Straight, No Chaser: February 2008

“Sometimes the acquisition of knowledge can destroy paradise” ~Professor X

Her name was Leanita McClain.

By all accounts, she was intelligent, upwardly mobile, beautiful and one helluva writer. She was the first Black person to sit on the Chicago Tribune editorial board and by any standards a very successful person. Indeed, she was a product and reward of the civil rights movement. I confess I never read her work back in the day, as in the early 80’s I was more into Star Wars than Chicago politics. I did get a chance to read and learn about her while studying the Harold Washington era, specifically the wins and loses attributed to it. I also wanted to learn why my late father used to look upon that time with detail and pride.

However, more than anything else Leanita McClain is best known for an op-ed piece she wrote entitled “How Chicago Taught Me To Hate Whites”. In this classic essay, Leanita McClain wrote about how the ugly racial polarization and attitudes of Chicago ’s whites toward the late Mayor Harold Washington in specific and Black People in general all but drove her to hate. She questioned her sanity and the sanity of whites, as well as the value of all she had obtained as a product of the civil rights movement. Leanita came to a devastating conclusion, one that never really changed but that she admittedly forgot. Leanita remembered than no matter what she was still a nigger albeit an educated, soft-spoken one. But, it was deeper than that for her. Leanita McClain often wrote of how she felt torn between her success and her people. She lamented how whites never really trusted her and Blacks never forgave her for her success. This complicated her angst, as she felt she had lost the love of her people for being successful; you know we have created the myth that in order to be truly Black, one has to be poor and in the muck with the people. This account touched me dearly. I remembered (during my transition to the man I am now) the many nights with tears in my eyes and confusion as Nickjack tried to explain to me that being successful would not null my commitment. In fact, it would increase it, as I would be truly pissing off the power structure by advancing, being successful AND Pro Black. The other narrative, she argued only affirmed white supremacy in as much as it kept us mediocre and low. I thought about Dan’s explaining wealth to me; showing me that we are the only people who didn’t understand wealth, power and politics. I also realized something else when I reflected upon Leanita McClain troubles and my growth.

Leanita McClain seemed to suffer from the mixed blessing that is “The Gift”, the ability to see the world without time. I doubt if she knew it, but she saw the upcoming battle of the new millennium, as Black people would still have to face American racism, and at the same time begin to question the concepts and notions of what Black is. This had to be hell for a product of the civil rights movement because Black in 1983 had a linear meaning and she defied that meaning. That is why this sorrow and guilt was always a central theme of her writing. This gift, can either take you to great heights, or drive you to unbelievable lows. I know, I have this gift and I am still trying to figure out where it is going to take me. Sadly, I know where it took Leanita.

On Tuesday, May 29, 1984, at the age of 32 Leanita McClain took her life.

This blog this is not about gifts, but rather politics and Black Life. I have come to a very scary conclusion and in some areas, it makes me wonder if I will wind up like Leanita McClain.

So why does Leanita McClain’s story touch me? It touches me because I understand. You see like her I have the gift, the ability to see the world without time and I realize that Black people are missing the boat on some thing major right now. I believe we are so afraid the possibility of winning that we are actively trying to sabotage our own success. We are in at a place in history where our community is going to change forever. What is this defining moment? In a name, it is Barack Obama.

If the Harold Washington campaign taught Leanita McClain to hate whites, then the Obama campaign is teaching me to hate Blacks. Yes, you read that correctly: The Obama Campaign is teaching me to hate Blacks. The curious thing is Obama is not saying anything to force me to be ashamed of myself, but rather our collective response is teaching me to be ashamed, making me ashamed and ultimately moving me towards hate.

From the Black Feminists who somehow think a southern pseudo conservative white woman has their interests at heart over a Black man, to the civil rights leaders do afraid of being obsolete, to the Black Elite who are afraid of their own, to the nationalist who are just plain hating, our response has not been were it should be. Every time I hear one of those darkies, pontificate on how Obama “doesn’t have experience” to “his drug (sic) usage” to “he doest talk about Black problems” I fucking throw up and damn near Black out (no pun intended). Every time I see some coon on TV screaming for Hilary, I go batballs crazy. Are we that fucking insane? Really?

