Obama the 'Magic Negro'

[GaryC 7]

Can you imagine the screams from the left if a Republican titled his story like this? Why isn't this the lead on CNN? Please tell me again there isn't any media bias.

AS EVERY CARBON-BASED life form on this planet surely knows, Barack Obama, the junior Democratic senator from Illinois, is running for president. Since making his announcement, there has been no end of commentary about him in all quarters — musing over his charisma and the prospect he offers of being the first African American to be elected to the White House.

But it's clear that Obama also is running for an equally important unelected office, in the province of the popular imagination — the "Magic Negro."

The Magic Negro is a figure of postmodern folk culture, coined by snarky 20th century sociologists, to explain a cultural figure who emerged in the wake of Brown vs. Board of Education. "He has no past, he simply appears one day to help the white protagonist," reads the description on Wikipedia http://en.-wikipedia.org/wiki/Magical_Negro .

He's there to assuage white "guilt" (i.e., the minimal discomfort they feel) over the role of slavery and racial segregation in American history, while replacing stereotypes of a dangerous, highly sexualized black man with a benign figure for whom interracial sexual congress holds no interest.

As might be expected, this figure is chiefly cinematic — embodied by such noted performers as Sidney Poitier, Morgan Freeman, Scatman Crothers, Michael Clarke Duncan, Will Smith and, most recently, Don Cheadle. And that's not to mention a certain basketball player whose very nickname is "Magic."

Poitier really poured on the "magic" in "Lilies of the Field" (for which he won a best actor Oscar) and "To Sir, With Love" (which, along with "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner," made him a No. 1 box-office attraction). In these films, Poitier triumphs through yeoman service to his white benefactors. "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner" is particularly striking in this regard, as it posits miscegenation without evoking sex. (Talk about magic!)

The same can't quite be said of Freeman in "Driving Miss Daisy," "Seven" and the seemingly endless series of films in which he plays ersatz paterfamilias to a white woman bedeviled by a serial killer. But at least he survives, unlike Crothers in "The Shining," in which psychic premonitions inspire him to rescue a white family he barely knows and get killed for his trouble. This heart-tug trope is parodied in Gus Van Sant's "Elephant." The film's sole black student at a Columbine-like high school arrives in the midst of a slaughter, helps a girl escape and is immediately gunned down. See what helping the white man gets you?

And what does the white man get out of the bargain? That's a question asked by John Guare in "Six Degrees of Separation," his brilliant retelling of the true saga of David Hampton — a young, personable gay con man who in the 1980s passed himself off as the son of none other than the real Sidney Poitier. Though he started small, using the ruse to get into Studio 54, Hampton discovered that countless gullible, well-heeled New Yorkers, vulnerable to the Magic Negro myth, were only too eager to believe in his baroque fantasy. (One of the few who wasn't fooled was Andy Warhol, who was astonished his underlings believed Hampton's whoppers. Clearly Warhol had no need for the accouterment of interracial "goodwill.")

But the same can't be said of most white Americans, whose desire for a noble, healing Negro hasn't faded. That's where Obama comes in: as Poitier's "real" fake son.

The senator's famously stem-winding stump speeches have been drawing huge crowds to hear him talk of uniting rather than dividing. A praiseworthy goal. Consequently, even the mild criticisms thrown his way have been waved away, "magically." He used to smoke, but now he doesn't; he racked up a bunch of delinquent parking tickets, but he paid them all back with an apology. And hey, is looking good in a bathing suit a bad thing?

The only mud that momentarily stuck was criticism (white and black alike) concerning Obama's alleged "inauthenticty," as compared to such sterling examples of "genuine" blackness as Al Sharpton and Snoop Dogg. Speaking as an African American whose last name has led to his racial "credentials" being challenged — often several times a day — I know how pesky this sort of thing can be.

Obama's fame right now has little to do with his political record or what he's written in his two (count 'em) books, or even what he's actually said in those stem-winders. It's the way he's said it that counts the most. It's his manner, which, as presidential hopeful Sen. Joe Biden ham-fistedly reminded us, is "articulate." His tone is always genial, his voice warm and unthreatening, and he hasn't called his opponents names (despite being baited by the media).

Like a comic-book superhero, Obama is there to help, out of the sheer goodness of a heart we need not know or understand. For as with all Magic Negroes, the less real he seems, the more desirable he becomes. If he were real, white America couldn't project all its fantasies of curative black benevolence on him.

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oe-...-opinion-center

[mmarlo 1]

That is a ridiculous title. I'm with you on this one, Gary.

[pedroh 21]

Malcom X uses the same word for his theory of the Field Negro and House Negro.. I think he's using the word as a more historical context, as a broad definition.. if not, there wouldn't be Negro Spirituals, or United Negro College Fund

Edited March 20, 2007 by pedroh

[mmarlo 1]

I get the point, but the word is an anachronism.

A couple weeks ago I was in Connecticut for a job interview in an English department at a university. The department chair is a lady who hits F7 every time she talks and her speech is sprinkled with some very uncommon words. But she really opened my eyes when she threw in the word "niggardly" casually into the conversation. I mean, I know what the word means, but it just sounds so bad.

[GaryC 7]

Malcom X uses the same word for his theory of the Field Negro and House Negro.. I think he's using the word as a more historical context, as a broad definition.. if not, there wouldn't be Negro Spirituals, or United Negro College Fund

Sorry but I am not even black and this whole story offends me. The president is about leadership and vision, not what race the candidate is. I would personally vote for whoever best fits my idea of what this country should be doing regardless of race or gender. This is very condescending.

