Misplaced anger at Obama ignores white privilege, not to mention facts

The Washington Examiner called out President Obama yesterday, and not for what you may think. The paper did not take Obama to task for his handling of the mortgage crisis, health care reform or even the most recent immigration legislation in Arizona. No, they were angry at him for "leaving out white males" in his midterm election strategy.

Examiner White House correspondent Julie Mason details the recently-released speech in which Obama encourages his 2008 supporters, as well as women, blacks, Hispanics and young people to rally together in the midterm election season.

What about the good ol' white folk, Mr. President?

Conservatives were upset by Obama's comments, Mason writes, and many argued that had a president called for unity among white voters, public outcry would spread like wildfire. Mason tempers this criticism with a dose of reality from Aubrey Jewett, political scientist at the University of Central Florida. Jewett says Obama's approval among white men is down and, "realistically the Democrats don't think they have a chance of getting them back between now and November." Phew. Whites can relax. It's based in fact.

Not so fast.

Jewett's inclusion is a paltry attempt at balance for the Examiner, especially when the cover of the April 27 issue reads, "Obama disses white guys: Rallies blacks, Latinos, women" (see above). When this is your front page story, and you choose the word "diss," you've got a bone to pick with our President.

The Huffington Post gives some context to the newspaper's position, arguing that the Examiner caters to the whitest geographic markets of the D.C. area. So can we chalk this whole thing up to merely cheap-shot reporting, another case of "giving the public what they want?"

Sorry, but this isn't another sensationalist piece of smut about John and Kate plus God knows how many. This is a case of whiteness feeling threatened.

First off, Obama is half white, so let's keep in mind that if Obama is ignoring white people, he's ignoring half his lineage too. Secondly, "young people" is not race-specific, so whites may have been implied in his speech.

Thirdly, I believe Obama's critics are right to insist that had the President only referred to whites, public outcry would mount strong and hard. But what if Obama's words were uttered by a white president? Would whites be upset at the lack of reference to people like them? Or would they think the president was progressive and committed to helping historically disadvantaged groups? How much of this is due to Obama's own skin color, and white fear of being dismantled from the most privileged pillar of society? I have no definitive answers here, but I can't help but think this is yet another race-based double standard.

Finally, and most importantly, let's look at what is really at issue here: Obama did not explicitly mention white people, instead choosing groups that have been explicitly excluded from social programs, economic and political opportunities and upward mobility. In doing so, the President made whites aware of their oft-taken-for-granted whiteness, and threatened by its absence from his speech. Funny that whites don't acknowledge the privileges of whiteness, but man do they jump when they feel that privilege compromised even superficially.

For whites to say their President is ignoring them is to yet again overlook the advantages bestowed on them throughout history and continuing today.

Blacks in the Jim Crow South know what it's like to be truly ignored by the government. Pre-19th Amendment women know what's it's like to be ignored. Migrant workers today know what it's like to be ignored. Those feeling dissed by our President in this case? Not so much.

Photo Credit: The Examiner