For Blacks, a Quiet Question: What if Obama Loses?

Callie Shell / Aurora for TIME The first time I saw the Obama gear, I knew it had begun. I do not mean the official campaign paraphernalia. I'm talking about the wares hawked here in Harlem, the black tees sold in sizes up to 5XL, with Barack Obama's head slightly out of proportion. I bought mine on Lenox and 125th--a mustard number with Martin Luther King Jr. and Obama juxtaposed underneath the words ALPHA and OMEGA. That's when I smelled the air and understood that Obama was running not simply to be President but also to be the next head chiseled on the face of the imaginary black Mount Rushmore. That's when I knew, for the first time in my life, that it would be a good year to be black. Consider this fact: the most famous black man in America isn't dribbling a ball or clutching a microphone. He has no prison record. He has... [read full story]