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Post-Race Ideology in Black Face

What Trayvon Martin Teaches about Color-blind Racism and White People’s Love for Martin Luther King, Jr. and Barack Obama

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Part of the book series: Teaching Race and Ethnicity ((RACE))

Abstract

Why do white people love Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Barack Obama? These leaders can be pointed to as symbols of the perception that the United States is and should be a post-racial nation. Support for King and Obama enables white people to maintain a facade of color-blindness while simultaneously displaying a personal approval of Blacks (i.e.: “I’m not racist, I voted for Obama”).

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Milner, A. (2014). Post-Race Ideology in Black Face. In: Fasching-Varner, K.J., Reynolds, R.E., Albert, K.A., Martin, L.L. (eds) Trayvon Martin, Race, and American Justice. Teaching Race and Ethnicity. SensePublishers, Rotterdam. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-6209-842-8_26

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