Towards the end of 2008, a bunch of people told me I needed to share my thoughts on this topic. But I was so swamped with the graduate school work they been pilin’ on me, that sometimes my creative mind doesn’t even get a chance to think straight. So this one has marinated and bubbled in my head for a nice little second…simmering on a low flame ever since Tabitha asked me to cook up a dish. So I served it…and now Danya got me in the freezer, looking for the frozen leftovers…

It was initially a theoretical construct. And as we all know, no idea’s original, so somebody might have said it, but just called it by a different name. But here was mine: I entitled the 2008 Inaugural Countdown phase the age of Ascension Inclusion Syndrome. Now work with me here for a second…I am defining this syndrome as the ever-present obsession with entering another’s Zen-like space through a series of loopholes or inadvertent and unexpected back doors. I came across this mode of thought within the span of forty-eight hours, between Monday, November 3rd and Wednesday, November 5th, 2008: immediately before, during and after the 2008 Presidential Election. Now mind you, we all know the outcome at this point…after all, we live in the age of Ascension Inclusion Syndrome. But what I find most fascinating about this scenario with President Obama is how his presence has only warranted inclusion by those suffering from AIS since his meteoric rise. I’ll give you a few examples.

Walking around grad school, everything up until that Monday was all about a description of Obama as “black president.” Search high and low, near and far, the commentary you heard in the midst of any descriptive and animated conversation on campus about Election Day was “black president.” Interestingly enough, on that Monday I was joking around, reciting the Dave Chappelle starring as “Chester Biggums” skit: “white power!!!” This was comedy to anyone within earshot of my stress-relieving antics.

…and then that Tuesday came…and that Tuesday went…

And best believe the comedy came crashing down – screeched to a deafening halt – on that Wednesday, when I came to school early, wearing orange-tan tinted sunglasses indoors while saying “doesn’t the oxygen taste so much better now…?…it just FEELS like a good day.” And except for a microscopic minority, no one found any humor when I said “How ill is it that the new face of the leader of free world actually looks a lot more like…me!!! More than it EVER has before!!!” Now, as the only African-American male pursuing a graduate degree in this program’s space, the politics of me being asked by a professor to “dial it down” shouldn’t be a surprise to any of us; and especially not from the white professorial Obama supporter who “claims” to be the resident “critical race theorist.” However, this is another location for critical analysis in another article that, as my Caribbean brethren say, “soon come stahrr, soon come.”

But most intriguing to me was how on this Wednesday, die-hard McCain supporters began to get sick…they were now contagions, carriers of AIS. So when they started talking about Obama, they said “Todd, he’s not REALLY black…his mother’s white. He’s actually bi-racial.”

…whuuuuuut…?

Now of course, the hood in me wanted to say “now your white-behind knows that 48 hours ago, that man was black to you…and “black” with a lower-case b!?!?! Stop frontin’!?!?!?!” I really began to observe the elements as the white world I saw around me functioned in two ways. There were liberals, progressives and some plainly rational people who were all aboard when it came to the “Change Train.” They had supported Obama even before I had – and mind you, my first reaction was “look – this dude’s cousin is Cheney…sounds like a conspiracy to me.” But again, in time soon come, even I changed. I saw the politics involved with the white woman, married to “the closest we’ll ever get to a black president”, tearing down the blackness I could no longer NOT side with…and when I really started to analyze the dude, he really made sense. And so, soon come change for me.

But then, there was that other white faction, the one I engage with at the good ole conservative “institution” of “higher learning” – the religious school premised on “helping the disadvantaged” in the most diverse area of the world’s metropolis (which remains nameless for now) that really wanted absolutely no parts of this black man, with half his DNA rooted in African monikers and slight whispers of Arabic phonetics. The same “institution” that had absolutely NO affect on this most Glorious of Wednesdays. It was as if the most historic moment of our lifetime had not happened! Just think about it: this is one of the first instances, at least in my lifetime, when we’ve experienced this certain type of “where were you when…?” This time, it’s not about death and destruction, chaos or catastrophe…

“Where were you when Barack Obama became President of the United States…?”
whuuuAAAT???

I remember EXACTLY where I was when I saw and heard word that we had the first Black president of the United States of America, encompassing two cultures, born to build a new legacy and foundational shift for history as we may very well know it. So please tell me how this dude went from “black” to bi-racial? Wasn’t it oppressive white conservative law long ago that decried whether you were bi-racial, quadroon, octoroon…wasn’t the rule if even a drop of black blood ran through a person’s veins, that person was considered black? So tell me again, how dude’s bi-racial now???

Ascension Inclusion Syndrome, that’s how.

We have seen this type of psychological plague happen many a time when it comes to the African-American community, but usually along very different levels. Look at today’s immediate connection between what is considered popular culture, and its origin and roots that are firmly grounded within Black culture. We can very easily trace strains of AIS back through time…just look at the blues, jazz music and culture, and move your way right up the spectrum into the most recent pre-AIS strain: the appropriation of hip-hop. Most famous for this strain was the phenomena of young white kids on cornfields in the Midwest changing their dress code, speech patterns, and aspects of their personalities to match more of an urban inner-city hip-hopper. And as a community, we go back and forth sometimes – labeling hip-hop music and culture as either problematic or empowering. But this newly-altered strain is clearly different: who can deny the power of this millennium-based landmark in history with our 44th president? So now, what was once seen as based in something appropriated for monetary purposes and financial gains isn’t present in this particular strain. The fundamental inclusion grounded in AIS is based on the most positive of successes for the African-American community: a transcendental state of ascension. And so what happens? I don’t have to tell you…just listen…can’t you hear them creepin’ in through the back door…

