We Were In Power

In Coates’ book, We Were in Power for Eight Years, he explores Obama’s presidency throughout the years while reflecting on his own experiences during Obama’s two terms. Critics of Coates, claimed the book lacked crucial facts about Obama’s presidency and the questioned simmered to how should blacks be imagined in politics? Must blacks be obligated to involve themselves in racial, international politics, or socioeconomic issues? West and Mishra critiques evidently agree blacks should, while Kelley appears to have a different perspective on black’s role.
West seem disgusted by Coates’ book We Were Eight Years in Power and did not hold back his criticism on Coates in several articles. In the Guardian, West says “he [Ta-Nehisi Coates] represents
Mishra shamelessly says, Obama is responsible for “killings by drones, despoilation of Libya, Yemen and Somalia, mass deportations, and cravenness before the titans of finance who ruined millions of black as well as white lives.”(), which Coates’ fails to mention in his “17,000 word profile” () about Obama. Furthermore, with deportations at a record high under the Obama era, Coates says, “ he saw America through both black and immigrant eyes” (286). Mishra criticizes Coates statement by pointing out that Obama was not a beacon for people of color living in white America, but his policies were responsible for the deports of millions of people each year, which was “– disproportionately people of colour – and routinely exercises its right to assault and despoil other countries and murder and torture their citizens.” (). Lastly, Mishra accuses Coates’ of alleviating the truth about the role of race and international political economy for his Liberal audience. Mishra says, “lacking to acknowledge the connection between race and international political economy which, induces relief than guilt among his white liberal fans” (), which is a similar critique by