Fool Me Once, Shame on You. Fool Me Twice?

October 31, 2024

Fool Me Once, Shame on You. Fool Me Twice? American Freedmen, Don’t Drink the Kool-Aid Again.

© Ogbonna Hagins for Philly Word Magazine and Freedmen’s Journal 2.0

As I reflect on the past few years, I can’t shake the eerie parallels between Barack Obama’s presidential run and the pandering we’re now seeing from Kamala Harris. Once, I bought into Obama’s charisma, his promise for change, and his appearance as a “so-called Black” candidate who understood our struggles.

But I was mistaken. He was a politician who could appear to be one of us but was, in reality, far from it. Today, Harris follows the same script. She, too, appears to be “so-called Black,” and yet her roots tell a different story. American Freedmen, don’t be fooled again. This time, let’s look past appearances and demand more than symbolism.

Obama’s Legacy of Disappointment

In 2007, I was enthusiastic, hopeful, and perhaps a bit naive. I hosted a special radio segment celebrating Barack Obama’s candidacy. His speeches were inspiring; his words, mesmerizing. I believed we’d finally found a champion. But over the years, his “hope and change” rhetoric proved hollow. Obama’s father was Kenyan, his mother European.

He didn’t share the history of American Freedmen—those who descend from the emancipated and carry the deep scars of slavery and oppression in this nation. His lineage didn’t involve ancestors who had feet cut off to prevent escape, who were violated by slaveholders, or who endured the agony of sharecropping where others stole every last cent.

Our ancestors fought and bled for the promises of the 13th Amendment and the Civil Rights Act of 1866, which Obama barely acknowledged, let alone upheld.

From his Father’s Day speech, where he chastised so-called Black men for absenteeism, to his address at Morehouse College, where he lectured graduates on personal responsibility, Obama took every opportunity to remind American Freedmen that their progress—or lack thereof—was up to them.

It was paternalistic, out of touch, and missed the mark on structural change. He seemed more interested in giving moral lessons than in dismantling the badges, vestiges, and incidents of slavery codified in the 13th Amendment. For all his charm, Obama’s policies did little to address the root issues plaguing our communities. We had placed our hopes on someone who simply wasn’t one of us.

Yet from an imagery perspective, at least Obama aligned his family with the picture many Americans have of a “so-called Black” family in leadership. He married a woman of Freedmen descent, and his daughters share our heritage. But now let’s look at Kamala Harris.

Is this really the family imagery that we would associate with a “so-called Black” president? Harris, too, presents herself as such to American Freedmen audiences, but her husband is European, and her children are European. Her family image doesn’t reflect the American Freedmen experience or our collective memory.

In public office, representation matters, especially for communities with a unique history of struggle. Harris’s family imagery is another reminder that, while she may pander to American Freedmen for votes, her experience—and her presentation—are distinctly disconnected from the American Freedmen reality.

Kamala Harris: A New Face, the Same Illusion

Fast forward to today, and we have Kamala Harris—another “so-called Black” candidate with roots that are anything but American Freedmen. Harris’s father is Jamaican, her mother Indian. Like Obama, she lacks any ancestral connection to the unique struggle of American Freedmen.

And yet, she has made a career out of appealing to American Freedmen, recently ramping up her outreach efforts in blatant acts of pandering. She’s appearing on platforms, making speeches, laughing with influencers, and acting as if she’s been a part of this fight.

But where was she when our communities faced real threats? When police reform and civil rights enforcement were on the table, Kamala Harris was notably absent.

Harris, like Obama, relies on the imagery and symbols that resonate with American Freedmen. But her history—especially her record as California’s Attorney General—reveals a troubling pattern.

Instead of fighting for justice, Harris’s policies during her time as AG disproportionately harmed American Freedmen, ignoring the badges of slavery embedded in our laws. These are not the actions of someone who understands our struggles; they’re the actions of someone willing to exploit our pain for political gain.

The “Kool-Aid” Connection

It’s hard to ignore the chilling resemblance between Harris’s current campaign strategy and the tactics used by Obama in 2008. They both rely on the same formula: present yourself as a “first” (the first so-called Black president, the first so-called Black female VP candidate), promise change, and appeal to the collective trauma of American Freedmen.

They want us to see ourselves in them, to believe they represent our unique American Freedmen story. But American Freedmen, it’s time to see through the act.

Remember Jim Jones? How did he get those people to drink the Kool-Aid? By making them believe he had their best interests at heart. Today, political candidates use the same psychological tactics, luring us in with carefully crafted images and empty promises.

Just look at how quickly the Democratic Party has rallied around Harris. One day, Joe Biden was fine, and the next day, it’s all about Harris as the “next in line.” The speed of the transition is unnerving, and the agenda behind it should give every American Freedman pause. This is not a movement for us; it’s a machine, and we’re simply the pawns.

The Choice Is Ours

In 2008, I made a mistake. I allowed myself to be swept up in the idea of change without digging deeper into the candidate himself. I didn’t question whether Obama’s experiences, his background, and his values aligned with the American Freedmen’s struggle.

I won’t make the same mistake again, and I urge every American Freedman to think twice about Harris. This isn’t about partisanship or ideology; it’s about refusing to fail our ancestors who fought and died for freedoms still denied.

Our ancestors endured horrors that neither Obama nor Harris can ever understand. For the love of my mother, my grandmother, and my great-grandmother who told me stories of sharecropping, of money stolen, of rights trampled,

I cannot support someone who has never once spoken directly to the repair mandated by the 13th Amendment. Barack Obama showed us what happens when we mistake symbolism for solidarity. Kamala Harris will be no different.

If there’s one thing we should take from this journey, it’s the knowledge that a candidate’s connection to our history, our fight, and our future must be real—not a convenient storyline for their campaign.

Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice? Shame on me.