No one talks about this, I suppose because it's another one of those "hypotheticals", but Barack Obama is not evidence that America is beyond race. Not only do people emphasize that he is not all black, but half with a white mother, no one mentions that he would not stand a chance at the nomination if his wife were white. Indeed, America might consider a "white-sounding black man" who "keeps to his own", but they would not accept him if he were committed to a white woman and his children looked mostly white.
This is not to say we haven't made progress. This is to say, let's not pretend that somehow Barack Obama transcends racial politics. He positioned himself for it with his rejection of Islam and atheism for the very popular Christianity, the faith that all presidential candidates in the history of this country have had to claim for the consideration of office. But he also positioned his personal life the same way Bill Clinton did - he married a politically necessary counterpart. He may love her, but she nonetheless calculatingly serves a purpose. Otherwise, she would just be the woman on the side.
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