Although he is now being criticized for it, former President Barack Obama opened the dialogue to a broader conversation about misogyny in American politics after calling out Black men who did not fully support Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign.
“We have not seen the same kind of energy and turnout in all corners of our neighborhoods and communities that we saw when I was running,” Obama, who has endorsed Harris and Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Angela Alsobrooks, said during an appearance in Pittsburgh. last week. “I have a problem with that because some of it makes me think – and I’m speaking directly to men – some of it makes me think that, well, you just don’t have the idea of having a woman. as president, and you come up with other alternatives and other reasons for that.”
The Harris campaign on Monday released an agenda to appeal to Black male voters, including plans to provide forgivable business loans to Black entrepreneurs, create more apprenticeships and mentorship programs, better cryptocurrency regulation, and launch a health equity initiative to tackle disease suits that disproportionately affect Black men, and legalize recreational cannabis.
Flavio Hickel Jr., an assistant professor of political science at Washington College, said he thinks Obama was trying to close the “enthusiasm gap” by reminding some undecided black voters that they can make a difference.
“There’s a tendency to feel a little bit of resentment or annoyance when it’s argued that there’s a group interest – especially a racial group interest – and that you’re not doing your duty if there’s a different perspective,” Hickel said of Obama’s position. comments. “Some people may respond to Obama’s comments and say, ‘I think I’m being called out,’ … and that could rub people the wrong way.”
Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott, a Democrat and surrogate for both the Harris and Alsobrooks campaigns, has also been out, calling on black men to vote for the two prominent black women at the top of Maryland’s list. Scott, 40, is a black man.
“That’s why I’m sent out on a lot of occasions — to talk to black men in particular about why it’s important for the vice president to be the next president of the United States because of what we’re facing here,” Scott said in an interview with The Baltimore Sun on Monday afternoon. “We’re talking about the opportunity to continue the historic level of progress we’ve seen for Black people in this country over the last four years.”
Scott pointed to low unemployment among Black people, investments in historically Black colleges and universities and declining crime rates under the Biden-Harris administration as reasons for Black men to vote for Harris.
He also highlighted civil rights and the democratic process that many believe are at risk of being erased if former President Donald Trump is re-elected.
“Why would we risk that, especially, for black people — especially for black men — going back to someone who we know won’t have our backs, who we know will turn back time and turn back go to zero tolerance police? , when black men were arrested en masse across the country for nothing more than being outside? said the mayor.
The same applies to Scott if former Gov. Larry Hogan, a Republican, were elected to the U.S. Senate over Alsobrooks.
In an interview with The Sun editorial staff on Monday, Alsobrooks said that in her experience with this election cycle, she has seen a high level of intersectional engagement.
“What I’ve seen is almost everywhere we’ve been, people are really, really excited, and I think they’re coming out to vote,” Alsobrooks said. “I expect a high turnout in these elections. I think people benefit from it, and I’ve seen it from generation to generation.”
Support among black voters in Maryland for both Harris and Alsobrooks is strong.
About 230 Black people took part in a University of Maryland, Baltimore County Institute of Politics survey of 1,003 Maryland adults conducted September 23-28. When asked if they rate Vice President Kamala Harris favorably, 86% said yes. When asked the same about Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Angela Alsobrooks, 77% said they viewed her favorably.
The poll’s margin of error is plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.
Scott and Gov. Wes Moore, Maryland’s first black governor, have been staunch supporters of Harris and Alsobrooks since the early days of both campaigns.
Moore, a Democrat who had endorsed President Joe Biden before dropping out of the race, came out in full support of Harris the day after she announced her candidacy.
He also spoke highly of Harris during his August speech at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
Moore has traveled across the state speaking to “key constituencies, including Black men,” a Moore spokesperson said, addressing issues of economic opportunity, access to capital and strong pathways to work, wages and wealth.
Scott was one of the first Maryland politicians to voice support for Harris’ presidential candidacy, saying, “Black women have saved this country time and time again” in a post on X.
Scott echoed those words in an interview Monday, adding that “the black woman is the most respected human being on the planet,” and they continually face claims that they are unfit to lead.
“That, in a way, is the message I have for Black men,” Scott said, “We need to remember and know what Black women have done all these years – for our communities, for our families, for our culture. , and every black man has a responsibility to at least push back when people attack these two black women, and also make sure that we support them in every way possible – not just because they’re black and they’re a woman, but because they have proven their policies and their records speak the truth, they will represent us and not…personal interest.”
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