Is Obama still "A Bound Man"?

Harkening back to the controversial book written by Shelby Steele, "A Bound Man - Why We Are Excited About Obama and Why He Can't Win", Steele has been criticized that we are so wrapped up in political correctness, that we will be unable to move into an honest dialogue, debate, and move past the idea of an African American candidate that is attractive to both the white and black communities.

Over the past month, some of what Steele has said has unfolded before us in the press and one wonders whether his original commentary will hold true during the general election phase. As Obama supporters move forward, it doesn't hurt to take a second look at Steele's analysis at this point in time.

The overarching theme of Steele's book were the positions in which African-Americans face in fighting or nullifying racism in the U.S.. He proposed two defining factions: The Bargainers and The Challengers. Bargainers strike a "bargain" with white America in which they say, I will not rub America's ugly history of racism in your face if you will not hold my race against me. Challengers do the opposite of bargainers. They charge whites with inherent racism and then demand that they prove themselves innocent by supporting black-friendly policies like affirmative action and diversity.

It is obvious to most, based on the Steele principle, that Obama has taken the bargainer approach, while the now opposing retired pastor, Reverend Wright, is a "Challenger".

The pivot point to the Steele argument presented itself yesterday, when Obama verbally took a stance against the "challenger" premise. No more can he be dubbed as someone asking us to disregard the facade to the racial split. Steele noted that his potential downfall would be his failure to take a substantive position, abandoning himself and his ideals for success.

Obama has taken risks that not many have ventured across this bridge in which he has challenged innocence as power and guilt as impotence. Says Steele, "Americans are constrained by a racial correctness so totalitarian that we are afraid even to privately ask ourselves what we think about racial matters. Like Obama, most of us find it easier to program ourselves for correctness rather than risk knowing and expressing what we truly feel."

Now that we are attempting to put aside the Wright debate, with him raising his own voice for racial progress, Obama is faced with additional challenges, another Steele point that was brought to bare in his book: Obama's mythical candidacy falling to earth. Is the hero strong enough, quick enough, to survive his morphing into a politician and candidate, while still embodying his message of hope and change?

So far, he has endured. Are we ready to move forward as a nation to embrace this challenge that he has posed to us? Will the political and generational forces, much akin to President Kennedy's candidacy in 1960, dampen the chances for a fresh ideology that may not be mythically transformational, but definitely a step in a new direction? Or will we keep ourselves bound through another election cycle?

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