036453.003.0015
- Subject:
- Political Science, American Politics
This chapter attempts to engage the racist assumptions held by many Americans about a black woman's ability to be First Lady and about the appropriateness of an African American First Family. ...
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This chapter attempts to engage the racist assumptions held by many Americans about a black woman's ability to be First Lady and about the appropriateness of an African American First Family. Michelle Obama has been an essential complement to Barack Obama, a candidate viewed as a postracial phenomenon. She has helped her husband win the credibility and trust of many African Americans because of her firm and confident racial identity, her rootedness in Chicago's African American community, and her upholding of the values central to her own family. However, functioning as the perfect partner to Barack has come at an enormous price for Michelle. It seems an all too familiar paradox that given the persistent power of racial and gender dynamics in this country, Michelle Obama must button down her exceptional education and career background, and the “too much blackness” so essential to her identity, in order to secure Barack's presidential bid.Less
This chapter attempts to engage the racist assumptions held by many Americans about a black woman's ability to be First Lady and about the appropriateness of an African American First Family. Michelle Obama has been an essential complement to Barack Obama, a candidate viewed as a postracial phenomenon. She has helped her husband win the credibility and trust of many African Americans because of her firm and confident racial identity, her rootedness in Chicago's African American community, and her upholding of the values central to her own family. However, functioning as the perfect partner to Barack has come at an enormous price for Michelle. It seems an all too familiar paradox that given the persistent power of racial and gender dynamics in this country, Michelle Obama must button down her exceptional education and career background, and the “too much blackness” so essential to her identity, in order to secure Barack's presidential bid.
Marsha J. Tyson Darling
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- May 2015
- ISBN:
- 9781628460216
- eISBN:
- 9781626740426
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Mississippi
- DOI:
- 10.14325/mississippi/9781628460216.003.0009
- Subject:
- History, African-American History
This essay examines the journey of the black woman from chattel to First Lady. The cumbersome, slow, thorny road black women have travelled from being personal property (chattel) to First Lady has ...
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This essay examines the journey of the black woman from chattel to First Lady. The cumbersome, slow, thorny road black women have travelled from being personal property (chattel) to First Lady has required an active tradition of black women’s self-help agency and mutual assistance and far-reaching social and political changes across the nation. Indeed, surveys of blacks who lived through or were directly affected by Jim (and Jane) Crow segregation confirm that few imagined Americans would elect a black president in their lifetimes. First Lady Michelle Obama is no shadow of her husband. She was an accomplished lawyer before she met Barack Obama. She continues active personal agency in her work to advance projects she considers important and socially transformative, especially the nation’s crisis of obesity and the connection between food, diet, and health.Less
This essay examines the journey of the black woman from chattel to First Lady. The cumbersome, slow, thorny road black women have travelled from being personal property (chattel) to First Lady has required an active tradition of black women’s self-help agency and mutual assistance and far-reaching social and political changes across the nation. Indeed, surveys of blacks who lived through or were directly affected by Jim (and Jane) Crow segregation confirm that few imagined Americans would elect a black president in their lifetimes. First Lady Michelle Obama is no shadow of her husband. She was an accomplished lawyer before she met Barack Obama. She continues active personal agency in her work to advance projects she considers important and socially transformative, especially the nation’s crisis of obesity and the connection between food, diet, and health.
Gregory Parks and Matthew Hughey (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- May 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199735204
- eISBN:
- 9780199894581
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199735204.001.0001
- Subject:
- Psychology, Social Psychology
Since the milestone election of Barack Hussein Obama on November 4, 2008, some have wondered whether the United States can now be considered a post-racial nation. According to this book's ...
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Since the milestone election of Barack Hussein Obama on November 4, 2008, some have wondered whether the United States can now be considered a post-racial nation. According to this book's contributors, a more nuanced and contemporary analysis and measurement of racial attitudes undercuts this assumption. Despite the election of the first black President and rise of his family as perhaps the most widely recognized family in the world, race remains a salient issue—particularly in the United States. Looking beyond public behaviors and how people describe their own attitudes, the contributors draw from the latest research to show how, despite the Obama family's rapid rise to national prominence, many Americans continue to harbor unconscious, anti-black biases. Nonetheless, the prominence of the Obamas on the world stage and the image they project may hasten the day when America is indeed post-racial, even at the implicit level.Less
Since the milestone election of Barack Hussein Obama on November 4, 2008, some have wondered whether the United States can now be considered a post-racial nation. According to this book's contributors, a more nuanced and contemporary analysis and measurement of racial attitudes undercuts this assumption. Despite the election of the first black President and rise of his family as perhaps the most widely recognized family in the world, race remains a salient issue—particularly in the United States. Looking beyond public behaviors and how people describe their own attitudes, the contributors draw from the latest research to show how, despite the Obama family's rapid rise to national prominence, many Americans continue to harbor unconscious, anti-black biases. Nonetheless, the prominence of the Obamas on the world stage and the image they project may hasten the day when America is indeed post-racial, even at the implicit level.
