One day, when a job called President of Black America is created, then maybe a candidate can revolve his or her campaign around domestic race issues and have a shot in hell of actually accomplishing anything. That day is not here, although there are plenty of people who choose not to realize that.

*walks up with an index finger raised like an old lady in chruch*

Amen & Cosign Lauren

Believe it or not, a lot of the problems we face as a group are directly related to people having children out of wedlock and excess children that they can't afford. Wait until you are 30& married to have a child. Have no more than two children unless you are wealthy. Women choose
good husbands so they can be good fathers for your male children. Remember, Bad boys make bad husbands & fathers. Otherwise, while you working two jobs just to pay the bills, your son will get into all types of trouble with the corner boys.

You don't want the police in the hood, stop doing stuff to bring them in. On the other hand, we police our own neighborhoods. The Muslims do.

I think finance and money management should be taught in high schools as a required class. Some people don't have parents who can teach them the ropes since some parents don't have a clue about money.
Live at home with your parents as long as you can, save as much money as possible so you put down a good down payment on your home. Two 25 years should be able to come up with 40,000 cash for a DP, if they are good savers and lived at home for an extended amount of time. You don’t need a McMansion, go for a smaller home.

Unless it's Harvard or another Ivy league school, attend a college you can afford. Better yet, take the money your parents would kick out for tuition and add that to your future down payment. Attend CC for two years, and transfer to a state school.

Most of all, read read read and ask many questions before you sign on the doted line.

"That doesn’t mean I am always going to satisfy the way you want these issues framed… which gives you the option of voting for somebody else"

I have never heard a candidate tell anyone they should consider voting for someone else. I think this is indicative of the Democratic Party thinking that Black Americans will vote for the Democrat no matter what.

Also I really don't think Sen. Obama was really talking to the gentleman asking the question, I think he was talking to White voters.

I understand very clearly that Barack Obama, if elected, would be President of the US and not Black America. But I, as an African American, am a prospective constituent and as such demand that I am treated the way other constituents are treated.

There is no way Barack Obama would have told a Jew, if asked about policy affecting Israel, to maybe consider voting for someone else. He wouldn't have said that to a Hispanic voter nor a White voter.

This is my concern; I hope Barack Obama does not think (either as President or candidate) that he has to go out of his way to prove he has no special place in his political heart for African Americans by ignoring our concerns.

In their defense, I really don't think they expect Obama to do any of that stuff but they want to call attention to themselves and it was a great opportunity for them to do so.

someone should really bend them over and kick their stupid asses. that's why they held the banner and covered their faces. i am really pissed by the actions of these "CRABS" because they use real cause is to try and bring themselves notoriety and some sort of "blogger fame". bullshit! congrats to obama for once again handling ignorance of others with class and profound dignity. no, he isn’t perfect but he deserved more respect than this.

those people in the group,are not even Born American's Uhuru Nation. They need to go back home!!!

props to uhuru for bringing these issues to the forefront. regardless of obama's former job as a civil rights attorney, the fact of the matter is that issues like prisons and police brutality have been ignored in the campaign.

@ chic noir, it seems a little condescending to talk to people like "you should do this, do that, do this…". really, its more talking AT people. plus what you're saying seems virtually identical to the way a lot of white people claim that racism and white privilege dont exist and that black people only have themselves to blame if they have problems: "a lot of the problems we face as a group are directly related to people having children out of wedlock and excess children that they can’t afford." do you see how problematic that is? i can easily imagine a kkk speech saying the same thing about too many black bastard babies, only with "they" instead of "we"….

