# data[].attributes.body
When the Democratic Party took up the mantle of Civil Rights in the mid to late 1960’s, black support went up for them. No Republican presidential candidate has received more than 13% of the African American vote since 1968.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
African Americans are Democrats. Since 1968 no Republican presidential candidate has received more than 13% of the African American vote and surveys of African Americans regularly show that upwards of 80% of African Americans self-identify as Democrats. However, understanding why African Americans…

# data[].attributes.body
This article mostly talks about how Tim Scott once, in a speech responding to Biden, said that America was not racist. The article goes on to say, "...simply saying America is not racist, but then turning the other cheek and saying it is racist in subtler terms and that racist things have been done to you makes it ok." In this quote, they are saying that just because racist things have happened to them, it does not make it okay for America to be racist.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
South Carolina Republican Sen. Tim Scott shocked many people when, in response to President Joe Biden's congressional address, he stated that " America is not a racist country ." He admitted that he himself had experienced " the pain of discrimination, " and noted, " I know what it feels like to be pulled over for no reason, to be followed around a store while I'm shopping. " When asked o n ABC's Good Morning America the following day , Vice President Kamala Harris s eemed to agree with Scott when she s aid , "I don't think America is a racist country." Yet immediately following this sentence she quickly pointed out , "But we also do have to speak truth about the history of racism in our country and its existence today."

As Soledad O'Brien said, "It sounds like a racist country to me," in to Scott-but it seemingly applies to comments by Harris as well. President Biden, who seemed to not pull any punches during his speech, stated, "W e have a real chance to root out systemic racism that America ." However, Biden appeared to his remarks on The Today Show to align more with Harris and Scott (to a certain degree) by noting that slavery and Jim Crow laws had a cost.

It is almost as if simply saying America is not racist, but then turning the other cheek and saying it is racist in subtler terms and that racist things have been done to you makes it ok. It is confusing to Americans and the international community. To supporters, these comments are disappointing . To others, they were shocking. For me , the cognitive dissonance of some of our elected leaders is real and explainable . The re is an oversimplification of racism in America, because as sociologist Eduardo Bonilla-Silva notes, there can be systemic racism without racists.

W hen a person critique s America for the racism that i s deeply embedded in our social institutions, some feel they are being personally attacked. This is because deep down they realize that they benefit from unearned assets associated with whiteness. Scott, Harris, and Biden recognize this and try to balance these varying perspectives as they worry about voters nationally and in a state like South Carolina.

Recently, a at a city council meeting had a meltdown when trying to explain why she does not want critical race theory taught in her children's school. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said that s ystemic racism as a concept is " a bunch of horse manure ." So, not only has Florida made it legal to harm people protesting, but he banned teaching critical race theory in schools. For a deeper dive on critical race theory , people should read the work of sociologists Victor and Ted , who lay out why DeSantis' perspective is problematic .

I conducted with Matt Hunt on what predicts who believes they are middle class. For education, income, and occupational prestige, Black people are less likely to identify as middle class compared to whites with comparable levels of these socioeconomic outcomes. Why? It is because social class is not just about what a person looks like on paper , but how people experience social class in everyday life and t he deference that one receives for their socioeconomic status. Black people are less likely to get that deference, while white people are often afforded more. It is so commonplace for white people that some cannot fathom living without it. This is because many white people, particularly white people with lower levels of education and income, realize that comes with a premium that extends beyond economics to include cultural and social capital. As Pr esident Lyndon Johnson said, " If you can the lowest white man he's better than the best colored man, he won't notice you're picking his pocket. Hell, give him somebody to look down on, and h e'll empty his pockets for you."

Harris and Scotts' comments are puzzling at a broader level as well considering how much of a collective memory their experiences with racism are- Harris reliving her systemic experiences with bussing and Scott recounting the nearly 20 times he has been pulled over by police, where being an elected official potentially made the interaction worse.

These stories acknowledge that life is different if you are Black, and unfortunately systemic racism seems to ripple through our social institutions and into our daily social interactions, whether in Congress or at a coffee shop down the street from the Capitol. These type s of experiences-racialized cuts and hurdles- have a cumulative effect on . Sociologist s Pam Jackson and Jason Cummings' research documents that middle-class Blacks have worse health profiles than working-class whites. They attribute this difference to the daily racialized trauma experienced in predominately white environments like work and neighborhood settings.

Systemically, we know that Black people compared to whites are more likely to attend schools with less funding per student, less likely to obtain a job because of our "Black-sounding" name or even when attending an Ivy League university , less likely to obtain a (even when having the same credit score ), have their homes appraised for equitable value, more likely to experience pregnancy complications and maternal mortality , and more likely to have contact with police and the criminal justice system .