Clarenda M. Phillips, Tamara L. Brown, and Gregory S. Parks
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- May 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199735204
- eISBN:
- 9780199894581
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199735204.003.0007
- Subject:
- Psychology, Social Psychology
There is no issue in the black community that is more contentious than that of the romantic relationships between black men and black women. Black male-female relationships are fraught with ...
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There is no issue in the black community that is more contentious than that of the romantic relationships between black men and black women. Black male-female relationships are fraught with challenges—e.g., low marriage rates, high divorce rates, absent fathers, educational and income gaps between men and women, and the down-low phenomenon. These issues, and others, have spawned countless movies, books, articles, and town halls on the state of black male-female relationships. What is auspicious about the Barack and Michelle’s relationship is that it provides a healthy example of marriage, family life, and even more “black love.” The issue it raises, however, is that it may also establish—either implicitly or explicitly—essential elements of such love. In essence, black women may look to the Obama marriage and come to even more strongly believe than many already do that healthy relationships for blacks must be intra-racial, heterosexual, and defined by pairings of Christian and equally successful (educationally and economically) blacks. This idealization, without appropriate consideration of the actual challenges the Obamas faced as a couple and realities that militate against such essentialism, may leave many black women more frustrated with their mate options than they already are.Less
There is no issue in the black community that is more contentious than that of the romantic relationships between black men and black women. Black male-female relationships are fraught with challenges—e.g., low marriage rates, high divorce rates, absent fathers, educational and income gaps between men and women, and the down-low phenomenon. These issues, and others, have spawned countless movies, books, articles, and town halls on the state of black male-female relationships. What is auspicious about the Barack and Michelle’s relationship is that it provides a healthy example of marriage, family life, and even more “black love.” The issue it raises, however, is that it may also establish—either implicitly or explicitly—essential elements of such love. In essence, black women may look to the Obama marriage and come to even more strongly believe than many already do that healthy relationships for blacks must be intra-racial, heterosexual, and defined by pairings of Christian and equally successful (educationally and economically) blacks. This idealization, without appropriate consideration of the actual challenges the Obamas faced as a couple and realities that militate against such essentialism, may leave many black women more frustrated with their mate options than they already are.
Mitch Kachun
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- April 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780252036606
- eISBN:
- 9780252093654
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of Illinois Press
- DOI:
- 10.5406/illinois/9780252036606.003.0004
- Subject:
- Sociology, Politics, Social Movements and Social Change
This chapter shifts the focus to Michelle Obama, a figure whose family's experiences of enslavement, emancipation, and northward migration make her nearly as important a cultural figure as her ...
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This chapter shifts the focus to Michelle Obama, a figure whose family's experiences of enslavement, emancipation, and northward migration make her nearly as important a cultural figure as her husband. It explains how media coverage of Michelle Obama during the campaign was shaped not only by Americans' expectations of prospective first ladies, but by a long history of powerful stereotypes of black women and their bodies. While praised and admired by many, Michelle Obama had become a target whose attackers utilized an ever-expanding twenty-four/seven cable news cycle and the unprecedented forum of the blogosphere to promulgate every sort of personal and political attack. In the process, they dredged up deep-seated stereotypes of African American women—the domineering “mammy,” the hypersexualized “jezebel,” the more recently minted “angry black woman”—and used them to construct an unappealing and even threatening image of the candidate's wife.Less
This chapter shifts the focus to Michelle Obama, a figure whose family's experiences of enslavement, emancipation, and northward migration make her nearly as important a cultural figure as her husband. It explains how media coverage of Michelle Obama during the campaign was shaped not only by Americans' expectations of prospective first ladies, but by a long history of powerful stereotypes of black women and their bodies. While praised and admired by many, Michelle Obama had become a target whose attackers utilized an ever-expanding twenty-four/seven cable news cycle and the unprecedented forum of the blogosphere to promulgate every sort of personal and political attack. In the process, they dredged up deep-seated stereotypes of African American women—the domineering “mammy,” the hypersexualized “jezebel,” the more recently minted “angry black woman”—and used them to construct an unappealing and even threatening image of the candidate's wife.
