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Alan Keyes and the Race Card in Illinois Politics August 16, 2004
Illinois' U.S. senate race could almost be called a comedy of errors, except for the fact that Barak Obama could be the second black U.S. Senator from Illinois - and the lone black U.S. Senator, today…statistics that are much too serious for humor. Even more sobering is the fact that just two months before election day, the race has turned into a match between two black men from opposite ends of the world. This game of musical chairs is a sad commentary on the direction of American politics - when the political gates are thrown wide open to find any candidate who can topple Barak Obama. Alan Keyes, a most unlikely candidate, and the latest in a long list of candidates, has emerged almost out of nowhere…the Republican's black political gladiator being pitted against Obama, America's great black hope. Thankfully, most Black Americans realize this last effort is based on Republicans belief that we are still unsophisticated in this wily game of politics, and even more divided as a community. Barak Obama, a political star whose time has come, espouses a better America for All America, while his right-wing conservative opponent espouses what is best for few in America…an outdated Democracy, reminiscent of days gone by. And, while the race should not be predicated on star-power, it should be about political records, and promises. And, we should not overlook the fact that Alan Keyes, a Johnny-come-lately to Illinois politics had three opportunities at the national arena…and, never convinced black or white Americans that he is a leader who can help move America forward. The Republicans' introduction of Alan Keyes to the Illinois Senatorial race is reminiscent of the first real Reality Show - the O.J. Simpson Murder Trial. Remember how Darden and the rest of the prosecutors derided Johnny Cochran and the Dream Team for muddying the waters by playing the "race card"? And, how it didn't take long for this attitude to become pervasive and universal in white America? For the last ten years, African Americans claiming race as a reason for their lot in life was suddenly synonymous with a child saying the dog ate their homework. Race was suddenly disqualified as an obstacle to moving forward. America, in one fell swoop, turned a deaf ear to black Americans who dared pronounce race as a plausible excuse for any of society's ills. Most notably, this attitude adopted carte blanche in the conservative, right wing…and, Republican camps. The "race card," in the eyes of white America, suddenly became a term of derision, a cop-out, and a huge chip on black American's shoulders. One notable educator and writer, an admitted staunch conservative, recently penned a book whose over-arching theme is that American education is suffering because of black America's internalized "race card." This white educator's reasoning is that, after 400 years of slavery, second-hand citizenship, and un-even playing fields, every little black child should be either at the top of their classes, or competing without a hitch with whites and other privileged children who experience few obstacles in their paths. It is black American's ongoing use of the race card, this writer pontificates, not institutionalized obstacles, prohibiting most black children from excelling. While I'm all for black America standing up to our responsibilities, and not only ignoring the many obstacles before us, but using every fiber of our being to get around them; the reality is - there are still many obstacles there. Certainly, we can't continue to cry over spilled milk, and expect it to miraculously replace itself inside that over-turned bucket. Yet. The points this writer overlooks - as most rabid conservatives do - are that America's playing field, even in 2004, is far from level; and, even after Affirmative Action and the 1954 Brown Vs. Board of Education, equal opportunity remains little more than a dream for too many in our communities. And, finally, only a fool would believe that 50 years is ample time for us all to pull ourselves up by our government-allocated bootstraps; or, that 400 years of second-class citizenship can be wiped away in 50 years of starts and stops in America's efforts to get it right. But, education and civil rights aren't the real subjects of this column. American politics is, and specifically, how the race card has so blatantly been re-introduced into Illinois politics- not by the Democrats, the liberals, or African Americans…but, by the Republican Party… in the form of one Alan Keyes. The Obama-Keyes contest is one of the most watched national campaigns in Illinois history; and, pitting an ultra-conservative black Republican against a progressive black Democrat is about as blatant as one can get in an effort to split the black vote. While it may be a stretch to compare this senatorial race to the O.J. murder trial … the re-emergence of the race card from the other side of the aisle, makes it a lot easier. Ugly politics has always made for strange bedfellows. In the final analysis, what is it that the Illinois Republican party, and its parent company - the National Republican party, expect out of this odd fellow of a match? Are they testing black Americans' loyalty quotient to black candidates, no matter what their platform? Or, are they betting that Illinois' majority population - no matter what their stripes - will admit, just before they pull that lever, that they really aren't ready for a Barak Obama in the U.S. Senate; that, the old regime, the "business as usual," ain't so bad after all? Are they are sure that white Republicans will come out in groves to elect a Keyes, who espouses the values of some Americans; while Democrats, especially black Democrats will make a poor showing - even for a man like Barak Obama, who speaks to and for All America? These two men, worlds apart in every sense of the word, co-own one thing - their African American roots. And, after a decade of conservatives deriding race as the big excuse, suddenly it seems it's not so bad after all. Especially, when it comes to a U.S. Senatorial race that could mean the difference between America as it is…and, America as it can be.
Janis F. Kearney is a Chicago writer, former journalist and diarist to President Bill Clinton. A Harvard W.E.B. Du Bois Fellow, she is currently completing William Jefferson Clinton: From Hope to Harlem; and a personal memoir, Cotton Field of Dreams. Kearney Communications 5138 S. Kenwood Ave.#2 Chicago, IL 60615 (773) 493-2007 --ph (773) 493-5747 -- fax janisfk@aol.com |