In a recent Time magazine article “Crossing the Color Line”, the good reverend T.D. Jakes talks about Barack Obama’s presidential status and says “before we light candles and sing ‘Kumbaya,’ it may be wise to adjust our expectation to a realistic depiction of attainable goals. No one man’s appointment will end all racial tension. Nor will it totally eradicate the residual bitterness inherent in a society where such atrocities as slavery and Jim Crow lie only a few miles behind us.” On the one hand, I laugh because this has indeed been my slogan in pockets of crisis and resistance – “let’s just all go into the quad, hold hands, and sing Kumbaya!!!” And I do think T.D. Jakes is right: Obama is not the end-all-be-all-cure-all. I know this to be true because during Winter Break from the great “institution” I attend, a white professor (another self-proclaimed ‘critical race theorist’) sent me a book she really felt I needed to read: “It’s called ‘Your Average Nigga.’ And not ‘nigger’ with an er Todd, but ‘nigga’ with an A!” Couple that with the maximum pimpology that goes on in my doctoral studies, with no support from the higher administrative powers when I talk about hip-hop pedagogy in the English composition classroom, until this work is accepted unilaterally at national English conferences, and now Todd’s “the little black boy that did good…from OUR program.” Nah sun, Obama ain’t the complete cure-all by any means…at least not for these displays of deep-rooted discriminatory mentalities and AIS infections minus vaccination. But simultaneously, this moment in American (and global) history channeled through the vessel named Barack Obama is such a powerful happening for the African-American community. And the reason why is because Obama’s existence speaks to the notion of humanity. The amalgamation of his heritage, outlooks and beliefs makes him a magnetically soothing and all-inclusive figure – one that does have the potential to initiate the healing process of a nation split to the core that so ardently needs to come together, regardless of our constructed and self-imposed differences. What Obama does naturally without even being forced or pressured, is encompass a larger image: a Black man with direct African lineage, the other half rooted in a white woman, with Arabic and Muslim names, who chooses to spend his Sundays in church as a Christian. It is indeed the culmination of the idea of the “great American melting pot”, with all these attributes coalescing in one individual. As well, his positioning has the power to spark a discourse that could break down some very long-standing boundaries about American constructions of race…and just by breathing and being himself: the Presidential candidate we saw throughout the two-year campaign process. The now-President who’s also a regular person: down to earth, calm, cool and collected, even amidst the most pivotal and pinnacle point of his career. This should be a charge to all of us.
We can now view this time as a location where the African-American community (and specifically Black males) has a chance to ascend and rise…so certain excuses must come to an end. And this is a call to young and old, rich and poor, light and dark, even blood and crip. No longer can we say there is no one who has us in mind. No longer can we say that government doesn’t represent us, look like us, walk, talk and speak like us…nope. And no longer can we say we are not seen as smart, capable people – well-educated and able to do any and everything. I can now say to my nieces and nephew: “if you put your mind to it, you can be ANYTHING you want to be…including president.” I only used to be able to give them the first part, but now, what comes after the ellipses is truly documented in history and cannot be denied. So it’s time for all of us to step up in the same way Obama has showed us we can – through hard work, perseverance, determination…but most importantly – unity through a collective consciousness that bears the unbreakable will of achievement and excellence. He even validated my own existence: he has shown me, yet again, that you can be highly educated, but still stay real – still make the secret service accompany you and your boys to the gym for a few full-courts real fast…how thoro is that??? This really becomes the time for us to come together, sit, and truly analyze the things we have done, what we are presently doing, and how we continue onward from here.

I truly feel America has spoken on all levels…from the triumphant rallies flooded with tears of change (the reason I wore sunglasses inside – so all those around couldn’t see me sporadically stream tears of euphoric restoration), to the deep-seeded boos spreading Ascension Inclusion Syndrome through the atmosphere, interrupting McCain’s concession remarks. But I also feel America spoke with the help of the Elements channeled through the spirit of Obama’s recently-passed grandmother. That’s the only way I can make sense of over 60 degree weather in New York City in the beginning of November…and besides, I fully believe as one spirit passes into the unknown, another spirit is born into existence – the spirit that was born was Barack Obama’s presidency. And not just for him, but for the picture and vision he ultimately stands for and represents – inclusion, unity, transformation…and all under the guise of a God-fearing dude who puts family first while the business of things runs a hairline-super-close second.

This is a moment where all races and creeds, sexes and genders, color shades and nationalities can truly come together around one common cause – humanity. The country we presently live in cannot succeed without this new way of thinking. It is a time for reflection and synthesis; a moment where we can all collectively subscribe to the idea that the same blue blood runs in all our veins, and becomes the same red blood once it combines with the air and undergoes oxygenation. And I cannot lie – it’s a moment where it all happens coming through the lens of a Black man, the culture which has always been disputed and critically acclaimed as the beginning of all human civilization. Personally, I’m loving it, because it does indeed give us a new perspective and a fresh take on life…the oxygen has really tasted better for me…

So in the end, I’m cool with the AIS-infected people wanting to include themselves in this history – it’s cool…for real! I’ll actually give people permission to ride out on this one. Because what they essentially want to include themselves in is another moment in which Black people have found success and ascension for our people while radically revising the fabric of this country’s canon in a magnanimously life-altering way. Some may say it’s not fair. But I say, ga’head and ride the bandwagon…just acknowledge a Black man steers the trip…

…there’s enough room for all of us to fit comfortably and share…
…we’re even offering the AIS vaccine towards the back of the bandwagon…

…please just don’t steal my thunder on this one, aight?

Written by Todd Craig

This essay was revised for True School, and reprinted with the permission of Prophetic Worship: the Caviar to Heaven the Arsenic to Hell.