Charles P. Henry, Robert L. Allen, and Robert Chrisman (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- April 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780252036453
- eISBN:
- 9780252093487
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- University of Illinois Press
- DOI:
- 10.5406/illinois/9780252036453.001.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, American Politics
Barack Obama's campaign and electoral victory demonstrated the dynamic nature of American democracy. Beginning as a special issue of The Black Scholar, this probing collection illustrates the impact ...
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Barack Obama's campaign and electoral victory demonstrated the dynamic nature of American democracy. Beginning as a special issue of The Black Scholar, this probing collection illustrates the impact of “the Obama phenomenon” on the future of U.S. race relations through readings on Barack Obama's campaign as well as the idealism and pragmatism of the Obama administration. Some of the foremost scholars of African American politics and culture from an array of disciplines—including political science, theology, economics, history, journalism, sociology, cultural studies, and law—offer critical analyses of topics as diverse as Obama and the media, Obama's connection with the hip hop community, the public's perception of first lady Michelle Obama, voter behavior, and the history of racial issues in presidential campaigns since the 1960s.Less
Barack Obama's campaign and electoral victory demonstrated the dynamic nature of American democracy. Beginning as a special issue of The Black Scholar, this probing collection illustrates the impact of “the Obama phenomenon” on the future of U.S. race relations through readings on Barack Obama's campaign as well as the idealism and pragmatism of the Obama administration. Some of the foremost scholars of African American politics and culture from an array of disciplines—including political science, theology, economics, history, journalism, sociology, cultural studies, and law—offer critical analyses of topics as diverse as Obama and the media, Obama's connection with the hip hop community, the public's perception of first lady Michelle Obama, voter behavior, and the history of racial issues in presidential campaigns since the 1960s.
Jeffrey Helgeson
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- September 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780226130699
- eISBN:
- 9780226130729
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of Chicago Press
- DOI:
- 10.7208/chicago/9780226130729.003.0009
- Subject:
- History, African-American History
This chapter argues that Chicago’s long tradition of black liberalism helps explain the rise of Barack and Michelle Obama to the White House. The chapter also suggests that President Obama’s urban ...
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This chapter argues that Chicago’s long tradition of black liberalism helps explain the rise of Barack and Michelle Obama to the White House. The chapter also suggests that President Obama’s urban policy agenda exemplifies the limits of black liberalism. Michelle Obama grew up in a family engaged in the kind of neighborhood-based black liberal politics examined in this book. And she and her family provided one of the key institutional bases for her husband’s rise. The president also benefited directly from the long tradition of black liberalism in his experiences working as a community organizer, in the ideology of Christian liberal nationalism articulated by Reverend Jeremiah Wright, and even in the neighborhoods around Reverend Wright’s church built by black bricklayers discussed earlier (Ch. 3 and 4). The Obamas represent both the subversive potential and practical limits of the black liberal political tradition and connect that tradition directly to the broader history of American liberalism.Less
This chapter argues that Chicago’s long tradition of black liberalism helps explain the rise of Barack and Michelle Obama to the White House. The chapter also suggests that President Obama’s urban policy agenda exemplifies the limits of black liberalism. Michelle Obama grew up in a family engaged in the kind of neighborhood-based black liberal politics examined in this book. And she and her family provided one of the key institutional bases for her husband’s rise. The president also benefited directly from the long tradition of black liberalism in his experiences working as a community organizer, in the ideology of Christian liberal nationalism articulated by Reverend Jeremiah Wright, and even in the neighborhoods around Reverend Wright’s church built by black bricklayers discussed earlier (Ch. 3 and 4). The Obamas represent both the subversive potential and practical limits of the black liberal political tradition and connect that tradition directly to the broader history of American liberalism.
Liette Gidlow (ed.)
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- April 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780252036606
- eISBN:
- 9780252093654
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- University of Illinois Press
- DOI:
- 10.5406/illinois/9780252036606.001.0001
- Subject:
- Sociology, Politics, Social Movements and Social Change
Election 2008 made American history, but it was also the product of American history. Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, and Sarah Palin smashed through some of the most enduring barriers to high ...
