Checking the Roots

I have not yet had a chance to read either of Obama's autobiographies (I'm on the waiting list at my local library), but I've been trying to dig deeper as to why I find him so compelling. In my search I came across this article written back in 1995, before he was even an elected official. I'm still not swooning, despite what many of my feminist sisters say, but I have to say, now I'm even more impressed. First, read the article. Then come back and read on:

Barack Obama has a unique background, to say the least. A liberal Kansas mom, an African exchange student dad, and an Indonesian exchange student step-dad were part of that mix, as well as reportedly (and backed up by family pictures) loving and accepting white grandparents. He spent much of his childhood in Indonesia, where being African-American was simply not the same thing as it is in the US. The money and education of his parents put him in a comfortable seat of privilege until his return to the US as a young teen. Unlike a lot of privileged kids, however, it's apparent that he noticed his privilege and was able to compare it to what he saw around him.

Returning to the US as a ten year old, Obama was the object of discrimination for the first time in his memory. Neither fish nor fowl, he had to learn to draw his own conclusions about the individual and societal pressures that affect race in the US. A brief stint in LA found him caught up in the experimental drug culture of college students there (and let's be real, the drug culture of college students is generally very different from the drug culture of the streets), and then he got back on track.

There are several overarching themes in Obama's life, and they're all predicated on an extraordinary power of observation. As a child of many moves myself, I learned to adapt to new local cultures pretty easily, which is probably why I have developed into an adult who understands that most "universal truths" about humans turn out to be infinitely variable local customs. I'm sure that Obama's international upbringing taught him the power of learning local customs while developing his own "universal truths".

So anyhow, the dude went to college in LA (Occidental College) , and New York (Columbia University) then moved to Chicago to take a $1000/month community activist job (which speaks to the power of scholarships and family help to allow students to do what they want. If he'd had enormous student loans, there would have been no way he could have accepted such a job). After a childhood in sunny climates, the shock of a Chicago winter alone should have driven him off. But no. He built a name for himself in community activism, went to Harvard after four years of this, and returned to Chicago, giving up what was almost a certain Supreme Court internship.

Of course, with his nifty, new minted Harvard Law degree, he moved up in the community activism feeding chain (and don't let anyone kid you, there is definitely a feeding chain) to be the guy controlling a lot of the money for a lot of projects. For those who worry he's not really progressive, his resume of who respects him in Chicago and why should calm those fears. I'm a radical -- and ACORN is to the left of me -- and they approve of him. For me though, the key to Obama is his constant theme of grassroots and community action.

Obama didn't just "discover" community action on his way to an election. That's his core. That's who he is. As a person on the front lines of the fight against poverty in my community, I can tell you that the people who are most successful in this field (and most social fields) are those who incorporate the concerns, concepts, and ideas of the people they are trying to help in their policies. That's the change I want to see from Obama. Small and mid-sized businessmen sitting down with unions and government regulators to sort out wage and trade and tax and regulation issues. Family farmers working with each other, environmentalists, and government agents to develop policies that benefit everyone. Urban residents and business communities talking about who "owns" downtown, and making compromises. Et cetera.

Why would all this happen if Obama became President? Because it's his priority. The "culture" of an organization is formed from the top. Far and away the most important powers of the presidency are the tone he sets in government (do we wink at misconduct, or do we track it down and prosecute it) and the people he puts in power in his government. Wouldn't it be neat if a whole lot of "bottom-uppers" were to find pathways to power in government through an Obama presidency? Obama doesn't "do for", he "does with". When a leader "does with", those he leads feel, and truly are, empowered. A "do with" presidency is a truly responsive presidency. One with the goal of having people on all sides of an issue consistently and regularly come to the table to talk, even if it's ugly and difficult, can make a whole lot of very good changes happen in a very short time.

Yeah, still not swooning (since I gave up wearing a corset), but still truly impressed with the man, and wanting him for my president more than ever.