When Barrack Obama was first elected to the Presidency of the United States, I wrote an article entitled: ‘The Day White America Won.’ It was basically about the hope that Obama signified for America, the chance to put the past of its history of institutionalised and endemic racism behind it. I noted that despite the scathing Democratic primary and the craziness that was the McCain-Palin campaign, the victory ushered in a new era in American politics and although I didn’t specifically mention the term “post-racial”, the implication was clearly there. I was wrong.

If anything, the situation in America specifically with regard to the racism that had kept African Americans largely out of the mechanisms of real political power on the national level in fact worsened in the wake of Obama’s first term, and escalated exponentially after his reelection.

No American President has faced so much rabid opposition on such frivolous grounds. The easy and obvious contrast would be George W. Bush. Obama received a great deal of flack in the wake of the terrorist attack on the American Embassy in Benghazi which resulted in the death of America’s Ambassador to Libya, Chris Stevens. The furore was over the initial classification of the attack, but then escalated into questions about the Obama administrations concern for American service personnel overseas, something that became a rabid rallying cry for the Republicans. In contrast, Bush escaped censure from his party when the White House deliberately leaked the cover of a CIA officer, Valerie Plame, because her husband, American Ambassador Joe Wilson differed with the administration on the reasons given for the invasion of Iraq.

Under the Bush administration, the Michael Moore drama, ‘Sicko’, premiered, outlining the travesty that was the US health care system and the predatory levels to which private insurance companies had risen, particularly under the Bush administration. Obama’s Affordable Care Act directly sought to correct that deficit but was fought tooth and nail by Republicans, with the battle against it going as far as the Supreme Court. While there were initial hiccups during the rollout, as of last month an additional ten million US citizens were afforded health insurance coverage as a direct result of the ACA. Under Bush, even as a trillion dollars was being spent on the war in Iraq going largely to contractors like Cheney-affiliated Halliburton, the US economy lost jobs, leaving the Obama administration with a serious jobs deficit. Today, the administration can proudly say that it has dug America out of that hole.

Still, Obama continues to face so much opposition that he has been recently polled as one of the worst American presidents in history. A CNN article of last month, “More jobs, less war, low polls: the Obama disconnect” articulates the phenomenon adequately:

“Which one of these doesn’t fit? More jobs, a record stock market, wars ending and dismal poll numbers. All apply to Barack Obama’s presidency as it passes the 2,000-day mark, raising questions about the viability of what used to be known as conventional political wisdom. A strengthening economy and robust stock market traditionally mean general public satisfaction with government. Bringing soldiers home from war zones has always boosted presidential popularity. Not this time with this President. A CNN compilation of recent national polls indicates only 41% of Americans approve of Obama’s handling of the job, down 6 percentage points from a year ago and matching the low of the past 12 months.”

There is the rhetoric that Obama does not command the respect of the global leadership and it is true that in his usual non-confrontational style, he has appeared as less than strong enough when it comes to dealing with various international political actors over the past few years, like China, Russia, and more recently Israel. Indeed, it has actually reached the stage where there is an Internet meme contrasting Obama petting a fluffy dog with Vladimir Putin stroking a jaguar. However, if anything, disrespect for the US presidency began in the US years ago with the antics of the Republicans and their ludicrous cheerleaders like Tea Party people and Donald Trump and the fiasco of the interrogation of his citizenship and the quest to verify his birth certificate.

At the beginning of his presidency, I had the hope that something fundamental had changed in America, something for the better. The problem is, if there has been any change, it has been that a hidden ugliness has remained at is core, one that has tarnished and stymied the legacy of one the most historical figures to occupy the Oval Office, and primarily, frankly speaking, because of his race. Now, with Hillary Clinton being a good bet on creating history by becoming America’s first female President after Obama demits office, we’ll see if America is ready for another oppressed population representative taking up the highest seat of power.

(By Keith Burrowes)