Sen. Obama response was for the white voters and the media. I don't believe Sen. Obama
(if elected) will address any of the issues facing the black community because he doesn't have to. I don't blame Sen. Obama for this because the black community is at fault for being content with a black face running for President. Our community will not improve until we start demanding better from ourselves and from anyone who seek our support(Sen. Obama is not even seeking our support we are giving it away)

What I don't get it is what is wrong when Black people ask a candidate to address Black issues? Doesn't every group do that? But why is it wrong when we ask that? Should we not ask him because he's Black… because when we put him to task, we don't look "unified"… because it "embarrasses" him? Mess don't make no sense. Aren't Jews interested in Israel; Latinos interested in Latin America, immigration and issues affecting language; Native Americans interested in reservations, reparations and land; Asians interested in China, North Korea, and international trade; Christians interested in matters of faith? Well, Black people are interested in folks being shot down in the street by police, hardworking folks being ripped off by subprime mortgages and kids being treated unjustly by school administrators. We better be asking him what his plan is — the same way we better be asking John McCain — because Lord knows Black people need a plan, with as many obstacles as we've got and with as many of our issues which have been ignored.

i think the point here is not the content people have an issue with its the way in which this group presented the questions. let's be honest…a banner with your website and phone number? this was in no way an attempt to call annention to valid issues, it was a (successful) effort to bring attention to themselves. besides, I don't need 4 black men and 2 white women to speak up on my behalf.

there is a time and place and there was a better way to bring to light questions that at some point he AND THE REST OF THE BALCK COMMUNITY (he ain't the savior for us…we need to get up and work too..and find some answers our damn selves!)must actively address.

BLACK

Tacomeat, no the website/telephone number/heckling thing is not the issue. The issue here and the issue Blackfolk have had in the past nine months is just what to do with all this Barack Obama euphoria we've got going on. lol Dare we get excited? How do we handle all this power in terms of our own interests? Who is he in relation to us? Now granted, this is all very new to us, and quite unexpected, but alot of Blackfolk act like 'now that we's gots us a Black man runnin fo presodent, can't nobody say nothin crita… critty…… harsh about hims.' ::smh:: I mean, I understand how jittery we are since it's not a done deal and he's not in there yet (and these fools have been known to pull all kinds of tomfoolery, trickery and general whitefolk shenanigans at the 11th hour ::smh::) but do we have to muzzle our mouths for the next four years about Black issues if this man gets in? Personally, I think it's more dangerous for us to give him a pass because he's Black than to continue speaking out because to have even more Black men shot at 50 times in the street is absolutely ridiculous. Name 2 white men, women or children shot at more than 10 times by the police in the past 20 years. I know I can't. No, I don't agree with these people and the disruptive nature of their "conversation," but I don't see a thing wrong with asking "What about the Black community [insert presidential candidate's name here]?" because, in my opinion, Black man runnin or no Black man runnin, Black people need to keep our issues at the forefront constantly because aint nobody even TRYING to pay us any mind.

Are you guys kidding me? This discussion is a bit..well..under developed. Is this the level of political analysis happening in our age group? God help us. First of all, while it is perfectly legitimate for these Uhuru folks to protest, as unprepared as they were…and failing to do the minimal research to be able to have your argument picked apart so easily …well the legal term res ipspa loquitor - the act speaks for itself, they do themselves a disservice not by questioning Obama, but by not researching his opinions and positions on their issues and asking deeper questions. they merely look as though they want some attention and/or are Black folks whining, without doing any work.

And to suggest that Obama has not said to other constituencies that I am not always going to have exactly the policy positions you want is to willingly erase that the last 2 months constant allegations of racing to the center et al….

I personally was GLAD he said to those men, your options are not only to heckle me, but you can get out there and do some work your damn self!

Too many Black folks, and clearly some of the newer posters on this board, or to be fair on this post, seem to think that Obama owes the black community some special separate agenda. He doesn't and quite frankly we don't need it. Name one issue that SOLELY affects the black community? And don't tell me about police shootings, because while we have had some horrific examples, the deaths of those black folks are no more important than the poor Latino, the poor white, the poor asian person killed. the issue is one the injustice of police brutality. for Obama to only speak out against one group while others suffer from the same problems will lose him this election, and more importantly is asking him to compromise who he is.