Systemic racism inhibits (rather than prohibits like in the past) people's ability to actualize all aspects of the American Dream. This occurs  even for highly-educated Black people with high incomes and no criminal record. In fact, research documents that white people with a criminal record are more likely to get called back for a job than Black people without one.

Research documents that hard work (or lack thereof ), intellect, or criminality do not explain these outcomes. Instead, it is the embedded deeply within our social institutions' , rules, regulations, and laws that segment people's experiences along racial lines. It is the same for gender. Women can achieve but have a much harder time doing so. If not, America would have had a woman vice president and speaker of the House sitting behind the p resident long before 2021.

What people do not seem to realize is that being upwardly mobile does not negate encountering racist hurdles on the pathway to success. Our current system is set up for some people to have to jump over hurdles to succeed, while others get to simply run to the finish line without those sa me racial hurdles. Rather , it is about whether the pathways to success are equitable . This is what America says it is: an equitable democracy. People are pushing for America to reach its true ideal s and the only way this can properly occur is acknowledging the systemic barriers that prevent us from getting there. Moreover, it is not that racial progress has not been made. It is that the United States has yet to make enough progress. In this regard, comment s of our top elected officials are disappointing, yet predictable.

Black people who succeed often walk on pins and needles because they realize that their success, and more so maintaining it, is precarious.   As a result, some Black people aim to make white pe ople feel comfortable. Many of us are mostly socialized to do so. I t is often a survival strategy for our lives during police encounters or economic survival in boardrooms. Some of us who succeed may experience "survivor's remorse" because we are some of the few to "make it." We actually embody the American Dream and become the in-person example to people who do not want to admit that systemic racism exists. We may even convince ourselves that racism is more prominent on the individual level than the institutional level. We simultaneously represent racial progress but are also most likely to be subjugated to racial discrimination because of the predominately white spaces we are embedded within. We experience a chronic form of double-consciousness   and admitting as such can often lead us to being conscious of the slow death we often experience through the cumulative racist cuts and hurdles we encounter.   The American Dream being achievable for a few does not absolve the system and an imperfect union, even when some of those successful people try to rationalize systemic racism away.

In most instances: When Black parents worry about their straight-A student's traffic encounters with the police more than they do a potential accident, this is because of experiences with racism. When a Black couple is about to have a baby and has to think consciously about what hospital to deliver in so they can obtain equitable care, this is racism. When a Black parent worries about their child attending a prestigious university outside of an urban area, this is often because of the racism they worry about them encountering driving to the school and even once physically on the campus of the school. And even more urban universities are not absolved from .

Systemic racism is not simply a thing of the past. It is up close and personal in the present.

R acism may be no more transparent in an institution with the least representative racial progress like the Senate. There have only been 11 Black senators in roughly 232 years. Clearly, the Senate is the exact space we need people with the courage to say the blunt, honest truth about our nation's past and present. Only then can we actualize a future where systemic racism does not exist. It is imperative for a , reconciliation, and reparative process to commence. This starts with atoning for the enslavement of of Africans whose descendants contin uously fall systemically behind , whether they end up being the lone Black Republican senator or a Black police officer who might have the power to pull him over.   We must have the courage to speak truth to power and one of the places it starts is in Congress.   "If not now, then when?"

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
South Carolina Republican Sen. Tim Scott shocked many people when, in response to President Joe Biden's congressional address, he stated that " America is not a racist country ." He admitted that he himself had experienced " the pain of discrimination, " and noted, " I know what it feels like to be pulled over for no reason, to be followed around a store while I'm shopping.

# data[].attributes.body
This article speaks about if Obama fulfills MLKs dream. One of the quotes says, "The election of a black man to the presidency has forever changed the outlook of African-Americans, but it has not changed our circumstances." This quote is saying that just because the people have elected a black president, it does not mean that there is not more racism.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
On this 50th anniversary of the March on Washington, the nation's first black president will address the country from the very spot where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his moving "I Have a Dream" speech - a rousing petition for an end to racial discrimination. The visual of President Obama on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial will be a powerful commentary on America's progress, and will have special meaning for African-Americans.

The election of a black man to the presidency has forever changed the outlook of African-Americans, but it has not changed our circumstances. Mr. Obama's election was anticipated as the culmination of the two complementary, but distinct, events of August 28, 1963 - the march and the speech. These are often couched as synonymous when, actually, one was an activist demand for equal rights and the other an emotional plea for equality. In fact, President Obama is the embodiment of the King's inspiring oration, but not the personification of the march's black activism.

There is no question that African-Americans were, and remain, incredibly proud that the nation entrusted its highest office to a black man. Images from the night of the 2008 presidential election reflect the deep, emotional significance of that event. Many remarked that the election served as proof that the American dream was finally tangible, and that it would no longer be dishonest to tell their children they could achieve anything.

