The struggle for equality is not over

Nelson Graves
Published: November 13, 2008

It’s intriguing how some, black and white, conservatives’ view changes.

Consider columnist Walter Williams, who is black, and commentator Bill Bennett, who is white.

Williams recently wrote: “If one totaled black earnings, and considered blacks a separate nation, he would have found that in 2005 black Americans earned $644 billion, making them the world’s 16th largest nation.”

Hold onto that thought.

Following CNN’s announcement Nov. 4 that Barack Obama was the projected presidential election winner, Bennett, in effect, said no one can say race is still an issue in the United States. His feelings were that since Obama, a black man, had been elected, the old cries of racism and lack of equal opportunity should fall silent.

Bennett’s remark reminded me of times when I’ve written about the lack of – or more precisely, the under-representation – of blacks and other people of color in high-paid or leadership positions in the public and private sectors. I’ve argued that minorities are under-represented among millionaires and decision makers.

Those who disagree have told me there are many black millionaires, pointing to high-paid professional athletes and similarly paid executives in the music industry. When naming high-paid black CEO types, my critics refer to Oprah Winfrey.

My response is, yes, minorities are well-represented in sports and music but not in leadership or as owners of corporations. Oprah shouldn’t be an example because she’s an exception even among whites. I’d further add that minorities aspire for top leadership positions. But they’re discriminated against – blocked by glass ceilings, just as white women are.

That said, let’s get back to how the election is being viewed and portrayed.

The American presidency existed 219 years before the first black man won election to the nation’s highest office. During that time, blacks have overcome slavery, Jim Crow and other impediments to gain an equality of opportunity.

So Obama’s election is supposed to mean African-Americans have finally cleared the last vestige of inequality and that all is right in America? As mentioned in The News Virginian’s editorial Tuesday (“Kaine missed era’s passing), back in 1989, L. Douglas Wilder was elected governor of Virginia.

Most blacks thought back then that if Virginia could do it, surely other states would. It wasn’t to be. It took another 18 years to occur. Last year, Duval Patrick was elected governor of Massachusetts. Wilder governed well (and conservatively), but until last year, no other state followed Virginia’s lead in electing a black governor. Most surprising of all, Virginia has yet to elect a second one.

As to Williams’ point, that with Obama’s election, blacks are equal because their earnings in 2005 equaled the world’s 16th largest nation. I ask, so what?

About a month ago the U.S. Treasury Department with congressional approval awarded $700 billion to the Wall Street financial industry alone. How many blacks lead the companies receiving federal help?

Nelson Graves, Virginia director of the Virginia Minority Supplier Development Council, writes a weekly column for The News Virginian. E-mail him at .