Obama is not and should not be characterized as "a savior". He can not go around performing miracles that will change the mindset of all Americans. He shouldn’t be seen as a direct representative for black America and he certainly won’t be seen as a direct representative for white America. What he does represent is our best hope for bridging these fundamentally different viewpoints of American life.

I agree with Tim Wise’s article about how basically different life is viewed by whites and blacks in this country and I see those themes echoed by Dyson. But I don’t agree with Dyson’s view that Obama’s campaign is ignoring the racial division of America. In one paragraph he describes black America as having no hope of ever seeing racial or economic equality. Then in the next he lambasts Obama for daring to give hope to those same communities.

Yes, he is a democrat running for President. And he did not grow up in mainstream America. But he is from both worlds, white America and black America. He can be that bridge, that translation both sides need to begin seeing the same world. That speech he gave provided a glimmer of hope that it is his intention to be that person, that kind of President, rather than a role being foisted on him by the media. He told white America Yes, black Americans ARE angry. And he also said to voice only that anger is counterproductive and divisive when what we need is unity. If Obama got up there and said DAMN right we pissed, whitey! How many people would be listening to him today?