His election is, and will forever be, Obama's most significant contribution to African-Americans. Much as King's speech provided a moment and a figure that symbolized a people's heartfelt desire for equality, Obama's election and two-term presidency updated the dream and positively changed the realm of the possible for African-Americans. Given the nation's history, America is a renewed, if not new, place for many African-Americans now that a black man sits in the White House. This is not trivial.

Of course, this pride is not limited to one racial demographic. All Americans should be proud that our history has been a steady march toward the inclusiveness that has always been a part of the American idea, if not always evident in practice. No one group owns this achievement, but it's undeniable that African-Americans rightly have an outsized connection to it.

But just as inspiration has its place, so does activism. There was a sense among African-Americans that once Obama assumed the presidency, he would begin to address the long-ignored ills that have plagued many black communities for decades. Instead, he made very clear early on that his job is to help all Americans by strengthening the middle class and speeding the economic recovery through fair-share, progressive tax and other policies.

For example, when criticized about not doing enough to help African-American businesses, he's replied, "My general view has been consistent throughout, which is that I want all businesses to succeed. I want all Americans to have opportunity. I'm not the president of black America. I'm the president of the United States of America." And this is exactly correct. Anyone expecting Obama to make the plight of African-Americans the focus of his presidency does not fully appreciate the enormity of the office and issues it must address.

The result is that his election and policies have not significantly affected the conditions in black America as advocated for at the March in 1963. The full name of that political demonstration is instructive: The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. This assembly of Americans of all races, but primarily blacks, was an expression of solidarity for very specific requests of the federal government. The agenda consisted of petitions for fair employment practices, sufficient wages, access to suitable and integrated schools, and nondiscriminatory housing.

Yet, even as the job market has recovered under Obama, black unemployment remains in a perpetual state of recession-level percentages, and consistently twice the national average. African-American wage disparity as compared to the national average remains an issue today just as it always has. An Economic Policy Institute report, "The Unfinished March," shows that concentrated, impoverished housing and school segregation today remain very close to the levels they did in 1963. African-American imprisonment rates, particularly for young men, remain appalling.

The president has simply aligned his approach with the adage, "a rising tide lifts all boats." In other words, by simply helping all Americans, the theory goes, it is inevitable that African-Americans will also benefit. But what the March on Washington, and many members of the black community, argued is that the primary issue was about disparities - that rising tides do not close those gaps. Thus, from a practical perspective, not much has changed about the African-American experience under a black president.

To be sure, there have been some steps the president has taken to specifically help African-Americans. His executive order awarding grants to historically black colleges and universities was a welcome development, though the recent change in some federal loan requirements means fewer students will be there to take advantage. Additionally, the announcement that the Department of Justice would undertake sentencing reform was welcome news to exasperated African-Americans - even if many would have preferred the Obama administration to have tackled the issue much earlier.

For all the meaning that will be on display when President Obama takes the stage to commemorate a seminal moment in American history, it will be a largely symbolic moment that does not bring about the change the March on Washington demanded. This may have to be enough. After all, his contribution as role model has forever changed the nation.

Get the Monitor Stories you care about delivered to your inbox.

Though most African-Americans wanted him to be the embodiment of the speech and the march, it was probably too much, if not inappropriate, to expect him to be both. The work that remains is now the province of the newly inspired. And this, too, is exactly correct.
Theodore Roosevelt Johnson III is an active-duty Navy officer, writer, and 2011-2012 White House Fellow. The views expressed here are his own and do not necessarily reflect the views of the US government.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Does President Obama fulfill MLK's dream?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
For all the meaning that will be on display when President Obama commemorates a seminal moment in US history today, it will be a largely symbolic moment that does not bring the change that the March on Washington demanded. This may have to be enough.

# data[].attributes.body
Another article speaks ont he same topic regarding Tim. One of the quotes in this article says, "But racial disparities exist in the US healthcare system, its criminal justice system, its educational system and its economic system." These are just a few of the many examples of how racist America is.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
His choice of words was categorical. When Tim Scott, the only Black Republican in the Senate, responded to Joe Biden's speech to Congress last week, he said: "America is not a racist country."

But racial disparities exist in the US healthcare system, its criminal justice system, its educational system and its economic system. Those gaps are wide. They are persistent. And, in some cases, racial disparities have grown over time rather than narrowed.

Dataset after dataset, from non-partisan thinktanks to government sources, consistently show these racial disparities. And, unless one believes inherent, biological differences exist between racial groups in the US that would explain their differing success in the country (a belief that would, by the way, be racist), the only possible explanation for all this is structural racism.

These differences exist from the moment that a child is born in the US. One in every seven Black babies has a low birth weight compared with one in every 15 white babies, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data from 2019.

And the gaps remain. Black, Hispanic and Native American children are more likely to live in poverty than their white, Asian, Hawaiian or Pacific Islander counterparts, as census data from 2020 reveals.

