Should Gov. Deval Patrick and his friend, Illinois Sen. Barack Obama, be considered role models for young African-Americans?
It's impossible to deny that many blacks have embraced both men, and perceive them, rightly or wrongly, as heirs to the legacy of the civil rights movement (the media-created controversy over whether blacks will fully embrace Obama is complete nonsense). It's also hard to deny that many blacks see Patrick and Obama as appropriate people for their children to look up to. However, should that really be the case?
One can look past Patrick and Obama's liberal politics and accept the notion that they are suitable role models for black youth. Considering the hip-hop thuggery that mainstream American culture promotes as black "achievement," you cannot blame black people for looking at Patrick and Obama--two men who used education and hard work to become figures of consequence in American politics--as people whose efforts should be emulated by black children.
However, the political divide in this country is deep, and if one advanced the notion that Clarence Thomas, Condi Rice, Michael Steele, and Thomas Sowell should also be seen as role models in the black community, a significant number of African-Americans would react in horror. Sadly, a large number of blacks could not accept the notion of Thomas, Rice, Steele and Sowell being appropriate role models for their children, because the conservative politics of these four individuals are perceived by most liberal blacks as thuggery of a different sort.
It's regrettable that blacks on the political right are not considered appropriate role models for black children, while blacks on the political left are considered natural heroes. This may not always be the case, but so long as it is, it will be a testament to just how bitter American political tensions have become.
UPDATE: Some dissatisfaction from the Devaliens:
...Governor Deval Patrick has kept an unexpectedly low profile, surprising political analysts and raising concerns among some of his supporters that he is squandering a valuable opportunity to shape the public's view of his administration...
