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BIANNA GOLODRYGA: Hi, everyone.
I'm Bianna Golodryga, and this is Yahoo News Live.
This month we'll devote every Friday to mark Black History
Month, and today the focus is the legacy
of the first African-America President, Barack Obama,
and what he's meant to the African-American community.
This, of course, on the day after probably the most heated
debate between the two Democratic rivals
hoping to take President Obama's spot in the White House.
Mo Elleithee is the Executive Director
of Georgetown University's Institute
of Politics and Public Service.
And D Watkins is a columnist for Salon
and the author of The Beast Side,
Living While Black in America.
Gentlemen, thank you both so much for being with us today.
D WATKINS: Thank you.
BIANNA GOLODRYGA: D, I want to--
MO ELLEITHEE: Happy to do it.
BIANNA GOLODRYGA: I want to begin with you.
In 2008, President Obama got 95% of the African-American vote,
and in 2012 he got 93%.
Clearly there were high expectations
for the first African-American president in the US.
How has he lived up to those expectations?
D WATKINS: I think it'*** and miss.
Saying yes to something is always
saying no to something else.
Obama has done amazing things for America
and things that will continue to affect
the African-American community for a long time.
But I think that the big lesson through all of this
is what a lot of us learned at how systemic racism works.
BIANNA GOLODRYGA: And Mo, there was a sense of pride
in this country eight years ago, regardless
of political parties, that this country
elected its first African-American president.
Now many feel that racial tension has only heightened,
and no one is saying that it's all President Obama's fault.
But to what do you attribute this current environment?
MO ELLEITHEE: I think you're right.
I think there was a tremendous amount of pride.
I think there still is a tremendous amount of pride
that we elected our first African-American president,
but I think there was also-- with some people, not
everyone-- but with some people a certain level of naivete
that, OK, we're done.
Problem gone.
Problem solved.
We fixed this whole thing, and that's just silly.
There so many systemic challenges and obstacles
that it's going to take more than one president in office
for eight years to fix them.
I think he's made tremendous progress, particularly
in the African-American community,
but there's still a way to go, and he'd
be the first to admit it.
BIANNA GOLODRYGA: And, Mo, one of the expectations
that hasn't been met is employment
within the African-American community.
New numbers out just today show that the unemployment rate
overall in the US is 4.9%, a good number, a great number.
It's almost double that, however,
for the African-American population.
Could this president have done more
to boost employment within the black community?
MO ELLEITHEE: It's also important to understand
where we came from, right?
Yes, African-American unemployment
is twice that of the national number,
but five years ago it was double that, five years ago it
was over 16%, now it's 8.3%.
So there has been progress.
It's moving in the right direction,
but there needs to be more.
And there are some systemic problems in our cities,
in our education system that we all
need to continue to work on.
Criminal justice reform-- all these things attribute to that,
and that's something I think the next president
and the president after that are going
to be continuing to deal with.
BIANNA GOLODRYGA: D?
D WATKINS: Yeah, no, I totally agree.
Eight years of a black president can't end 500-plus years
of systemic racism.
And we see these things with the job numbers
that have been put out.
Obama can make jobs all day long.
He can create as many jobs as possible but, at the same time,
if those jobs aren't making it into the black community
or if you're still not being called back for an interview,
because your name is Keyon, then the same problems will exist.
BIANNA GOLODRYGA: D, one of the rare moments
where the President did intervene
in a racially charged incident was the notorious Beer
Summit in 2009.
He immediately saw his poll numbers slip in the aftermath.
Many now say that that convinced him not
to become so involved in matters related to race.
Critics say that he's the President of the United States,
not just African-American community
and that he shouldn't intervene in every single instance
of racism.
What do you say to that?
D WATKINS: I say he is the President of the United States,
and he has to walk a very difficult line.
There are so many people, and it's crazy--
even talking about 2009-- so many people still
scared to talk about the topic of race
and mention some of these issues,
and he has to govern over everyone.
So it's a very difficult task, but at the same time what's
right is right and what's wrong is wrong.
