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Last Updated: 12/8/2009

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Gender: Female
Status: Single
Age: 30
Sign: Aries

City: BROOKLYN
State: NEW YORK
Country: US
Signup Date: 11/7/2005
Thursday, November 13, 2008 

Current mood:  enlightened
Category: Life
The Obamafication of the Negro*
by Maisha G. Woodson



I thought this would be a cool and appropriate title for an essay chronicling the emergence and catapulting of Obama into/beyond his super-iconic-BARACKstar status. I feel like I should have something extremely clever and/or poignant to say here, but let's see what happens by the end of the essay...!

[So the essay would start off like this:] Examples of the "Obamafication" of said Negro- and large parts of other races, ethnicities and the rest of the world- is evident in the immediate Barack/Michelle Obama naming phenomenon where already hundreds of babies around the globe, from Kenya to the States, are being named after our President and First Lady-elect (and if babies aren't being named after Barack, parents may feel even more comfortable with giving their children ethnically and culturally relevant, meaningful names without the backlash of "name discrimination" once the child becomes an adult); also, the name "OBAMA" has now become a greeting, chant, and all around crowd-hyping catch-phrase; as the term "First Lady" has become a greeting already being directed at me a few times in the past week, e.g. "Good Morning, First Lady!" and so on; it seems that Sunday, November 9, 2008 was officially observed as "Barack Obama Day" in many churches and houses of the Lord here in NYC, and I'm sure around the country where parishioners, mainly African American, arrived decked in Obama gear from head to toe, singing the praises of Barack ("Obaaaaa-ma! Blessed be Ba-rack....!" or "I voted for O-baaaaaa-mah! Now he's pres-i-deeeent!") and giving thanks to God for this "miracle" that many -young and old- believed they'd never live to see (I myself attended a Barack "Ba-runch" Sunday afternoon where much if not all conversation was directed towards the President-elect's historic election and victory, even with obvious racism and cultural intolerance still running rampant in this country. All kinds of Barack-inspired greetings filled the place as people entered the brunch like, "Happy Obama Reign!"); since Barack's election, I receive, forward or compose no less than 5 Barack Obama-related emails in a 24-hr period (and if it's not emails, I'm reading all sorts of articles about him and his family or pending administration online- and I love reading about Rahm Emanuel as much as I love reading about Barack!); There are probably more songs written about or featuring Barack Obama than any other president in history, not to mention artwork and Obama paraphrenalia being massed produced for side hustles across town; also, in regards to the "Obamafication of the Negro" (and the entire world), it seems that Michelle and her girls have become fashion icons with so much influence that the outfits that they chose to wear for the election day celebration (and other public engagements like the J. Crew outfit on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno") have sold out in record numbers in other parts of the world (And, YES, I do mean that infamous, questionable black-n-red dress that every black person I know has had a problem with. For the record, I decided on election night that even though I may not have chosen THAT particular number to debut in as First Lady-elect, I was not going to hate on the black-n-red dress. I respect the black-n-red dress, I even like it... in a certain type of lighting, mainly low. But still.. I'm not hating); and, lastly, the all-encompassing euphoric optimism (which is steadily countering the jaded cynical belief of nothing having changed since Barack's election) that is lingering around the hood yet is far-reaching all the way across oceans into other continents (I got an email today from an Australian client of mine expressing her happiness for our new president and her HOPEs that his term(s) in office will leave the world better off!) is clear indication that the "Obamafication of the Negro" (worldwide) is here to stay! Not to mention how folk are REALLY aspiring for that Barack/Michelle/OUR family is what's most important to US kind of love (My parents got it... and maybe your family is similar- or maybe not, but I think it's within reach for those of us who really want that type of relationship and family unit)!! I'm sure there are plenty of more examples of this "Obamafication" that I speak of, but I, for one, welcome it, embrace it, and will do my part to see that its positive effect continues past this moment and inspires life-changing, momumental, personal CHANGE in all of us-- one way or another! OBAMA!!!


*Of course this is a take on the classic best-seller "The Mis-Education of the Negro" by Carter G. Woodson, originally published in 1933, theorizing how the indoctrination and conditioning of Negros taught us to seek out inferior positioning in the greater society of which we are a part, preventing us from thinking and doing for ourselves. I, hereby, theorize that the "Obamafication of the Negro" will condition this generation of Negroes, et al. (and generations to come) to seek out the highest possible positioning in society and to proactively bring about unprecedented leadership of the changing world.
12:24 PM
 
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Rodney
Rodney Siau

 
Mai,

I was just having this conversation, again, with my mom a few nights ago. Whenever I turn on the tv these days, NYC media seems to be more focused on Michelle's fashions that her contributions of service. Lately, the media has focused on Michelle's arms. Of course, the local media showed examples of how to exercise your arms so that yours could be just as tight as Michelle's. They even showed how you could use water bottles as makeshift weights. Now, I am happy to see a black First Lady as much as the next person. However, I have to shake my head in disbelief at how people the popular lifestyle choices are based on how the First Lady looks. I am not hating, but it is minor gripe of mine... like how Black athletes are still praised in the sports media more for their athletic process rather than the discipline, intelligence, and intellect that is obviously on display when they take apart their lighter hued counterparts. So after all my ranting and raving, my mom simply says to me that Michelle is the complete woman... I guess meaning beauty with the brains to match, or vice versa depending upon which one you stress more importance upon. My mom then goes on the say that the first thing she noticed was Michelle's arms. All I could say was "Gosh, Momma." At that point, I told my mother that I guess I am just a man because women scrutinize each other way more than men. Admittedly, I noticed Michelle's guns, but I guess it bothers me that the media seems to make her out to be more of a trend setter and fashionista than a beacon of hope for what the traditional nuclear family can accomplish. It's definitely my background. Anyway, enough of my ranting and raving. I'm at work.

 
Posted by Rodney on Friday, February 27, 2009 - 4:49 PM
[Reply to this] 
Rodney
Rodney Siau

 
Mai,

I was just having this conversation, again, with my mom a few nights ago. Whenever I turn on the tv these days, NYC media seems to be more focused on Michelle's fashions that her contributions of service. Lately, the media has focused on Michelle's arms. Of course, the local media showed examples of how to exercise your arms so that yours could be just as tight as Michelle's. They even showed how you could use water bottles as makeshift weights. Now, I am happy to see a black First Lady as much as the next person. However, I have to shake my head in disbelief at how people the popular lifestyle choices are based on how the First Lady looks. I am not hating, but it is minor gripe of mine... like how Black athletes are still praised in the sports media more for their athletic process rather than the discipline, intelligence, and intellect that is obviously on display when they take apart their lighter hued counterparts. So after all my ranting and raving, my mom simply says to me that Michelle is the complete woman... I guess meaning beauty with the brains to match, or vice versa depending upon which one you stress more importance upon. My mom then goes on the say that the first thing she noticed was Michelle's arms. All I could say was "Gosh, Momma." At that point, I told my mother that I guess I am just a man because women scrutinize each other way more than men. Admittedly, I noticed Michelle's guns, but I guess it bothers me that the media seems to make her out to be more of a trend setter and fashionista than a beacon of hope for what the traditional nuclear family can accomplish. It's definitely my background. Anyway, enough of my ranting and raving. I'm at work.

 
Posted by Rodney on Friday, February 27, 2009 - 4:49 PM
[Reply to this]