The Racial Divide: Will it Disappear?

What does Obama’s victory mean for race relations in the United States? As a result of having an African-American President, many voters of all races, will be expecting a change in the racial politics of this country. Overall, African-Americans and whites disagree on how much of an issue race currently is in society. According to the Washington Post, poll results show that 47% of voters believe there will be an improvement in race relations, 34% predict no change, while 19% believe race relations will get worse. Although there is no reason that race relations would get better or worse, it is clear that African-Americans in particular have many expectations, including “shrinking white racism to vestigial proportions” and using Obama’s leadership as an example of how students of color can equalize their education. However, it is important to note that Washington Post emphasized that Obama presented himself as a candidate who happened to be African-American as opposed to an African-American president. Essentially being an African-American President would be representing the African-American race. Although Obama does in some ways reflect African-Americans within the United States, he is actually a president who happens to be African-American because to the rest of the world and perhaps to the U.S itself, Obama represents all of the United States and not the relatively small proportion of African-Americans within the U.S. This variation in ideas of what Obama’s victory means for the country could make up whether the racial divide of the U.S., assuming it exists, will stay the same, become stronger, or disappear.