Simply stating that Michael Brown’s fatal Aug. 9 shooting by Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson has sparked outrage within the community would be diminishing its magnitude. The 18-year-old’s killing has become the nation’s focal point, as the death of yet another unarmed black teenager has resulted in protests and confrontations with law enforcement ill-prepared to handle the circumstances. While a mountain of unanswered questions about Brown’s death looms, members of the media are being arrested in the St. Louis suburb for no reason and both tear gas and rubber bullets are being deployed on civilians. The nation is looking to its first black president for guidance. With all eyes on him, President Barack Obama has now struggled twice to satisfy the reeling public, leaving people as angry with him as they are about what’s happening in Ferguson, Mo.
Yesterday, Obama sought to assuage the conflict between demonstrators and law enforcement while also quelling public concern. "Ours is a nation of laws: of citizens who live under them and for the citizens who enforce them," the president said. "So, to a community in Ferguson that is rightly hurting and looking for answers, let me call once again for us to seek some understanding rather than simply holler at each other. Let’s seek to heal rather than to wound each other." His tone was devoid of the conviction and self-assurance that's characterized past speeches. For the second week in a row, people were left wondering, "Wait...that’s it?"
On one hand, people must realize that he’s the President of the United States, not simply the African-American community. He can’t march up to a podium and channel Huey P. Newton because, as he basically explained yesterday, it wouldn’t behoove him to "look like [he’s] putting [his] thumb on the scales one way or the other." The frustrating need to remain equivocal defines politics, and the president is expected to expertly maneuver along the narrowest of paths. On the other hand, Obama’s tame words about Ferguson are irritating because he’s discussed race—an unavoidable element in the matter—so frankly and deftly in the past.
1.
In March 2008, Obama, still a senator, delivered his "A More Perfect Union" speech. When many thought his connection to controversial Rev. Jeremiah Wright would be a devastating blow to his chances of securing the Democratic party’s presidential nomination, Obama rose to the challenge. His brilliant commentary on race was able to appease everyone whose feathers were ruffled by Wright’s inflammatory statements, and, therefore, were left wary of the nation's eventual leader. What’s more, Obama achieved this without compromising himself:
Some will see this as an attempt to justify or excuse comments that are simply inexcusable. I can assure you it is not. I suppose the politically safe thing to do would be to move on from this episode and just hope that it fades into the woodwork. We can dismiss Reverend Wright as a crank or a demagogue, just as some have dismissed Geraldine Ferraro, in the aftermath of her recent statements, as harboring some deep-seated bias.
But race is an issue that I believe this nation cannot afford to ignore right now. We would be making the same mistake that Reverend Wright made in his offending sermons about America—to simplify and stereotype and amplify the negative to the point that it distorts reality.
The fact is that the comments that have been made and the issues that have surfaced over the last few weeks reflect the complexities of race in this country that we've never really worked through—a part of our union that we have not yet made perfect. And if we walk away now, if we simply retreat into our respective corners, we will never be able to come together and solve challenges like health care or education or the need to find good jobs for every American.
He handled the topic masterfully, though he did so at a much different period in his career. At that point, Obama was still a candidate for the Democratic nod; he was a beacon of hope across multiple levels. Futures were at stake—the future of a country dealt a staggering blow by economic downturn, as well as his own future in politics. There’s a clear difference in most people prior to taking a challenging job compared to them a few years into the job, and Obama arguably has the most difficult job in the country. The responsibility of being the commander-in-chief is heavy, but even during his second term, Obama was able to summon a firm voice on the death of another unarmed black teenager that galvanized the nation and triggered intense discussion about race and the perception of black men in America.
2.
Obama was challenged again six months into his second term. In July 2013, George Zimmerman was acquitted of second-degree murder for the Feb. 2012 killing of Trayvon Martin. Though Obama had previously touched on the subject, he offered a strong, personal take on Martin’s death nearly a week after the verdict:
You know, when Trayvon Martin was first shot I said that this could have been my son. Another way of saying that is Trayvon Martin could have been me 35 years ago. And when you think about why, in the African American community at least, there’s a lot of pain around what happened here, I think it’s important to recognize that the African American community is looking at this issue through a set of experiences and a history that doesn’t go away.
