Breaking the Mirage: Obama, Kamala, and the ADOS Community
“the arrogance of Harris and Obama, who continue to play identity politics...” JA
President Barack Obama is hitting the trail in hopes of saving the Harris campaign from its seemingly impending demise. When I first heard he would be jumping back into the arena to rescue the Democratic Party, I thought maybe Donald Trump would be in trouble. Superman had flown onto the scene to save the day. Democrats were excited—the big dog was coming out. They saved the best for last: the October surprise, strategically placed to accelerate Harris straight to victory.
But as Obama steps back into the spotlight to support Harris, I can’t help but reflect on the earlier days of his own campaigns, when I, like many, had been swept up in the hope and inspiration he brought. Back in 2008 and 2012, when he was running for office, he was more than just a politician—he was a symbol of possibility for people like me. Each one of his campaign speeches was exactly the same, but it didn’t matter; I loved listening to him. Hearing a Black man speaking about something other than "bitches," "hoes," and "lean" was exhilarating. When Michelle joined him, there you had it—a complete American Black family. I was giddy with delight. I honestly believed back then that President Obama was like me—it took me a long time to realize the stark differences in how Obama had been raised compared to the way I had been raised.
Obama’s Return and the Reflection on His Legacy
The senseless murder of Trayvon Martin brought President Obama to the front lawn of the White House. I remember the sunny day and how the backdrop of the White House was pristine and white. President Obama stood on the lawn and proclaimed that Trayvon could have been his son. It made me feel proud, like one of our own was speaking on behalf of our sons and daughters. But it was all just rhetoric. Barry had no more allegiance to the Black community than he did to the Indonesian community that raised him.
Now, Obama wasn’t all bad. Of course, it was his leadership that got Osama Bin Laden. Additionally, there is something to be said about the free cell phones. Many people I knew couldn’t afford to keep a phone, but with Obama phones, even though their numbers changed every few months, they always seemed to have a phone. Even today, people still have those phones, and they’re starting to look more and more up to date.
However, despite these accomplishments, it wasn’t long after Obama’s second term began that I realized he was not truly an American Black man in the way I had originally thought. For Obama to gain political power, he had to step on the necks of ADOS (American Descendants of Slavery) Blacks to secure a seat in government. This realization shifted my entire perspective on him.
My views continued to change after I watched a documentary about his rise in politics. He went to Chicago, aligned himself with ADOS Blacks, pretended to be one of us, and flaunted his Black wife. He fit the script perfectly, and the Black community bought into the idea that Obama shared the struggles of an American Black person. But that wasn’t the case.
Unfortunately, once Obama took office, he served every group except the ADOS community. I had hoped he would at least open the discussion on reparations, but he remained silent. By the end of his term, it became clear to the ADOS community that Obama was just another Democrat focused on keeping the party in line, not a game changer like many had hoped.
What surprises me the most about Obama is his either complete lack of awareness or willful blindness to the reality that many in the ADOS community don’t consider him one of us. Perhaps he doesn’t realize this, or maybe he’s intentionally perpetuating the idea that he’s a savior to the Black community. Sadly, many of us have long understood that his involvement is primarily about mobilizing votes, not addressing the real issues we face. We’ve seen through the facade—the mask is off. Just because you call me ‘sister’ doesn’t mean I believe I am your sister.
This brings me to the arrogance of Harris and Obama, who continue to play identity politics and attempt to shame Black men into voting for them. But as Americans, we should vote according to our conscience, not based on racial appeals. I refuse to support a party that systematically uses my community while offering little in return.
There’s an assumption that Black people should vote for Kamala because she’s offering handouts and promoting abortion access. Seventy percent of Black women may support her, but she’s steadily losing ground with Black men. It’s clear that she recognizes this and is trying to regain their support, yet she has no substantial ideas to tackle the real challenges facing Black men in our community. Legalizing marijuana is an easy move, one already comparable to alcohol in its widespread acceptance. In my town, dispensaries have become common, but what else is she bringing to the table?
Kamala Harris and the Disconnect with Black Men
Kamala wants to legalize marijuana because she believes Black men are disproportionately impacted by its usage, but she has done nothing to bolster prison reform. She’s merely continued existing legislation, without attempting anything of her own. Donald Trump, on the other hand, signed the First Step Act into law, which saw 7,000 inmates released from prison. Can Kamala make the same claim?
Her $20,000 grants to Black entrepreneurs, and others, are camouflaged behind the reality that this initiative isn’t specific to Black men. Meanwhile, she avoids addressing critical issues like restoring the Black family, unemployment, and hunger.
Kamala claimed on a podcast that child hunger dropped by 50% during her first year in office, but she left out important context. One key point is that this reduction was due to the influx of COVID relief funds provided by Trump’s administration. Now, under Biden/Harris policies, hunger in America has risen again, standing around 12% higher than it had been during Trump’s term—reaching the highest levels since 1920. Last I checked, Black men want to go to work and feed their kids, not rely on temporary relief.
Kamala’s presidency could also confront the racial discrimination embedded in corporate practices that keep Black people out of the workforce, but she sidesteps these issues. Why are Black men incarcerated and working for corporations while in prison, only to be denied jobs at those same companies once released? Does Kamala think Black men don’t realize that having a criminal record severely limits their employment opportunities? What about expanding "Ban the Box" to the federal level?