Man if Obama were J ewish or Irish this would be a no brainer. Think I am lying, look at the State of Israel and Mayor Richard Daley. You don’t think J ews find problems with Israel ’s foreign policy worldwide. Hell yeah they do, but generally they don’t SHIT WHERE THEY EAT. You don’t think white Chicago is tired of Richie? Hell yeah, but it will be a COLD DAY IN HELL before they publically flog him and let another one of us in office. But then again this is why they have power and we crave it. They get the joke. We don’t.

Obama destroys notions and conventions that most sambos don’t get or wanna get. He is a threat to their comfort zone. Instead of understanding this, instead of supporting him and seeing where this goes they just hate. I mean like sickening kinda hate. Consider the following groups.

To the Black Elite, Obama breaks the rules. He is in their club, but didn’t have to sell their soul or whore out to do it. He learned the political game and made it work. He didn’t their money nor their ignorance. All he needed was Oprah, the mama of the Black Elite and he has made his shit work. He didn’t need to open a bunch of shitty theaters, marry outside his race, have a horrid TV network or any of that nonsense. He just did what he needed to do.

To the Civil Rights Leadership/Black Intellectual, he represents unemployment. They have milked the whole voice of the voiceless, dictionary to white folks, power broker routine to the point of in effectiveness. They have no new solutions and no new ideas. Hell, they don’t even have new problems. Its just a bunch of tired negroes who’d rather be an overseer on a Clinton plantation than retire on an Obama oasis. Seriously, why would Obama need these tired negroes? Translate what for whom? He comes from the activist community. He’s been in the muck. Oh wait I forgot, that don’t count because he’s not a preacher. He didn’t “mawch wif dawtar king” He doesn’t talk about “white supremacy as it relates to the underclass and the destruction of ancient Kemit in the lowe nile valley”. He doesn’t give “uh duh” speeches. Pffft. No these dudes don’t wanna have to file for unemployment and would rather kill our next level of existence than accept the change. Fun fact people: He is a politician first, an activist second and he is working the political scene not the activist scene

To the Black Middle Class, Obama answers the question that killed Leanita McClain: Can on be upwardly mobile, successful and still connected to your people? Hell yeah! He is upwardly mobile and still connected. He didn’t forget. He married a Black woman with hoodish tendencies. His daughters are Black. Yet, he aint poor and he aint trying to be poor. To the Black Middle class he’s a critique: You can be successful and connected.

To the lower classes, Obama means no more excuses. Nobody is gonna wanna hear shit about the man, racism, white supremacy, no fathers etc (and these problems are VERY real). Every brother or sister who doesn’t do the damn thing will hear “it didn’t stop Obama”. In short, we are gonna have to figure out new ways to resolve our inequities without pointing to the man. Nobody is hearing that and to keep shouting it is like yelling in the wind. Obama is forcing us to address things differently.

This past week I taught a class on politics and culture at a Chicago High School . In this, I told them the final lesson was adaptation and survival. While this may be a scary process, it is an essential process.

So what are we going to do? Are we going to seize this time, adapt and survive? Or are we gonna continue to try to recreate the tired battles of the sixties, that really cant be re-fought in 2008.

What are we prepared to do? That question remains.

I asked earlier if would I end up like Leanita McClain. This shit IS depressing. It is stressful and I am the same age as she when she lost. Is this Melodramatics on my part? Perhaps, as I don’t think I’ll die. I DO have hate in my heart.

I hate my people for not doing what needs to be done.

This is Straight, No Chaser.

TLT

PS: For more information on Leanita McClain check out this site and excellent tribute:

http://www.blacknla.com/news/Articles/VHNightLite.asp

To read her classic essay "How Chicago Taught Me to Hate Whites" go here:

http://condor.depaul.edu/~chicago/primary_sources/LMcclain.html