Lest I be accused of being an obamabot or any of the other 'names' I don't think he is anywhere close to perfect, and he is not exactly on pont for on every issue. So I, like every other voter have the option of voting for him, not voting for him, or running for office myself. as he is the person running whose political positions are the closest to my own, its a no-brainer but I am not trying to say he is turning his back on the his constituency of me, and others who think exactly as I do. I know the black folks in my neighborhood/community are more pressed about economic issues exacerbated by this ridiculous war.

We also need to remember that the black community, and its communities, are no monolithic. While I peripherally worry about police brutality etc…it is not anywhere close to the front of my personal agenda. As a mother of a son, it may get there at some point in the future, but not a huge priority for me. Neither are, as J alluded to, folks with more kids than they can afford that the don't get up and fed an off to school etc… complaining about needing more help.

Folks need to stop relying on the gub'ment and get responsible for themselves…we have had 200 + years and if this is as far as we have gotten with 'asstance'…then we sure as heck can't do worse by taking personal responsibility for ourselves…and yes I am and have always been a Democrat!

I thought he handled the hecklers pretty well, but it was a telling moment nonetheless. Most of the black sheep supporting Obama view him as some sort of Moses figure for the "black community", and they will be sorely disapointed in him, if he wins the election. He will be the President of the United States, not black people.

When people realize that their lives will not change if he's elected, they will turn on him hard.

Divaliscious, of course there will never be any single issue in America that solely affects Black people. How could that ever happen? But when we so disproportionately represent the pieces of these Problem Pies, it does glaringly beg the question 'what about the Black community?'

When you're talking about figures like Black Americans are 7 times more likely to contract AIDS than white Americans, that's a Black problem. And fifty percent of Black females over TWELVE are infected with herpes? Huh?

Never did I say it is the responsibility of the government to handle these problems because personally I believe the aforementioned issues in particular are largely as a result of our own sexual health/recreational carelessness. However, I do believe there is an overarching public health reponsibility when any communicable disease is in the public sphere. Any government worth its salt knows it serves itself well to maintain the health of its nation, and America's willingness to involve itself in the public health arena of countries around the world also suggests a greater degree of domestic involvement is needed in the health of its own citizens, as well.

But to the specific issues they brought up… nonhealth issues… I'm sorry, but police brutality *is* a huge issue for me… [not that I personally know anyone roughed up or even killed by the police]… but the possibility that I could sickens my stomach. I am amazed that unarmed Black people can still be repeatedly beaten/tazed/shot to death by police officers with impunity.

Moreover, the disparities in the American educational system are astounding. By 4th grade, Black boys are being channeled into special ed classes by the thousands (when people all of a sudden become afraid of them & the boys all of a sudden turn 'remedial.') Black students are suspended and/or expelled at rates that are ridiculous… often over trivial things… not to mention athletes being pushed through the system just to play basketball. Fifty percent of Black males do not graduate from high school. Black problem.

And financially the overwhelmingly common factor involved in being steered to a subprime mortgage or lousy car loan is Black skin. Many Black people who got subprime loans could have qualified for prime loans, but they were not offered them. So, although these are issues that may not solely affect Black people, they overwhelmingly affect Black people and they need to be addressed.

No, you are right… Black people aren't monolithic, but no one seems to ask if I'm Baptist, Republican, rich or HIV+ when they follow me around a store or when cops stop me in the street. Neither do doctors ask if I'm Catholic, Muslim or liberal when they steer my Black family and me to less progressive treatments or when they withhold tests from us. There's a sizeable gap in just about every issue of American life… from how much Black people pay for groceries and toothpaste in their neighborhoods to how long a Black person will work for a company before being let go. No, Barack Obama does not bear the weight of responsibility for these issues, but surely these issues are of the same importance as any issue facing America today. And surely we can't be asking the Uhuru group what are they doing to fix these problems. What is the Uhuru group doing to fix subprime lending, police brutality or inequities in the school system? We're asking that? Aside from marching on Jena, the Federal Reserve, Bank of America, what are they supposed to do? These issues facing Black America are systemic, deeply entrenched, federal/state/local problems that can be fixed only through local/state/federal legislature, through deep and thorough financial overhaul, through fundamental school reform and medical class-action suits, etc. The Uhuru group is not running for president. They have neither the means nor the power to do a systemic job, much less the responsibility. But Barack Obama does. Fair question.

