Tony Yayo of G-Unit released the mixtape Black Friday shortly after Barack Obama was elected President of the United States of America. On this mixtape he includes a number of snippets concerning Obama, including Obama talking of smoking marijuana, Obama’s victory speech, and most poignantly several people describing their fear of an Obama presidency. You can find the track list here and download the mixtape here.
The fears described by people exemplify the White fear of Black power. Despite a growing Black middle class and an increasing number of Blacks on the national political stage, many White’s still harbor deep anxiety about Black power. The psychological burden on White’s who are fearful of Black power will be tremendous. President-elect Obama has coalesced racism that was previously directed at local mayors, state legislators, and other elected officials.
Will Obama erase White fear? It is not likely. Unfortunately, White fear is permanently ingrained in society by a number of cultural factors. Portrayals of the Black community on television, in our newspapers, and our music reinforce White fear by reifying Black stereotypes. Obama will not erase these stereotypes even if he stands in stark contrast to them. Stereotypes do not fade away into the night. He will help to undermine them, but he will not erase the racism of the media that continues to perpetuate Black stereotypes.
