Steele Racing Back to Black

Some would say Gubernatorial nominees Lynn Swann (PA) and Ken Blackwell (OH), and Senate nominee Michael Steele (MD) ran away from their blackness long ago – at least as far back as when they first registered Republican. It seems at least one of them – Steele – agrees. That is, he appears to be racing back to Maryland blacks as if he’s got a long way to go. Case in point: a recently unveiled television spot where Steele invokes what we call an “appeal to African American Authenticity,” specifically an appeal questioning the idea of political party authenticity.

Because the Democratic Party has enjoyed a disproportionate share of the black vote since the 1960s, black politicians who align themselves with the Republican Party face the potential for not being considered “black enough.” J.C. Watts, Gary Franks, Alan Keyes and even Colin Powell (who did not run for elected office) are among several who have faced such criticism. The suggestion is that a “real” African American would not be associated with a party that most African Americans believe has done so much harm to – or at least has shown such little regard for – “the" community.

Accordingly, black Republicans have an interesting dynamic to consider. They will tend to do better among white voters because their perceived conservatism mitigates their blackness. That is, a conservative white voter may subconsciously or consciously say to herself, “he looks black, but he’s a Republican: so he’s not that black.” On the other hand, though, black voters may be considering the exact same sentiments. In order to reach out to black voters (who comprise about a third of Maryland's population), a black Republican may be led to proclaim such an appeal to authenticity. Obviously, Steele has been, as is seen in his latest exemplar.

“For too long,” Steele says, “one party worried more about prices in the stock market more than prices in the corner market.” That party, one would presume, is his own. But by having the first sentence of the ad amount to a criticism of his own party, he reaches out to folks who are skeptical of any Republican candidate. “And,” he continues, “too many in the other party preached reconciliation at the same time they practiced division.” Assuming that he’s referring to Democrats, he’s skillfully acknowledging that the promises made to the black community have not been fulfilled. This suggests that black voters should not blindly support Democrats anymore than the Democratic Party should take black voters for granted. Both statements open the door for him to be embraced by his community in spite of his party affiliation, not because of it. That is, he appeals to authenticity to offset his status as a member of a party that is widely considered to be non-authentic to black interests.

The overwhelming majority of the people in the ad, including all of those who speak, are African American. In fact, he scores the mother of all street cred in hip-hop legend and mogul, Russell Simmons, who appears in the ad and helps provide the impression that supporting Steele is synonymous with keeping it real. One supporter notes, with a huge smile, that Steele is “going to Washington to represent all people.” Yet another happily proclaims that she’s “crossing party lines for Michael Steele.” This sends an important signal to black voters: “It’s okay, you can vote for a Republican and still be black.”

Mixed with the appeals to authenticity is a populist message that has been helpful to Republicans in gaining moderate supporters. “The gap between Washington and our families is real,” Steele says of the city that is run by his Republican compatriots, further distancing himself from the (black) public perception of the (white) Party brass.

Steele’s last remarks in the spot (apart from the approval tag) addresses his vision for that gap: “The need for a new bridge is real. . . and as Maryland’s next senator, I will build that bridge.” The visuals and subtext suggest that the bridge is between more than Washington and Maryland’s families, but also between African Americans and the Republican Party. We’ll be talking more in the coming weeks about others of the aforementioned black Republicans who are interested in helping to build – or at least cross – that bridge, as well.