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Election 2008 made American history, but it was also the product of American history. Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, and Sarah Palin smashed through some of the most enduring barriers to high political office, but their exceptional candidacies did not come out of nowhere. This book explores how the candidates both challenged and reinforced historic stereotypes of race and sex while echoing familiar themes in American politics and exploiting new digital technologies. Chapters cover Clinton's gender masquerade; the politics of black anger; Michelle Obama and stereotypes about black women's bodies; black women's century of effort to expand political opportunities for African Americans; the lost legacy of Shirley Chisholm; why the U.S. has not yet followed western democracies in electing a female head of state; Palin and the political traditions of the American West; the populist resurgence in 2008; how digital technologies threaten the secret ballot; Palin's distinctive brand of political feminism; and the new look of American leadership.Less
Election 2008 made American history, but it was also the product of American history. Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, and Sarah Palin smashed through some of the most enduring barriers to high political office, but their exceptional candidacies did not come out of nowhere. This book explores how the candidates both challenged and reinforced historic stereotypes of race and sex while echoing familiar themes in American politics and exploiting new digital technologies. Chapters cover Clinton's gender masquerade; the politics of black anger; Michelle Obama and stereotypes about black women's bodies; black women's century of effort to expand political opportunities for African Americans; the lost legacy of Shirley Chisholm; why the U.S. has not yet followed western democracies in electing a female head of state; Palin and the political traditions of the American West; the populist resurgence in 2008; how digital technologies threaten the secret ballot; Palin's distinctive brand of political feminism; and the new look of American leadership.
Donna L. Franklin
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- September 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780199390618
- eISBN:
- 9780190627959
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199390618.003.0012
- Subject:
- Psychology, Social Psychology
In this chapter, Donna Franklin presents Barack and Michelle Obama as a stereotype-defying model for the modern couple. The term “stalled revolution” (Hochschild) describes how women have moved into ...
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In this chapter, Donna Franklin presents Barack and Michelle Obama as a stereotype-defying model for the modern couple. The term “stalled revolution” (Hochschild) describes how women have moved into the full-time workforce, but men have not made a comparable shift into sharing responsibility for household chores and children. Franklin provides a brief history of the Obama marriage and how the Obamas struggled to find a balance between the conflicting demands of two careers, their relationship, and family. She also places them in the larger historical and social context. She argues that the Obamas are not the exception, but represent a wider community of middle to upper middle class, professional, African American couples. She presents evidence that African American couples pioneered the idea of the dual-career, egalitarian marriage, but such families have been hidden from view until the prominence of the Obamas.Less
In this chapter, Donna Franklin presents Barack and Michelle Obama as a stereotype-defying model for the modern couple. The term “stalled revolution” (Hochschild) describes how women have moved into the full-time workforce, but men have not made a comparable shift into sharing responsibility for household chores and children. Franklin provides a brief history of the Obama marriage and how the Obamas struggled to find a balance between the conflicting demands of two careers, their relationship, and family. She also places them in the larger historical and social context. She argues that the Obamas are not the exception, but represent a wider community of middle to upper middle class, professional, African American couples. She presents evidence that African American couples pioneered the idea of the dual-career, egalitarian marriage, but such families have been hidden from view until the prominence of the Obamas.
Charlie Braxton
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- October 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780199341801
- eISBN:
- 9780199355662
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199341801.003.0010
- Subject:
- Music, Popular
This chapter uses the controversy surrounding Common’s 2011 poetry reading at the Obama White House to examine the politicization of poetry, hip hop, and presidential politics. The cultural event ...
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This chapter uses the controversy surrounding Common’s 2011 poetry reading at the Obama White House to examine the politicization of poetry, hip hop, and presidential politics. The cultural event organized by First Lady Michelle Obama, it argues, provided an opportunity for Republican pundits and strategists to use hip hop to associate the president with stereotypes of black pathology and violence. The chapter contends that this style of political race baiting ultimately caused Obama to distance himself from hip hop for the remainder of his first term. The chapter goes on to argue that the Common incident highlights the paradox of a black president and a post-black political agenda. It contends that the president’s legislative record has failed to address the concerns of the poor, working class, and communities of color—and that the hip hop and millennial generations must demand more than symbolic gestures from politicians and become the agents for change themselves.Less
This chapter uses the controversy surrounding Common’s 2011 poetry reading at the Obama White House to examine the politicization of poetry, hip hop, and presidential politics. The cultural event organized by First Lady Michelle Obama, it argues, provided an opportunity for Republican pundits and strategists to use hip hop to associate the president with stereotypes of black pathology and violence. The chapter contends that this style of political race baiting ultimately caused Obama to distance himself from hip hop for the remainder of his first term. The chapter goes on to argue that the Common incident highlights the paradox of a black president and a post-black political agenda. It contends that the president’s legislative record has failed to address the concerns of the poor, working class, and communities of color—and that the hip hop and millennial generations must demand more than symbolic gestures from politicians and become the agents for change themselves.
