Black Power?

Almost two weeks ago I was so stunned by a remark as to be speechless, a state that is quite rare for me. Somebody asked me whom I plan to vote for in the May 13th West Virginia Presidential Primary, to which I responded, "Senator Obama." His face clouded as he told me that he couldn’t vote for the Illinois Senator because "[t]he Blacks have too much power in this country." Too much power? Are you kidding me?

Did he mean political power? No African American has ever been President. Only five African Americans (including Senator Obama) have served in the U.S. Senate. Only two Justices of the U.S. Supreme Court have been African Americans. Only four African Americans have served as Governors of States. That’s not exactly political power.

Did he mean financial power? In 2001 (the year for which I have the latest figures), the median net worth of a European American ("white") family was $117,722; of an African American family, $18,510. The average stock ownership of a European American family was $50,530; of an African American family, $3,155. I doubt that one could say that African Americans have a stranglehold on the finances of this country.

You understand, of course, that, if I had told him that I plan to vote for Senator Clinton (which I will do in November if she’s the Democratic nominee), his response probably would have been that women have too much power in this country. I suspect that he longs for the "good old days" in West Virginia before African Americans and women achieved all that "power." Ah, yes, those were the days. In West Virginia, African Americans were denied access to restaurants and hotels; African American children attended segregated schools; women were prohibited from serving on juries.

Damnant quod non intelligunt. (They condemn what they do not understand.)