/ignore typos… food's getting cold.. *wink*

FRI, those are the same problems that plague a lot of poor yt too. Be honest, in this society having children you can not affoard will really throw you.

White folk aside, why can't we make our communites better for us, some yt will never change. Does that mean that we should continue with the maddness. If so, that is giving them to much power.

@j and Fri- We need to support the few blk banks that are still haging around by a thread. That way we can get rid of the check cashing places which are burning the pockets of many people.

Good points divaliscious11 , and it's been only 143 years(1865)

J -

I hear you, trust, I just get so tired of this expectation of Obama, the expectation of the government and no one wanting to step up and be or accepting responsibility for a good chunk of the mess in our communities. And when folks DO say hey, get right, a la Cosby, they get blasted, which I think is completely wack.

You are correct in that we are, as a people, disproportionatly eating the problem pie. The problem is that we are also disproportionately sitting ourselves at the table where that pie is being served. We ARE contracting AIDS at severely alarming rates, but this is not 1985! The government is not forcing us to lay with men and/or women we know are not exclusive without protection. The government may be imprisoning our men at significantly higher rates, but they aren't forcing them to commit the crime that puts their fate in the hand of the judge sentencing them. Everyone who has lived close to the hood, never mind deep up in it, knows the crackheads/dope fiend story…so why would you ever put the pipe to your lips??? If the focus of combating police brutality is only on the treatment of black people, even if we are the primary recipients of it, isn't going to make it stop. Focusing on it as an across the board matter will result in less of everybody getting beat down. What's the saying rising water lifts all boats, or something like that?

And of course I am aware of the steering of AA and latino into sub-prime loans, but what do you think is more effective - complaining that they did it to black folks (which doesn't address the wrongness of it) or trying to get rid of the things that make sub-prime so particularly expensive, both financial and otherwise. That said, it isn't that hard to get some financial knowledge. Don't buy junior $100 sneakers - pay your bills and keep your credit together. Skip the $150 weave and build an emergency fund. Paint your own nails and drop that $40 a month in an investment account. We do some crazy dumb ish and then expect others to feel sorry for us. Stop poppin off at the neighbor or teacher who is telling your kid is heading for trouble and parent your kid.

And I don't believe Uhuru, or anyone else is powerless. They could be offering financial planning and home buying seminars in their community. They could provide tutoring to support the kids attending the failing schools. They can make sure the streets between the neighborhood and the school are patrolled so kids can go to and from school safely. EVERYONE can do something.

Yes, I recognize that some of this is hard…but as I said before we have had 200+ years (Yes I know the slaves hasn't been over that long but there were free folks who wrongly thought the government was going to protect their 'rights'.) of being disapppointed by the government.

I am with you Diva.

People chose not to see the 2 sided coin that is the balance between Personal responsibility and Governmental support. Does it suck that we have limited choices and opportunities…YES. Is it unfair that yt people get 3rd,4th and 5th chances while we barely get 1 shot…Of course…But am I going to let that injustice keep you from making the best of my one shot? I sure as heck hope not.
I just wonder if we are not selling ourselves short by not giving our problems our own best effort.I just wonder if we are doing all we can as a community. I know this reeks of preaciness but sometimes I do wonder.

"And fifty percent of Black females over TWELVE are infected with herpes?" - J

Where in the heck did that stat come from? I think people are just starting to make stats up.

re: stats — there was a big CDC [Centers for Disease Control] announcement on 3/11/08 re: teen std prevention. Google that date, 'CDC' and 'stds'.

According to the CDC, something like 25% of white teen girls have an std while approximately half of Black girls do …this includes all stds. Later stats were released on African American girls and herpes at herpes411.com. Also as an aside, in NYC someting like half of Black men have herpes. This all was a big story in March of this year.

Thanks Lauren. After typing for 19 years yesterday, I am DONE. lol