Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. dreamed of a colorblind society. Forty-three years after he was gunned down, the first black president is running for re-election. Barack Obama has been criticized by African-Americans, including Cornell West and Tavis Smiley, for failing to focus more on the problems of black people. Republican challengers have called him a "food stamp president" who doesn't "understand America" and wants to "transform" it into a "socialist" country. Is that political code implying that a black man is different from other Americans? Is race still very much a part of American politics?
Dr. King's Dream and American Politics
Credits
Guests:
- Peniel Joseph - historian and professor at the University of Texas at Austin, founder of the school’s Center for the Study of Race and Democracy - @PenielJoseph
- Marie Stroughter - African American Conservatives - @mariestroughter
- Walter Rhett - historian and writer - @walterrhett
- Mikki Taylor - Essence magazine