..... showed. Record numbers for unemployment means record numbers of blacks are out of work. In fact, a recent study shows that the rate of black male unemployment is the highest since World War II.

The New York Times reported today that despite efforts made by the Bush administration’s No Child Left Behind law, black and Hispanic test scores still lag behind whites. Foreclosures, sub-prime mortgages, lack of health care and access to education are all issues impact the black community in greater numbers than the majority. Obviously, none of those kinds of endemic problems were going to be solved in the first 100 days of Obama’s presidency.

“There's a lot of pride around the positive symbolism of a black First Family,” says Dominque Apollon, research director of the Applied Research Center in Oakland, California, the largest think tank on race in America. They recently did a study of who benefited most and least from Obama’s 100-day old presidency. 

“We love the First Lady and those two little girls, and it's too early to tell how great an impact the first family will have on the self-image of black Americans, but it could be a truly powerful force in our society," said Appolon. "Still, the many barriers that block or slow the progress of far too many black Americans are institutional. They are structural. Some of the barriers we've been paying attention to and investigating lately at ARC are in early childhood education, incarceration, employment and wealth, including homeownership.”

But the campaign and the presidency’s focus on service, community and empowerment may have inspired more blacks to become engaged in the political process. The election may have given the country its first black president, but many black people believe the struggle continues. Obama’s election has galvanized them to be proactive in ways they might not have before.

“Generally speaking, even under the pressure of a very difficult economy, the vibe that I get from our community is that people see themselves as partners in the struggle with the Obamas, and they’re willing to help wherever they can, even if it’s just passing along an email or making a comment,” says political blogger Cheryl Contee, co-founder of jackandjillpolitics.com, a black political website that saw a dramatic traffic increase during the Obama campaign. “People seem very engaged in wanting to see Obama get his agenda through and supporting his initiatives. The upshot of Obama’s victory was that even though he won hands down, everyone didn’t vote for him. Defending Obama and protecting him from people’s bigotry has continued to be the mission for our community.”

Others have seen the Obama presidency impact their community in more tangible ways. Entrepreneur Ashley M. Hunter, CEO of HM Risk Group, an insurance brokerage firm with locations in Bahrain and Austin, Texas, says Obama’s election has unequivocally helped her business. Contrary to widely-held beliefs about the Middle East, Hunter says they are happy to do business with Americans, particularly Americans of color.
 
“I got my first big client after Obama was elected,” Hunter says. “When I went to my first meeting after Obama won, the first thing they said was ‘Congratulations. We’re happy.’ The fact that Obama is the president has actually helped me because it looks like America is more open-minded. He helps globally because that’s where I get the majority of my business. They are more comfortable because now they see the U.S. as not being so racist. [They feel] if you’ve got a black president, anything’s possible.”

Even those across the aisle feel that African-Americans, particularly those already in politics, have seen almost immediate

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