Lynda Turet says she could never identify herself as a white person in America because she is also half-Filipina. Both women support Obama's choice to identify himself as a black candidate, but they also understand why he emphasizes his white roots. David Mendell, author of "Obama: From Promise to Power" says there's an idea of a "post-racial" candidate, a candidate who transcends the labels of race to appeal to all races.
He says though most Americans view Obama as black, he has been able to use his own experiences to appeal to both black and white audiences and that has translated into political success. This is a debate that will continue as we watch the presidential race. It seems with an issue like this there's no right or wrong answer. As Michaela Angela Davis says, it's a step in the right direction that we are even having this discussion as all.
Share this on:. Story Highlights Americans were first allowed to identify as "multiracial" in the Census Barack Obama is touted as the nation's first major party black candidate for president Obama identifies himself as black, but his parentage is biracial Next Article in Politics ».
Barack Obama's father was from Kenya; his white mother was from Kansas. E-mail to a friend. Mixx Facebook Twitter Digg del. Sound Off: Your opinions and comments. Post a comment iReport. Post a comment Name. Comment Submit. From the Blogs: Controversy, commentary, and debate. Sit tight, we're getting to the good stuff.
From psychiatrist to 'Butcher of Bosnia'. Some have also remarked that Obama has a style of walking associated with black men. That Carson grew up often poor? Obama reports being subject to such judgments from early on. He did it so long ago that any notion of it as an act is too abstract to merit attention. Plus, middle-class black people, especially, can attest that quite a few black young people do not truly embrace cultural blackness until adolescence or even afterward, and yet surely they do not qualify as posers for the rest of their life.
There are, indeed, black people who for various reasons do not exhibit any cultural black traits. Barack Obama is not one of them, and as someone who is no stranger to being called unblack for his politics, Carson should reconsider calling the president unblack because of a childhood now decades in the past.
Contact us at letters time. By John McWhorter. TIME Ideas hosts the world's leading voices, providing commentary on events in news, society, and culture. We welcome outside contributions. Opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of TIME editors. Related Stories. Already a print subscriber? Go here to link your subscription.
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