Black Agenda Report
Black Agenda Report
News, commentary and analysis from the black left.

  • Home
  • Africa
  • African America
  • Education
  • Environment
  • International
  • Media and Culture
  • Political Economy
  • Radio
  • US Politics
  • War and Empire

Is Barack Obama Good For Black People? The Great Debate in Harlem, Part 2 of 2
Bill Quigley
12 Aug 2009
🖨️ Print Article
On June 25, hundreds of black America's formost thnkers and doers gathered at St. Mary's Church in Harlem NY to ask and answer the question of whether Barack Obama was good or bad for black America. We here present some of the 5 to 7 minute presentations pro and con on whether Barack Obama is good for black America. Click the flash players to listen to or the mics to download them in MP3 format.

Glen Ford

The fact, says Dr. Jared Ball of Morgan State University and voxunion.com, is that Barack Obama did not emerge from the struggle of our people for peace and justice.  He has been imposed upon us by outside forces in answer to that struggle, not in fulfillment of it..

Charles Barron

 

While NY City Councilman Charles Barron disagrees with some of Obama's policies, he seems to draw a line around those who disagree with the president, calling them “intellectuals” who he says, do the hood no good.

 

Dr. Marimba Ani

Give the brotha a break?  Dr. Marimba Ani doesn't think we should give the American empire a break.  If anything, she notes, having a black man sitting in the big chair makes it harder to fight.

Charles Barron

 

argues that Barack Obama represents incremental but significant change, and even though the election was eight months ago, reaches back to compare Obama with McCain.

 

 

Viola Plummer

Barack Obama is a “yes we can” symbol of national unity for black people, says Viola Plummer.

.

 

Diop Olugbala

 

 

The Uhuru Movement's Diop Olugbala argues that a lesser evil is still quite evil. We can, he insists, do better.

 

Click here for part one of the Great Debate in Harlem, with Glen Ford, Dr. Leonard Jeffries, Nellie Bailey and Dr. Gloria Browne Marshall

 

Do you need and appreciate Black Agenda Report articles? Please click on the DONATE icon, and help us out, if you can.


More Stories


  • Black Politics in San Francisco, Part I
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
    Black Politics in San Francisco, Part I
    09 Sep 2022
    Jemma Decristo is a community organizer in San Francisco, where a Black mayor and other officials enact policies against the unhoused and the poor and where gentrification continues. She joins us…
  • Biden's MAGA Obsession Won't Help Democrats
    Margaret Kimberley, BAR Executive Editor and Senior Columnist
    Biden's MAGA Obsession Won't Help Democrats
    07 Sep 2022
    Because Joe Biden and democrats act on behalf of the oligarchy instead of the people, they now risk a mid-term election loss. His solution to this political problem is to speak endlessly…
  • INTERVIEW: To the Point of Production: An Interview with John Watson of the League of Revolutionary Black Workers, 1969
    Editors, The Black Agenda Review
    INTERVIEW: To the Point of Production: An Interview with John Watson of the League of Revolutionary Black Workers, 1969
    07 Sep 2022
    A 1969 interview with a founder of Detroit’s League of Revolutionary Black Workers reminds us of the radical genius and hope of Black labor.
  • Rwanda and Uganda are again plundering the Congo. Al always they do so with the backing of the U.S.
    Ann Garrison, BAR Contributing Editor
    Rwanda and Uganda’s M23 Militia Reappears to Slaughter and Plunder in DRC; US backs Rwanda and Uganda
    07 Sep 2022
    Rwanda and Uganda are again plundering the Congo. As always they do so with the backing of the U.S. Ann Garrison interviews Maurice Carney, Executive Director of Friends of the Congo.
  • a few flock notes for jaimie breezy branch
    Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
    a few flock notes for jaimie breezy branch
    07 Sep 2022
    a few flock notes for jaimie breezy branch “The artist must elect to fight for Freedom or for Slavery” —Paul Robeson  
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us