It's Magically Atrocious! "Barack, the Magic Negro" Makes Headlines

Constant Readers,

Reading about the recent uproar over the "Barack the Magic Negro" song can be like hanging out with the Flanders family. "Hey-diddely-ho, neighbor! We don't use bad words even when we're talking about bad words!" Many recent articles don't tell us much about the song. 

But I'm a child of the 80's! (Late 80's, mind you. Ahem.) You can't just make a "Puff the Magic Dragon" reference and not tell me how the song goes! So, here you go, curious folks.

 

This all started when, on March 19, 2007, the L.A. Times ran a column, written by David Ehrenstein, in which Ehrenstein compared Barack Obama to the cinematic "Magical Negro" figure. This black person appears "magically" with no past or threatening qualities, and helps the white character(s) with some kind of "magic" in the form of insight, heroism, or actual magic. Think Will Smith in The Legend of Baggar Vance. Or Guy Torrey in American History X.

Reportedly, this inspired Paul Shanklin to bastardize the Peter, Paul and Mary song of my youth.

The song was first aired in March 2007 on the Rush Limbaugh show. Like a racist joke at a Klan rally, it didn't really get anyone's attention. Recently, though, Chip Saltsman (in picture) decided that it would help his chances to be the Chairman of the Republican National Committee if his Christmas greeting included a CD with "Barack, the Magic Negro" on it.

Note to CR's:

Saltsman's campaign website actually says, "it is apparent to all that now is the time for new leadership within the Republican National Committee."

Um, yeah. [Cracking up!] You got that right, Chip.

Okay - so another person running to be the Chairman of the RNC is Ken Blackwell, a black dude. When asked about Chip's distribution of the song, he defended the move, saying, "When looked at in the proper context, these concerns [about racism] are minimal."

I was interested in this notion that the context of the song (Ehrenstein's column) somehow removes its sting. But check out the lyrics:

Barack the Magic Negro lives in D.C.
The L.A. Times, they called him that
'Cause he's not authentic like me.

Yeah, the guy from the L.A. paper
Said he makes guilty whites feel good
They'll vote for him, and not for me
'Cause he's not from the hood.

See, real black men, like Snoop Dog,
Or me, or Farrakhan
Have talked the talk, and walked the walk.
Not come in late and won!

Refrain:
Oh, Barack the Magic Negro, lives in D.C.
The L.A. Times, they called him that
'Cause he's black, but not authentically.

And this is where the defense of this song falls apart. Ehrenstein's column was not about Obama's being a "real" black man (Ehrenstein, also black, specifically dismissed such accusations as "pesky").  It was about Obama's benign persona and desire to help that is allowed to be unquestioned because it fits a familiar narrative.

In other words, it was about being a "real" person.

Which, of course, was lost in the giddy haze of a temporary license to use the word "negro."

The hilarious result of all this is that non-Chip-supporting Republicans are shaking their fists and making a stink so the black candidate, Ken Blackwell, doesn't have to. Now that Blackwell has defended Saltsman and Republicans are under pressure to demonstrate that they are not racists, Blackwell's chances at being elected the next Chairman of the RNC are better than ever.

Such an inexplicably selfless and helpful bit of sorcery kinda makes Chip a Magical Honky.

--Melissa

Comments

[sfmike]

Is that the same Ken Blackwell who was up to his neck in corrupt election hanky-panky in Ohio? If so, from the stories I've read, the guy belongs in jail, which I suppose is another way of saying he'd probably make a great Chairman of the Republican National Committee.