[pedroh 21]

I get the point, but the word is an anachronism.

A couple weeks ago I was in Connecticut for a job interview in an English department at a university. The department chair is a lady who hits F7 every time she talks and her speech is sprinkled with some very uncommon words. But she really opened my eyes when she threw in the word "niggardly" casually into the conversation. I mean, I know what the word means, but it just sounds so bad.

yea I agree, the word is obsolete now..

[pedroh 21]

after reading other articles online, I think the article is referring to how the media (both sides, liberal and conservative) are focusing more on the characteristics that you would or not attribute to a certain race, rather than the credentials, capabilities of Obama..

it's true that everyday you hear from some pundit, politician, person, how 'articulate' 'well spoken' 'proper' Obama is, which, in a sense, they say it in a surprising way, OMG! a articulate educated black person.. and on the other side, you have the african-american comunity sayin he's not 'legit', he's not really black, he hasn't struggled like us brothers.. so, the debate of Obama's capabilities as a president are being focused towards his race-attributes, that's why the author is using the anachronic word 'magic negro' (used in cinematography aeons ago) which is using sarcastically, as how he is the black character that appears magically and has certain non-stereotypical characteristics to help the white character (in this case, I guess he's referring to the USA)... so, even though yes, the use of the word is not proper, because it's anachronic, obsolete, offensive, he's criticizing how a lot of people, media, etc, are just talking about Obama's 'magic' because he is the 'nice' 'educated' black candidate..

Edited March 20, 2007 by pedroh

[mmarlo 1]

after reading other articles online, I think the article is referring to how the media (both sides, liberal and conservative) are focusing more on the characteristics that you would or not attribute to a certain race, rather than the credentials, capabilities of Obama..

it's true that everyday you hear from some pundit, politician, person, how 'articulate' 'well spoken' 'proper' Obama is, which, in a sense, they say it in a surprising way, OMG! a articulate educated black person.. and on the other side, you have the african-american comunity sayin he's not 'legit', he's not really black, he hasn't struggled like us brothers.. so, the debate of Obama's capabilities as a president are being focused towards his race-attributes, that's why the author is using the anachronic word 'magic negro' (used in cinematography aeons ago) which is using sarcastically, as how he is the black character that appears magically and has certain non-stereotypical characteristics to help the white character (in this case, I guess he's referring to the USA)... so, even though yes, the use of the word is not proper, because it's anachronic, obsolete, offensive, he's criticizing how a lot of people, media, etc, are just talking about Obama's 'magic' because he is the 'nice' 'educated' black candidate..

Those are good points. I think the media totally misses the point by focusing on a candidates 'eloquence' and other personality characteristics. The media actually encourages elections being run by the same people that try to sell you cars. It's a huge marketing campaign, and it really rubs me the wrong way. It's like the election for the most powerful and dangerous position in the world is decided on personalities, not on issues, and it's really undemocratic. I'm hopeful that in the next election there will be some focus on issues and some serious differences between the parties, but most voters don't know where there candidates stand on many issues, and it's not necessarily the fault of voters; it's just how the candidates get portrayed and portray themselves in the media. After the last election, most Bush supporters thought he was in favor of the Kyoto protocols. And I don't think John Kerry even knew where he stood on most issues. When it came to issues like a national health care system, there was literally no proposal out of Kerry's camp. Why? There's no "political support" for it. Even though most people consider it a top priority. The real reason? The pharmaceutical lobby. Sorry this was a really incoherent post. Makes for a bad rant, when you can't sustain an argument. I need some sleep.

Edited March 20, 2007 by mmarlo

[mawilson 2,133]

yea I agree, the word is obsolete now..

"Niggardly" is a word of Scandinavian origin and has absolutely nothing to do with "***".

It's related to "nygg" (Swedish dialect of the Old Norse hnøggr / Old English "hneaw" meaning "stingy").

[mmarlo 1]

yea I agree, the word is obsolete now..

"Niggardly" is a word of Scandinavian origin and has absolutely nothing to do with "***".

It's related to "nygg" (Swedish dialect of the Old Norse hnøggr / Old English "hneaw" meaning "stingy").

Right. People still get offended by it though. An assistant to the DC mayor even resigned after using the term some years ago.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/local.../district27.htm

Sometimes words carry so much sociological baggage that everything else gets ignored.

I'm guessing that phonetic similarity between Obama and Osama is going to cause Barack some problems.

[GaryC 7]

[sometimes words carry so much sociological baggage that everything else gets ignored.

I'm guessing that phonetic similarity between Obama and Osama is going to cause Barack some problems.

At least it does with Teddy!!!

http://tailrank.com/1025645/Ted-Kennedy-Ba...Obama-Bin-Laden

[mmarlo 1]

Heh. Alright, I'm getting to bed with a smile. That's funny.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Yes - its biased... it is, after all, an editorial piece

I've heard the term before - though mainly to describe fictional characters in movies. Seems a little ill-advised here - seeing as any comment that even smells racist ends up taking on a life of its own way beyond the original intent and meaning.

As to why its not running "as a lead" on CNN. perhaps because the person who said it is a nobody.... Now if a politician (especially one running against Obama) said this sort of thing he/she would probably be run out of office in a tide of politically correct outrage.

[Ban Hammer 13,334]

dems

[Fuzzness 2]

what's wrong with obama anyway? could someone please tell me what's so bad about him?