by Nancy L. Baumann

Created on: June 11, 2009

Barack Obama is already having a negative impact on race relations in the U.S., and here's why I think so:

1. Our President is bi-racial. His mother is white, and his father is black. He has tremendous opportunity to present himself as the bridge between two races, a man who embraces both his mother's heritage, as well as his father's. He could be an example of the best both races offer. However, he does not do this.

Instead, he further polarizes race relations by portraying himself as our first "black" President. Further, he allows the media to perpetuate this lie. Barack Obama is not black; he is half black. Can you imagine the outrage if he called himself a white man? By doing so, he would be discounting - no, he would be dismissing - half of his genetic code, which would be unthinkable. By calling himself a black man, Obama contributes racism, rather than bridging it.

2. Obama did not win my state - Missouri - in the November election, and I did not vote for him. It had nothing to do with race. I don't care if a candidate is male, female, black, white, green, gay or straight, but I do about their qualifications to hold the office. I did not think Obama was qualified to be President, and my opinion has not changed. On the occasions I've mentioned this fact, I've been accused of being a racist. This kind of labeling actually creates a racial divide, where one did not formerly exist.

3. Since the election, it has become risky to voice any adverse opinion about Barack Obama, or to speak out about why you disagree with his politics. Perhaps it's because he has gained worldwide favor, or maybe because he has risen to a height of popularity in our own country, that we haven't seen in years. But I believe it's far more serious. I believe that citizens are reluctant to voice opposing opinions because they fear retaliation, in some form or other. With millions wholeheartedly supporting Obama (some because of his race, most for other reasons), and doing so quite passionately, there's a very strong national peer pressure to keep your differing opinions to yourself - very strong, Just putting these words on the page feels risky. Our right to freedom of speech feels threatened.

I think it's time to tell it like it is: we have a multi-racial President who prefers his black lineage and denies his Caucasian heritage. This is bad for race relations.

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