Kyra D. Gaunt
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- October 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780199341801
- eISBN:
- 9780199355662
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199341801.003.0012
- Subject:
- Music, Popular
This chapter examines the impact of social media on girls and women in Michelle Obama’s America. While online spaces like YouTube have the potential to empower young girls and enable digital ...
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This chapter examines the impact of social media on girls and women in Michelle Obama’s America. While online spaces like YouTube have the potential to empower young girls and enable digital activism, the chapter documents how pornographic and sexist hip hop videos continue to socialize women into problematic gender roles. Explicit, uncensored “bad bitch” performances, it argues, dominate these online spaces owing to the economic profitability of acquiring multiple “views” and “likes.” Drawing on autoethnography, the chapter describes the similarities and differences between a hip hop generation girlhood of the 1970s and early 1980s and the gendered media space experienced by today’s hip hop millennials. Critical media literacy and mentorship, the chapter argues, is key for ensuring that young girls can take control of their real lives and digital identities.Less
This chapter examines the impact of social media on girls and women in Michelle Obama’s America. While online spaces like YouTube have the potential to empower young girls and enable digital activism, the chapter documents how pornographic and sexist hip hop videos continue to socialize women into problematic gender roles. Explicit, uncensored “bad bitch” performances, it argues, dominate these online spaces owing to the economic profitability of acquiring multiple “views” and “likes.” Drawing on autoethnography, the chapter describes the similarities and differences between a hip hop generation girlhood of the 1970s and early 1980s and the gendered media space experienced by today’s hip hop millennials. Critical media literacy and mentorship, the chapter argues, is key for ensuring that young girls can take control of their real lives and digital identities.
Tanisha C. Ford
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- May 2016
- ISBN:
- 9781469625157
- eISBN:
- 9781469625171
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of North Carolina Press
- DOI:
- 10.5149/northcarolina/9781469625157.003.0008
- Subject:
- History, African-American History
This concluding chapter lays the groundwork for further work in the field of black fashion studies. It argues that future scholarship will have to grapple with the geopolitics of the United States’ ...
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This concluding chapter lays the groundwork for further work in the field of black fashion studies. It argues that future scholarship will have to grapple with the geopolitics of the United States’ relationship with the burgeoning African fashion industry and how such politics ultimately grow America’s empire. The United States has dominated other African markets—oil, copper, and diamonds—for centuries. Fashion is the new frontier. Some activists are already concerned about labor exploitation now that economists are predicting that “the next Asia is Africa” as multinational companies scurry to find cheap labor. These economic factors are unfolding as celebrities such as R&B singer Beyoncé and first Lady Michelle Obama are popularizing African fashion in the realm of social media.Less
This concluding chapter lays the groundwork for further work in the field of black fashion studies. It argues that future scholarship will have to grapple with the geopolitics of the United States’ relationship with the burgeoning African fashion industry and how such politics ultimately grow America’s empire. The United States has dominated other African markets—oil, copper, and diamonds—for centuries. Fashion is the new frontier. Some activists are already concerned about labor exploitation now that economists are predicting that “the next Asia is Africa” as multinational companies scurry to find cheap labor. These economic factors are unfolding as celebrities such as R&B singer Beyoncé and first Lady Michelle Obama are popularizing African fashion in the realm of social media.
Jeffrey Helgeson
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- September 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780226130699
- eISBN:
- 9780226130729
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- University of Chicago Press
- DOI:
- 10.7208/chicago/9780226130729.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, African-American History
In 1983, black Chicagoans elected Harold Washington as the city’s first black mayor. In the process, they overthrew the white Democratic machine and its regime of “plantation politics.” This book ...
