I'd have to disagree with you here. The speech wasn't about Blacks being painted as victims. His speech emphasized a pervasive problem in this country that has historical context to support his conclusion: that Black communities and African-Americans overall have not always been given a fair shake in this country even in modern times since both Reconstruction (post-Emancipation) and the Civil Rights era. Black Laws enacted by White leaders at local, state and to a lessor degree the federal level have all passed legislation (some as local ordinances) that worked to curtail Black achievements and/or advancements. If you've studied American history - or more specifically Black History - you'd know this to be true.
However, the President didn't just lay blame on government for undermining African-Americans. He also laid blame squarely at Black people themselves for not taking more responsibility for themselves and their communities. It's the same type of tongue lashing Black historical figures such as Frederick Douglass, Bucker T. Washington, Malcolm X and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. have all stated repeatedly throughout their lives. As such, I don't see why our nation's 44th President should be villified in present-day for echoing those exact same sentiments.
To put it in perspective: Republicans/Conservatives have been saying all along that poor people whether Black, White, Hispanic, Italian, etc., should do more to take responsibility for themselves. Why then was what Pres. Obama said in that regard so dreadfully wrong simply because:
1) he said it before a group of majority Black people; and,
2) he said it using a "Negro Dialect"
????
I get that people want to make that speech (and others) part of a larger argument concerning race relations or picking winners and loser, etc., but I think if people turned off their partisan and/or racial radar and tried to see things in much broader terms (and it helps to know alittle history as well), maybe they'd come to understand that their distain for so many people thinking they are "entitled" to gov't handouts is very much in keeping with our President wanting more people to take responsibility for themselves. The problem here, of course, is the only real way many people will "see" opportunities to move forward is for them to have a job. And so it is incumbant on both the federal government and the private sector to foster employment opportunities since not everyone has the skills, knowledge or even the bravery (let alone the desire) to risk starting a business of their own.
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