By the time that graduation rolls around, just 74% of Native American or Alaska Native children will complete their public high school education, compared with 79% of Black children and 89% of white children. These statistics come from the US Department of Education, 2017-2018.

In adulthood too, racial discrimination affects just about every aspect of a person's life. The 2018 American Community Survey (conducted by the Census Bureau) reveals that people of color are most likely to work in low-paid frontline jobs.

And tragically, though not surprisingly, these are the jobs that often have the greatest exposure to the risks of Covid-19. Black people in the US are almost 1.9 times more likely to die from the disease than their white counterparts. For Hispanic or Latino people, the risk is 2.3 times higher, and for Native Americans it's 2.4 times higher than white people.

Crucially, these statistics can not be treated in isolation. Health is affected by poverty. Poverty affects educational outcomes. Education affects economic security and so it goes on.

Research has shown that Black babies are more likely to be born at a low birth weight because of the physical demands of the low-paid work that many of their mothers are doing. That low-paid work can make it harder to get health insurance too. While just 5% of white people in the US don't have health insurance, that share doubles for Black people (10%) and doubles again for Hispanic people (20%), according to the census. And of course, a lack of access to healthcare puts an individual at greater risk of dying from Covid-19.

To say that the US is not a racist country is to make a statement that exists outside of reality. It is a fantasy to which many people, especially white Americans, would like to cling.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Tim Scott says 'America is not a racist country' - the data says otherwise | Mona Chalabi

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
His choice of words was categorical. When Tim Scott, the only Black Republican in the Senate, responded to Joe Biden's speech to Congress last week, he said: "America is not a racist country." But racial disparities exist in the US healthcare system, its criminal justice system, its educational system and its economic system.

# data[].attributes.body
Kamala Harris is the first black vice president. In her speech, she made it known that she is the first but definitely not the last. It took years but now we finally have a black woman in office!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Harris referred to Black women as "backbone of our democracy."

In her first remarks as vice president-elect of the United States, Kamala Harris offered an inspirational message to America's women, and more specifically, Black women.

"While I may be the first woman in this office, I will not be the last. Because every little girl watching tonight sees that this is a country of possibilities," Harris said.

During those remarks, she reflected on the Black women who paved the way for her historic ascent, referring to Black women as the "backbone of our democracy."

Harris' historic nomination and election will give way to a new generation of Black female leaders in politics, argued Nadia Brown, a political science professor at Purdue University.

"What this symbolically shows is that she is there, she belongs and because of that, generations of other people that have been marginalized also belong," said Brown.

It's a sentiment echoed by Glynda Carr, the CEO and founder of Higher Heights, a political action committee formed to help Black women who reach elected office.

"She has forever changed how you campaign, how you show up as your authentic self in bringing all your multiple identities to a campaign," said Carr. "That, I think, will translate not only for future presidential and VP runs, but certainly I think how women will show up as candidates for local offices as well."

Since her nomination, Harris campaigned almost exclusively to communities of color, highlighting her Indian and Jamaican heritage, her historically Black university alma mater and membership in the historically Black Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. Harris did so in the face of attacks from the right, including the constant and often deliberate mispronunciation of her name.

"When you are a public figure, especially when you're a woman, a Black woman who is a public figure, you expect it," said Sharon Wright Austin, a political science professor at the University of Florida. "And you have a special kind of strength, that helps you to not focus on the trolls, but to focus on the people who wish you well."

Campbell University law student Robyn Sanders described a short interaction with Harris after a campaign event in North Carolina.

"She said there are going to be many places and spaces that we're going to enter into that there's not going to be anyone like the two of us, but she said to always remember our power as strong, intelligent Black women," Sanders told ABC News. "And so you know I thanked her for it, but I couldn't honestly thank her enough."

That conversation, Sanders said, has reinforced her desire to pursue politics.

"The words that she spoke were not just words, but they actually have an impact and a meaning because they keep me going on the hard days; they keep me grounded and they help to remind me of what is possible and what my potential is," said Sanders.

Harris' election isn't just significant for symbolic reasons, but could impact Biden's agenda. During her remarks Saturday, Harris said it was time "to root out systemic racism in our justice system and society."

Biden and Harris will enter the White House following a national reckoning on race and cries for police reform sparked by a series of killings of Black people by law enforcement officers this year.

"She will bring and push for the intersectionality of the policies that they will center -- the approaches and the vision they will center to ensure that there's a racial lens and a gender lens," said Carr. "And that is going to be the legacy of having a woman and a woman of color as a vice president."

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
What Kamala Harris means to a new generation of Black female leaders

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Harris referred to Black women as "backbone of our democracy." In her first remarks as vice president-elect of the United States, Kamala Harris offered an inspirational message to America's women, and more specifically, Black women. "While I may be the first woman in this office, I will not be the last.