27 Nov 2009 See Project 21 Chairman Mychal Massie in NYC Panel Discussion on Effects of Obama Victory on Black Youth This Monday

By David Almasi:

Project 21 Chairman Mychal Massie will participate in a panel discussion sponsored by The Smith Family Foundation on “Does the Election of Barack Obama Portend the Effective End of American Racism?”The event will be held on Monday, December 1st at 6:30pm at the Lighthouse Theater (111 East 59th Street Between Park and Lexington Avenue, New York, NY). The event is free and open to the public, but people wishing to attend must RSVP by clicking here.

Joining Mychal on the panel will be Dr. John McWhorter of the Manhattan Institute, Fredrick C. Harris of Columbia University and Elaine Gross of ERASE Racism.

This is how the Smith Family Foundation describes the premise of the panel discussion:

Barack Obama’s 2004 Democratic Convention speech made reference to inner city black children with books being mocked by their classmates for “Acting White.” Will these smart children now have a new answer, “Acting White? No, I’m acting like the President!” – laying an inspirational foundation for their better educational outcomes and better futures? Or are the problems of inner city children far too entrenched, with failing schools, gang violence and too few male role models, for the election of a President to materially affect their lives?And will Barack Obama’s rise to the highest office in the land change how African-Americans see opportunity, spurring more black entrepreneurs into business and increasing the general belief that success in America is possible? Or does that ignore a historical truth – that enthusiasm for any political candidate is inherently fleeting once the rough and tumble of modern Beltway politics takes its inevitable toll – and that Obama’s ability to inspire people might wane, right along with his newness?