There are very few African American men in this country who haven't had the experience of being followed when they were shopping in a department store. That includes me. There are very few African American men who haven't had the experience of walking across the street and hearing the locks click on the doors of cars. That happens to me—at least before I was a senator. There are very few African Americans who haven't had the experience of getting on an elevator and a woman clutching her purse nervously and holding her breath until she had a chance to get off. That happens often.
Those comments came at a time similar to what's happening today (i.e., a frustrated, grieving nation), but Florida’s governor hadn’t requested the assistance of the National Guard. There were no images of peaceful protesters flushing their eyes with milk to combat the tear gas. Whereas President Obama spoke with such piercing honesty about Martin’s death—and, more important, what could be done to prevent similar situations—he now looks and sounds both stifled and weary.
3.
Let’s be clear: it’s not like President Obama hasn't done anything to remedy what's happening in Ferguson. He’s dispatched U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder to assess things, and the Department of Justice is conducting a separate investigation. However, as the first black president, he’s expected to wear that crown before being recognized as the President of the United States. He’s expected to satisfy the black community before others. It’s an impossible situation to be in, as an entire group looks to him to set a precedent simply because he looks like them. We often forget that he still has to represent the Darren Wilson supporters as well as those fuming over Brown’s unnecessary death. But what drives the anger towards Obama is the fact that he’s been so passive on an issue that he’s spoken so sharply about in the past, a past as recent as last year.
One of the greatest fears about Obama’s presidency is that he’d be subject to violence or assassination. Thankfully, that hasn’t happened, but the reality is much worse: he’s become a victim of politics. His comments on Michael Brown and Ferguson are so tepid that you can tell he’s holding back, a practice he denounced when discussing relations with the Muslim community during a June 2009 speech in Cairo.
"But I am convinced that in order to move forward, we must say openly the things we hold in our hearts, and that too often are said only behind closed doors," he said five years ago. In contrast, you can tell he’s not saying what’s in his heart in relation to Michael Brown. He’s a politician rather than an activist or community leader, so while he can’t exactly throw figurative punches or even dare recite Public Enemy lyrics, it’s disheartening to see the absence of a vigor that was very present before.
A year after the Zimmerman verdict, and in the immediate wake of more black men losing their lives for nothing, the masses are considerably more incensed about black lives seemingly having even less value in a country that’s been led by a black man for over five years now. Minorities already have to accept the notion that law enforcement and the justice system look to incarcerate them before lending a helping hand. Acknowledging that not even the first black president could change the perception of black men in America is another disappointment that this community will have to swallow, and something else for which President Obama will be blamed.
4.
President Obama’s March 2008 speech became a springboard for his election, and perhaps gave rise to the fantasy of a post-racial world. Six years later, the deaths of Michael Brown, Jordan Davis, Trayvon Martin, Oscar Grant, and many more are painful reminders that this was never a reality. Has Obama failed? No, because what powers racism, be it overt or systemic, is much bigger than him. Even as the most powerful man in the country, he can't transcend race, nor can he, in eight years, change a toxic system of beliefs that was embedded into society centuries before he was born.
There’s a marked difference between the president's recent and past statements on race, and it's accompanied by visible fatigue. Perhaps he's tired of having to be everything to everyone. Perhaps he should stop reaching for that unattainable perfect union and just speak from the heart as he's done before. Speaking frankly and openly has always been one of his strengths, so watching him muddle through two press conferences was like watching an elite athlete lose the gift that once made him or her great.
Despite going 0-2 on Ferguson thus far, Obama can still rebound from this. Actually, devoting a full press conference to one of the year’s biggest national news stories and delivering a resonant speech would be a good place to start.
Julian Kimble still believes in Barack Obama, but understands the concept of "politics as usual." Follow him on Twitter here. Photos by Cornell Brown and Sean Stout.
