You've seen the headlines: "Are Americans Ready for a Black President?" "Is Obama Black Enough?" "Obama: America's First Black President?"
Ever since the nation first met Illinois Sen. Barack Obama in 2004, his race has been called into question more times than Michael Jackson's. Obama is clearly a black man, but is this really a breakthrough? Some blacks say Obama isn't "black enough," which seems ironic because for many blacks, former President Bill Clinton was "black enough." In 2001, Clinton was honored as the nation's "first black president" at the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) Annual Awards Dinner in Washington, D.C.
Were there other "black" presidents? Some historians have reason to believe people don't really understand the genealogy of past U.S. Presidents. Research shows at least five U.S. presidents had black ancestors and Thomas Jefferson, the nation's third president, was considered the first black president, according to historian Leroy Vaughn, author of Black People and Their Place in World History.
http://www.diversityinc.com/public/1461.cfm
A "Black" Man, A Moor, John Hanson
Was the First President of the United States! 1781-1782 A.D.
George Washington
was really the 8th President of the United States!
George Washington was not the first President of the United States. In fact, the first President of the United States was one John Hanson. Don't go checking the encyclopedia for this guy's name - he is one of those great men that are lost to history. If you're extremely lucky, you may actually find a brief mention of his name.
http://www.dickgregory.com/dick/14_washington.html
TheStatutoryApe said:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Hanson_(myths )
Apparently John Hanson being black is a myth.
TVP45 said:Having a distant ancestor who was Black does not make one Black. The "one drop" rule was a peculiar perversion of biology that arose during the Jim Crow days. I had an ancestor who "immigrated" to England at Hastings in 1066; does that make me French-American? I think not.
TVP45 said:Having a distant ancestor who was Black does not make one Black. The "one drop" rule was a peculiar perversion of biology that arose during the Jim Crow days. I had an ancestor who "immigrated" to England at Hastings in 1066; does that make me French-American? I think not.
Yes. That and other things are adressed in the John Hanson (Myths) article aswell.HallsofIvy said:Under the Articles of Confederation, the "president" was NOT the head of a separate executive branch. He was, essentially, in charge of all the secretaries and other assistants who did the day to day running of the (very small) central government. All actual "Governing" was done by the congress or a sub-committee that stayed in Philadelphia when the congress was not in session
Ivan Seeking said:Why does anything matter?
Ivan Seeking said:It is a matter of history.
I might ask: What you are afraid of? You seem defensive.
Ivan Seeking said:According to John McLaughlin, the answer is Warren G Harding.
TeTeC said:I'm just curious. I follow the American elections from Europe, and I find a bit strange that we often refer to Obama as the "black candidate", or Clinton as the "woman candidate". I understand that people are influenced by these physical traits, but I don't really grasp why it has to go so deep (and that might be just an impression). I don't have any particular opinion about that, mostly because I don't know how Americans are influenced by the issue.
Don't forget that it hasn't been that long since blacks and women weren't even allowed to vote in the US.Ivan Seeking said:Ah, I see. Well, the fact that we have never [knowingly] had a black or female President speaks to the significance that race and sex have had. So what make it significant is the fact that it will no longer be significant. Many black leaders view this as the final death rattle of institutionalized racism. Many believe that as of right now, we are living in Martin Luther King's dream.
Cyrus said:WRONG!
Evo said:Don't forget that it hasn't been that long since blacks and women weren't even allowed to vote in the US.
Articles of Confederation said:The United States in Congress assembled shall have authority to appoint a committee, to sit in the recess of Congress, to be denominated 'A Committee of the States', and to consist of one delegate from each State; and to appoint such other committees and civil officers as may be necessary for managing the general affairs of the United States under their direction — to appoint one of their members to preside, provided that no person be allowed to serve in the office of president more than one year in any term of three years;
TeTeC said:I'm just curious. I follow the American elections from Europe, and I find a bit strange that we often refer to Obama as the "black candidate", or Clinton as the "woman candidate". I understand that people are influenced by these physical traits, but I don't really grasp why it has to go so deep (and that might be just an impression). I don't have any particular opinion about that, mostly because I don't know how Americans are influenced by the issue.
I never knew this until just the other day, but when LBJ signed the Civil Rights Act in 1964, he predicted that he has just signed the South over to the Republicans for the rest of the lives of everyone present.
This may be the first election since not bound by LBJs prediction.
MeJennifer said:It seems to me that Obama is just as much black as he is white. His father was black and his mother was white.