BIANNA GOLODRYGA: I want to ask this question to you both.
D, I'll began with you.
I spoke with one of the leaders of the Black Lives Matter
movement last year who said he would give President
Obama an F when it came to race relations
and how he dealt with that.
What grade would you give President Obama?
I'm going to ask both of you, starting with D and then Mo.
D WATKINS: I will give Obama a B. I will give him a B.
BIANNA GOLODRYGA: Mo?
D WATKINS: Um--
BIANNA GOLODRYGA: Oh, go ahead.
D WATKINS: I'd give Obama a B.
BIANNA GOLODRYGA: OK, Mo?
MO ELLEITHEE: I'd give him an Incomplete,
because it's not done.
He's still working on it, and we're
going to keep working on it.
I think putting these sorts of grades on it almost belittles
how big the task is, as D said, counter
500 years of systemic racism.
BIANNA GOLODRYGA: Mo, I finally want
to ask you the last question.
Since you've worked in Democratic politics for such
a long time, I want to talk about President Obama's
potential successor on the Democratic side.
Later today, Senator Bernie Sanders
is expected to pick up the endorsement of the former head
of the NAACP, Ben Jealous, yet Hillary Clinton overwhelmingly
has an advantage in African-American support.
Do you think that she could do more
for the community than President Obama,
or do you think either one of them,
actually-- Clinton or Sanders?
MO ELLEITHEE: Well, I think the key
is whomever his successor is is going to have
to build on what he's done.
And, yes, I think there's an expectation even
from this president, from President Obama,
that the next president is going to need to do more,
because every president builds upon what
their predecessor did.
I think right now the way this race is shaping up,
Bernie Sanders is going to have a tough time countering
the deep-held support that Hillary Clinton has
in the community.
I think the last poll I showed, she
had like 60 to 70-point advantage over him.
It's about getting out into the community and making the case
and showing yourself to be a fighter for them.
I think the African-American community
is no different than anybody else in the sense
that the person they elect, they want to know
is going to be their champion and deal with these issues.
She just announced yesterday before the debate
that she's going to visit Flint, Michigan, a city that the water
poisoning there has been devastating to the community
and that she's been trying to help from her perch now.
That kind of thing, I think, matters.
It's not enough, right?
I'm not saying that she gets an atta girl and thumbs up
and you're done.
But the willingness to get out into the community
and show that you're going to be an advocate and a champion
and fighter is the first step of a very long journey.
I think right now she's doing that a little bit better
than Bernie Sanders.
BIANNA GOLODRYGA: And Senator Sanders, however,
also reminded viewers at home that the city of Flint,
Michigan is predominantly African-American and pondered
whether or not the same thing would
have happened in a predominantly middle-class white town.
I want to ask you, D, the same question.
Do you think Hillary Clinton or Bernie Sanders
can carry the mantle and do more even
for the African-American community?
I spoke with one community leader
who said that the Democrats should not
take the African-American vote for granted.
D WATKINS: No, I totally agree and right now,
in my opinion and based upon the people I represent
and the communities that I work with,
we're not impressed by Hillary or Bernie at all right now.
Even with the trips that have been made to Baltimore,
they meet with the elite, take a walk through The Projects
and then keep it moving.
So we'll see.
We're willing to work and build with anyone that's
willing to work and build with us,
but we're not just going to sit here and sing
praises over whatever the Clinton
legacy with the African-American community is supposed to be,
because it's 2016 and nothing's happening right now.
So we have to keep working and stay positive.
BIANNA GOLODRYGA: Well, gentlemen, of course
this is a discussion to be had long
after the month of February.
And we at Yahoo will continue to have this discussion.
Hope you can join us again throughout this race
for the White House.
D WATKINS: Thank you.
MO ELLEITHEE: Thank you.
BIANNA GOLODRYGA: Thank you so much for joining us.
And we always look forward to hearing what you have to say.
You can follow me on Facebook and Twitter @biannagolodryga
and use #YahooLive to let us know
what you think about President Obama's legacy
as we mark Black History Month.
Thanks so much for watching.
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