Biden, the Black vote, and America’s unkept promises

On Jan. 5, as President Joe Biden arrived in Valley Forge aboard Marine One, I exited one of the press vans in the presidential motorcade and hustled to the landing zone to get a few shots of the president. From what I could see, I was the only Black reporter in a Philadelphia press pool consisting of nearly two dozen journalists and photographers.

Though I’ve long been accustomed to being the lone African American in certain prominent spaces, the dearth of Black journalists in American political coverage is representative of a larger issue. Our country’s political structure is overwhelmingly white. Our priorities are shaped by white strategists, our stories are told by white journalists, and our messaging is designed to appeal to white voters.

That’s why Biden, who has capably led the country after the chaos of Donald Trump, still finds himself losing some support among the Black electorate. I don’t believe it’s politically expedient for him to tailor his message to the specific needs of Black people. Not if he wants a second term.

Black voters, meanwhile, continue to grapple with issues like police brutality, voting rights, and economic inequality. Given that reality, Biden’s incremental approach simply isn’t enough for many of us, and that could cause some Black voters to sit out this presidential election. If they do so, Biden will lose.

That’s what’s at stake for the president.

However, I see greater risks for African Americans. A Biden loss could expose us to the madness of a far-right that seems hell-bent on stifling Black history, stripping Black rights, and imprisoning Black people. But because the left has failed to pass legislation to address issues like police brutality and federal voting rights protections, I’ve heard some Black voters express apathy, or even anger.

When I went to the president’s first campaign speech of the year, which I covered for WURD Radio, I hoped that Biden would speak to some specific Black issues. Instead, he framed his remarks around the American Revolution, and the heroic actions of the first president, George Washington.

“In the winter of 1777, it was harsh and cold as the continental army marched to Valley Forge,” Biden said. “Gen. George Washington knew he faced the most daunting of tasks: to fight and win a war against the most powerful empire that existed in the world at the time. His mission was clear. Liberty, not conquest. Freedom, not domination. National independence, not individual glory.”

I listened, having heard the story many times before. Yet, as I reflected on this tale of heroism and sacrifice, I couldn’t help wondering about the liberty of the Black people whom Washington enslaved. I felt a pang of anger as I contemplated how my ancestors might have viewed such rhetoric. I wondered if America would ever see the hypocrisy that is embedded in our country’s origin story.

As my mind raced through the various bits of history that always resurface when I think of Washington — from the African chef Hercules Posey to the escapee Ona Judge — Biden moved on. He broadly outlined the violence of Jan. 6, 2021, then seized on the aspect of Washington that most starkly contrasts Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee.

George Washington, Biden said, willingly gave up power at the height of his popularity, walking away from the presidency when he could have declared himself a king. Trump, Biden said, tried to cling to power through violence.

Perhaps the threat of Trump returning to power with his violent followers in tow is enough to bring Black voters back to Biden. However, for a people who have lived through centuries of racism in a political system that remains lily-white, the prospect of living under a would-be Day One dictator is not as frightening as it might be for others.

Still, Biden pushed for his audience to grasp the idea of America. The idea that everyone should be treated equally. And while he readily acknowledged that we haven’t fully lived up to that notion, he promised he wouldn’t let Trump make America walk away from it.

In a political system designed for the benefit of others, I wonder if Black voters will believe that promise is enough.