View Obama's Victory Speech

What will Obama's presidency mean for race in America?

This is a conversation that has been going on since the beginning of the Obama campaign. We now have the occasion to reflect seriously on both the challenges and promises of Obama's election when it comes to the persistent reality of race and racism in America. Racism is still, of course, alive and well. But what the election does tell us is that the way we think about race in America has forever changed. Perhaps black folks won't be nearly as suspicious about whites, viewing them categorically as merely an extension of a racist past. Perhaps whites might be able, through the gifted leadership of Obama, to see black people as human, embodying the same dreams, hopes, and aspirations as them. Or perhaps, the demons of racism, fear and hatred will reappear, regroup, and react in more insidious ways, invoking the kind of white backlash not seen since the later years of the Civil Rights Movement during the rise of Black consciousness and youth rebellion. What do you think?