Americans love a good underdog story. There must be something that really gets us fired up about the story of a group that was not supposed to be able to make it, defying all the odds and winning. It’s that story, (standing up and triumphing in the face of adversity) that really embodies the American spirit and I think that is why we always cheer for the team that is down. We don’t like the top spot to be unattainable; we don’t like there to be a team or a group that always wins. We like change, we like surprises, and we love competition.
This leads me to wonder why McCain considers himself an underdog, and why more people aren’t flocking to Obama. Many say that in this election, race shouldn’t be an issue, but how can it not be? For the first time in history we have a black Presidential candidate with a legitimate shot of winning. That should get people excited. It should get people energized that the greatest underdogs in our history have a chance to rise up and put an African American into the highest office in the land. Let’s take a walk through history for a moment so that we can understand exactly what these African Americans had to endure to even get near achieving this goal.
African Americans were brought to this country, as we all know, to be slaves and work in the fields and kitchens of the landowners. They were treated as subhuman and, during the first census, were only to be counted as 3/5 of a person. No one thought they were capable of being civil and living without the close guidance of white men. Then came the Civil War. Those same African Americans who were incapable of living on their own were now free citizens of the United States of America. But they were still not treated like everyone else. Segregation was rampant and the white establishment viewed blacks as inferior and second-rate. Surely they could not be trusted to vote responsibly, so they were hindered from practicing that uniquely American Right. Then in 1870 Congress passed the 15th Amendment to ensure that African American men could in fact vote. Yet, after all of this struggle, there still existed “Jim Crowe Laws” in the south, which were arbitrary laws designed with a racist intent to keep blacks from the polls. Finally, after years of having equal rights but unequal enforcement of those rights, African Americans spoke with one voice in what came to be known as the Civil Rights Movement. Segregation of schools, buses, and even entire towns was going to go on no longer. African Americans decided that they were not second-class citizens, and demanded to be treated as such. Many took to the streets of their hometowns and cities across this country to demand their rights and because of this achieved great victories. Jim Crowe Laws were repealed, schools finally became open to people of all races, lunch counters could be frequented by anyone, and it didn’t matter where on the bus or train you sat. Finally there was equal treatment under the law. Many of the leaders of the Civil Rights movement used their fame to represent their States in the House and Senate. Some saw injustices elsewhere in the black community and decided to use their talents to help correct them. The most important fact, though, was that African Americans had spoken with one voice. Because of that they saw their dreams realized. Never again would they be considered as being worth any less than a person of another race. But there was one place where no African American could get close to obtaining. Even after all of the triumphs and successes of the mid-nineteenth century, the office of the President of the United States still belonged to white men only. Then came Barack Obama, offering a hope to help African Americans realize that dream, far sooner than they ever thought they’d be able to.
That is the true American underdog story. The group of people who were told they couldn’t make it, they weren’t smart enough to succeed, and they certainly couldn’t propel one of their own to the highest office in the land. Well they have just about done it. The biggest underdogs in our nation’s history are about to cross the finish line. There is no doubt that there is still much work to be done, and that this race is by no means a certainty, but coming even this far speaks volumes.
No matter what your political affiliation, African Americans are an underdog we can all agree deserves to be the victor.