'The Bridge' by Darryl James: What Michelle Obama Represents For American Women

*There was an ignorant email going around right after Barack Obama was elected to the White House. The email was from a Black woman, announcing to Black men that if they use Obama as a shining example, they can realize that it is possible for Black men to be successful and still have a Black woman on their side. On its face, the email seems harmless. The pretense is a celebration of President Obama and the love he shares for his wife. But, the underlying message of the email is that he is rare in being a successful Black man and loving a Black woman. That underlying message is wrong and problematic indeed. The most essential problem with the message was that Black men have never believed that it wasn’t “okay” to have a Black woman on their side when achieving success. In fact, most successful Black men who are married are actually married to Black women. According to the latest Census statistics, 95% of all Black men who are married are married to Black women. The only people who are obsessed with the Black man’s alleged pursuit of the white woman are white man, and now, sadly, Black women.