Introduction

Abstract

Barack Obama’s election to the American presidency in 2008 sparked a renewed interest in the theme of race not only in the Americas, but also worldwide. In the United States, the election of a black man to the office of the most prominent country in the global, political, and economic landscape led some analysts to postulate that North America was living in a post-racial era; that is, theoretically the nation had forged an environment that surpassed racial preference, discrimination, and prejudice. The introduction highlights the importance of Obama’s election for U.S. racial thought and the imaginary of the African Diaspora worldwide.