Since she’s taken office, corporations continue to employ immigrants at lower wages, leaving Black men locked out of economic mobility in what is supposed to be a free-market society.
While corporations exploit immigrant labor for lower wages, systemic barriers such as racial discrimination, mass incarceration, and limited access to education and job training continue to block Black men from climbing the economic ladder. This cycle persists, trapping them in a system that claims to be free but operates very differently.
Despite all of Kamala’s promises, none of her policies directly impact Black men in America. Reparations for the ADOS community would make a tangible difference to Black men today and their future legacies tomorrow. American Blacks are tired of endless discussions. It’s time for implementation and action. Let’s be real—America owes a debt, and the only remaining question is how it will be paid. To this, Kamala offers nothing but empty promises.
My question is, why do the voices of immigrants seem to carry more weight than the voices of those with a longer, lived experience in America? The audacity of hope indeed—President Obama has the audacity to hope that the ADOS community is still the same one that supported him in 2008. Docile and unaware, they continue to offer our community nothing more than the illusion of hope, yet have the audacity to exploit our votes.
Challenging the Illusion of Blackness
Of all the things Barack Obama did while campaigning for Harris, the most troubling was the flat-out lie he managed to slip in during his criticism of Black men for not going to the polls and his condemnation of Black men who vote for Trump. He wanted to make the point that they would rather vote against their own interests than support a woman. I wish I could have asked him: What has Kamala specifically done for Black men in America? But what bothered me even more was when he repeatedly referred to Kamala as African American. He made this claim more than once while speaking at an impromptu meeting with her campaign staff.
The fact that people assert with such conviction that Kamala Harris is African American is truly troubling. If we are to believe Kamala is Black, it requires accepting the one-drop rule—a racist concept created to maintain segregation and reinforce the idea that any Black ancestry "taints" a person’s identity, forever categorizing them as Black. This assumption ties back to the deeply problematic one-drop rule: the idea that one drop of Black blood, even if diluted by generations of non-Black ancestry, makes someone Black. Harris’s claim to Blackness hinges on the notion that somewhere in her Jamaican lineage, one of her ancestors was African, though she conveniently leaves out key details about who this African ancestor was.
Kamala’s father, Donald Harris, admits to being of Irish descent, yet he never claims that his mother or grandmother was African. In fact, he has said he doesn’t know what his grandmother’s ancestry was. And now, we’re supposed to simply assume that there’s African lineage there, even though no clear evidence of African ancestry on that side of the family has been provided. Oh, and because her father is Jamaican—as if white folks have no lineage in Jamaica.
It’s not enough to vaguely trace one’s lineage back to Africa through Jamaica and then claim to represent the Black community in America. The cultural disconnect is too vast. Blackness is not just about lineage—it’s about culture, community, and lived experience. Kamala was primarily raised by her Indian mother, and her upbringing was shaped far more by her Indian heritage than by any connection to African American or ADOS culture.
To claim Kamala as "Black" in the ADOS sense—as someone with roots in the struggles of Black Americans descended from slavery—is to stretch the truth in ways that undermine the depth and meaning of Black identity. President Obama, acting as if he has the authority to speak on such matters, explicitly claimed that Harris is African American, intentionally conflating Blackness with ADOS. Together, they create a mirage of this truth. They blend in details of the Black struggle and attempt to capture Black culture. Lately, Kamala has been running around claiming to have grown up in the Black church, as if that alone would make her Black, or as if Black churches are 100% Black all the time.
Democrats have played this card before. This is an attempt to erase the distinct struggles of ADOS people, whose heritage is defined by the trauma of slavery, segregation, and ongoing systemic racism—experiences that neither Obama nor Kamala, despite their varied and complex backgrounds, have lived.
Obama continues to perpetuate this narrative, as if we are too naive to discern the difference. In 2008, we weren’t having these conversations, and we accepted the idea that every person with dark skin was "Black" like me because that was the lie we had been told for generations.
Growing up, my aunts and uncles had mixed-race children. They were raised in our neighborhoods, attended our schools, and ate collard greens and cornbread at Mama’s house. Though they may have white faces and their mothers came from different racial backgrounds, they share both the ADOS lineage and the cultural experiences of our community. Today, they may be more closely tied to their white families, but their identity as American Descendants of Slavery is undeniable. Neither Obama nor Harris can claim such ties, as their backgrounds are not rooted in the legacy of ADOS.
One moment, she’s sitting on a couch with Charlamagne tha God, and the next, she’s standing in the pulpit at the House of God. This week, Kamala stood on a stage in a Black church and quoted from Galatians. The devil is so slick, he can shape an individual whose strongest appeal to Americans is the promotion of abortions. What is becoming increasingly distressing is the way entertainers and political figures are using the pulpit to perpetuate their lies. How can you stand before God, knowing you’re telling women to "save your life," it’s okay to get rid of the unwanted lives you’ve created? Even more disturbing, some preachers agree with her.
Kamala and her allies are playing a dangerous game, exploiting both cultural identity and faith to push their agendas. But what they fail to realize is that many of us are no longer buying into their rhetoric. The ADOS community is waking up to the empty promises and hollow gestures. It’s time to hold our leaders accountable, not for their words but for their actions. The future of our community depends on us demanding more—more truth, more action, and more respect for the legacy of those who fought before us.
“...it took me a long time to realize the stark differences in how Obama had been raised compared to the way I had been raised.”
