A century after W.E.B. Du Bois penned his 1903 groundbreaking treatise, "The Souls of Black Folk," his observations about "the problem of the color line" are still relevant at the dawn of the 21st century.
So said nationally syndicated talk show host Kojo Nnamdi, who delivered the Library's 2003 African American History Month keynote address on Feb. 14.
"The problem of the color line still exists today, particularly in media," said Nnamdi. "I straddle it."
Talk show host Kojo Nnamdi gave the annual African American History month keynote address. - Charlynn Spencer Pyne
To illustrate his point, Nnamdi asked the audience what O. J. Simpson and Trent Lott have in common. The answer: both were interviewed by Ed Gordon on Black Entertainment Television. "White America was forced to cross the color line in order to see these two men interviewed on a black network," noted Nnamdi. "The color line is crossed daily by black Americans but only rarely by the majority population."
Nnamdi began his career in broadcasting in 1973 at Howard University where his news team produced an award-winning local radio program, "The Daily Drum." Since 1985, he has hosted "Evening Exchange," a public affairs program broadcast on WHUT-TV. But it was not until he joined WAMU in 1998 to host "Public Interest" that he came to the attention of a white audience. The program was recently renamed "The Kojo Nnamdi Show" to reflect the host's important role in shaping the broadcast.
"It only took 25 years," said Nnamdi, referring to the time it took for him to be noticed by the majority population. "I went to WAMU to see if we can bring the two communities together." In another move to straddle the color line, Nnamdi revealed future plans to broadcast his show from Howard University. Nnamdi also noted the degree to which white American youth cross the color line by buying the music and imitating the fashions of the largely African American hip hop artists. But he was careful to point out that these affluent artists do not represent the experience of the majority of the African American community in terms of economic achievement. According to Nnamdi, 50 Cent, a former crack dealer turned hip hop sensation, does not need affirmative action any more than Oprah Winfrey, yet white America points to them as examples of black achievement.
"In this wonderful experiment of democracy we share an overriding value–profound respect for the accumulation of wealth," observed Nnamdi. "We genuflect before great wealth, whether it is achieved by a hip hop artist or crack dealer. But we have lost the most important element in this experiment of democracy that was inherent in the teachings of the civil rights movement–generational responsibility."
Nnamdi spoke passionately about the selflessness of civil rights activists whose goals for the larger community were more important than personal ambition.
"The Freedom Riders left jobs and confronted dogs and fire hoses, and when they got done, they succeeded in getting civil rights legislation passed," said Nnamdi. "Today we have the wealthiest African American middle class in the history of the Republic. Instead of enriching ourselves we should be working toward ending poverty and hunger and eliminating the color line. But it seems to me we want to run away from that responsibility." Nnamdi observed that the existence of the color line is no longer just America's problem but a global one. And it is no longer just an issue of color, but religion.
"As America prepares for war in Iraq and terrorism at home, we are aware that Muslims are not only of a darker hue but of a different religion," said Nnamdi. "The color line of which Dr. Du Bois spoke is now a religious line." In Nnamdi's view, the course we follow "is likely to reconfigure the international community."
"We've got to solve the problems of poverty, race, color and religion globally," said Nnamdi. "I see before me people with the capacity to solve these problems. Let's do it!"
