The Shirley Sherrod affair brings to the fore a simmering debate over whether black racism is cause for concern in America under its first black president.
During the campaign, Barack Obama was forced to address the racial remarks of his former pastor. Since then, there have been complaints that he presides over an administration that is racial, not post-racial — when he supported a black professor who was arrested by a white police officer, or when the Justice Department dismissed most charges against a group of black militants accused of intimidating voters.
To some conservatives, black racism is invisible in the liberal media and perpetrated by the Obama administration.
“The sheer hypocrisy is maddening to me and is a terrible, terrible double standard,” said conservative radio host Mike Gallagher.
Imani Perry, a professor at Princeton’s Center for African American Studies, said some conservatives are manipulating white fears for political advantage.
“I think many white Americans are fearful that . . . the racial balance of power is shifting. And that’s frightening both because people always are afraid to give up privilege and because of the prospect of a black-and-brown backlash against a very ugly history,” Perry said.
She pointed out that blacks have 10 cents of wealth for every dollar possessed by whites.
“We can hardly say whites, as a group, are suffering under the weight of racial discrimination. That said, we do have to find ways of talking about race with more openness but also with greater sensitivity,” she said. “There is a lot of work for everyone to do in this regard, and people of color are no exception.”