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In 1983, black Chicagoans elected Harold Washington as the city’s first black mayor. In the process, they overthrew the white Democratic machine and its regime of “plantation politics.” This book details the long-term development of black Chicago’s political culture, beginning in the 1930s, that both made a political insurrection possible in the right context, and informed Mayor Washington’s liberal, interracial, democratic vision of urban governance. Building upon recent studies of the “Long Civil Rights Movement,” which focus largely on a black radical tradition, this book recovers the history of a long tradition of black liberalism at the ground level. Men and women, largely unsung, made history by engaging with – rather than rejecting – the institutions and ambitions of urban life, and by connecting their individual aspirations to the collective interests of the race. They maintained popular critiques of overlapping systems of race, class, and gender inequality and developed local crucibles of black power that made pragmatic reform possible and set the stage for Washington’s victory and – in surprising ways – even the ascendance of Barack and Michelle Obama. The tragedies of incomplete and uneven racial progress are undeniable. Yet, in struggles for decent housing, good jobs, and political power over a half a century people worked to overcome racial segregation and inequality in everyday life. Consequently, this study shows that the image of the Second Great Migration as an inexorably tragic event is no longer tenable, while it also integrates the story of black urban politics into the deeply ambiguous history of American liberalism.Less
In 1983, black Chicagoans elected Harold Washington as the city’s first black mayor. In the process, they overthrew the white Democratic machine and its regime of “plantation politics.” This book details the long-term development of black Chicago’s political culture, beginning in the 1930s, that both made a political insurrection possible in the right context, and informed Mayor Washington’s liberal, interracial, democratic vision of urban governance. Building upon recent studies of the “Long Civil Rights Movement,” which focus largely on a black radical tradition, this book recovers the history of a long tradition of black liberalism at the ground level. Men and women, largely unsung, made history by engaging with – rather than rejecting – the institutions and ambitions of urban life, and by connecting their individual aspirations to the collective interests of the race. They maintained popular critiques of overlapping systems of race, class, and gender inequality and developed local crucibles of black power that made pragmatic reform possible and set the stage for Washington’s victory and – in surprising ways – even the ascendance of Barack and Michelle Obama. The tragedies of incomplete and uneven racial progress are undeniable. Yet, in struggles for decent housing, good jobs, and political power over a half a century people worked to overcome racial segregation and inequality in everyday life. Consequently, this study shows that the image of the Second Great Migration as an inexorably tragic event is no longer tenable, while it also integrates the story of black urban politics into the deeply ambiguous history of American liberalism.
Adrian Miller
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- September 2017
- ISBN:
- 9781469632537
- eISBN:
- 9781469632551
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of North Carolina Press
- DOI:
- 10.5149/northcarolina/9781469632537.003.0007
- Subject:
- History, African-American History
This chapter opines on the prospect for another African American to helm the White House kitchen at some point in the future. No African Americans have presided over the White House kitchen since ...
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This chapter opines on the prospect for another African American to helm the White House kitchen at some point in the future. No African Americans have presided over the White House kitchen since Zephyr Wright did in the late 1960s. Given the current way that chefs often get hired to work in the contemporary White House, future chefs will likely come from the existing kitchen staff, as the personal chef of a future president or as someone of stature in the culinary world. The chapter gives the back story of the 1994 State Dinner held in honor of Republic of South African President Nelson Mandela. The chapter ends by looking at how the contemporary White House kitchen inspires young people today with a special emphasis on former First Lady Michelle Obama's "Let's Move" Initiative and the Kids' State Dinners she hosted during her tenure. This chapter profiles Chef Patrick Clark, Chef Marcus Samuelsson, White House kitchen steward Adam Collick and Kiana Farkash. The chapter includes recipes for sesame and wasabi-crusted halibut, layered late-summer vegetables with lemongrass and red curry dressing, grilled salmon with farro, Swiss chard salad, and a tropical smoothie.Less
This chapter opines on the prospect for another African American to helm the White House kitchen at some point in the future. No African Americans have presided over the White House kitchen since Zephyr Wright did in the late 1960s. Given the current way that chefs often get hired to work in the contemporary White House, future chefs will likely come from the existing kitchen staff, as the personal chef of a future president or as someone of stature in the culinary world. The chapter gives the back story of the 1994 State Dinner held in honor of Republic of South African President Nelson Mandela. The chapter ends by looking at how the contemporary White House kitchen inspires young people today with a special emphasis on former First Lady Michelle Obama's "Let's Move" Initiative and the Kids' State Dinners she hosted during her tenure. This chapter profiles Chef Patrick Clark, Chef Marcus Samuelsson, White House kitchen steward Adam Collick and Kiana Farkash. The chapter includes recipes for sesame and wasabi-crusted halibut, layered late-summer vegetables with lemongrass and red curry dressing, grilled salmon with farro, Swiss chard salad, and a tropical smoothie.
