Black men have a right to be outraged by Jessie Jackson’s comments about cutting Obama’s nuts off. I am not a brother, but any talk of cutting a brother’s nuts off certainly leaves me uneasy just because… After all, not too long ago if a black man in the south stepped out of his place, white folks would lynch him and cut his nuts off – nipping him and his kind in the bud. I suppose Jessie could say that he used the ‘nuts cutting’ reference for the same reason that young black men call each other ‘nigger’: If white folks do it to us, might as well embrace it and do it to each other cause ain’t a damn thing we can do to change what it is. I think all this nigger talk and nuts cutting bullshit has got to go, but the Democratic presidential candidate does need a serious reality check.

Obama’s recent shortsighted verbal reprimand of “absent” black fathers have rubbed most in the black community the wrong way – not just Jessie. And it’s not because he is pointing out that “our families are in disrepair” – that’s not news. As a presidential candidate, he has failed to impress many in the black community because he has yet to tackle the shackles that are leading to our familial disrepair. Instead, he limits the source of our problems to “past injustices” and chides, “…we can’t keep using that as an excuse.” Well let’s put past injustices aside and look at some current issues Obama could talk about in relation to what is happening in our communities: A comprehensive plan to turn around our dilapidated public education system that places the worst schools in black and low income communities; improving the administration of schools such that they aren’t a direct conduit for black male imprisonment; an economic stimulus plan for low income communities that does not involve building prisons or the military. These are all things that could stem the growth of absenteeism among black fathers – but did Obama discuss this connection? No. It seems the merchant of hope ran out of his good stuff when it comes to black people because he can’t discuss our reality without alienating his supporters. Obama wants to talk about rebuilding key public institutions without acknowledging the people that are suffering as a result of their breakdown.

Absenteeism among black fathers is a result of men not having the economic wherewithal to be the parent they would like to be. It’s about living in a society that primarily regards you as prison fodder and where black men without a criminal record (and perhaps a degree) are less likely to find a job than white men with criminal records according to a study by Prof. Devah Page. It’s about working in a society without a living wage and where falling behind on child support means jail time or being on the run. If Obama can’t tackle these important issues, then he needs to focus on the segment of society that’s satisfied with “hoping” that they go away miraculously.

-Special Guest

(photo credit – washingtonpost.com, altered by SuGar)