I've got one more question for you.
Um... this is a personal question.
-Yeah. -It's a little bit selfish.
Um... I look up to you, because we share a lot in common.
We both have parents who are black and white.
Uh, both half African.
South Side of Chicago. South side of Africa.
-Um... -Similar.
-In and around race... -Yeah.
when you are a person who has a platform,
-Right. -when you are in a space
where you are engaging with people...
it is often difficult...
to navigate and skirt that line
-Yeah. -between speaking your mind
-Right. -and sharing your... your true opinions on race,
whilst at the same time not being seen to alienate
some of the people you are talking to.
-Right. -You know, because if you are a white person
who's speaking about race, then you are just a person
-who is interested in race. -Right.
If you are a person of color who's speaking about it,
it's, like, "Oh, the black thing started again."
-(chuckles) -So...
the question I've always wanted to know is,
-Yeah. -how did you navigate that?
'Cause we watched you do it, but I always wanted to know
how
You know...
my general theory
uh, is that...
if I was clear in my own mind
about who I was, comfortable in my own skin,
and... had clarity
about the way in which race
continues to be...
this powerful factor in so many elements of our lives,
but that it is not the only factor
in so many aspects of our lives,
that, uh...
we... have by no means
overcome the legacies
of slavery and Jim Crow
and colonialism and racism,
but that the progress we've made has been real
-and extraordinary. -Mm-hmm.
Uh, if I'm communicating my genuine belief
that, uh...
those who are not...
uh, subject to racism
uh, can sometimes have blind spots,
or, uh, lack appreciation of what it feels
to be on the receiving end of that,
but that doesn't mean that they're not open to learning
and, uh...
caring about equality and justice,
and that I can...
uh... win them over,
because there's goodness in the majority of people.
If I... I always felt that if I really knew that
and I just communicated it as clearly as I could,
that I'd be okay.
Um, another way of saying this is
there's not been a time in my public life
or my presidency, where I feel as if
I have had to bite my tongue.
There have been times in my public life where I've said,
how do I say this diplomatically?
How do I say this, as you indicated,
in a way that it's received.
-Yes. -Right?
So there, there...
have been very few instances where I've said,
well, that was racist, you are racist.
There have been times where I've said,
you know, you might not have taken into account...
(both laughing)
uh, the, uh...
the ongoing legacy of, of, uh, of racism
in why we have so many
black men incarcerated.
And since I know
that you believe in the constitution,
and believe in justice and believe in liberty,
um, how about if we try this?
Now, some might say
well, you're not speaking fully truth to power
-because of that diplomacy. -Yes.
But, you know,
I don't think that, um,
trying to appeal to the better angels of our nature,
as Lincoln put it,
uh, is somehow compromise.
There may be times where...
uh, you just have to call things out
and name names.
But the challenge we face today,
when it comes to race,
uh, is...
rarely the overt,
Klansman-style,
uh, uh, racism,
and typically has more to do
with the fact that,
you know, people got other stuff they want to talk about,
and it's sort of uncomfortable.
And it's...
somebody not getting called back for an interview,
-although it's never explicit. -Mm-hmm.
Or it's, you know,
who gets the TV acting job?
The actress who doesn't quite look the part,
and what does that mean.
In-in that environment,
where you're not talking necessarily
about cut-and dried,
uh, racist behavior,
but rather about the complex ways
in which society is working these issues through,
uh, you know, trying to reach folks
in ways that they can hear,
I think, is, uh, is important.
And, I would add,
everybody's got a different role to play.
Um, you know, if Chris Rock's doing standup,
then there is a benefit to him
doing something that is different
from the president of the United States doing something.
For one thing, you know,
he doesn't have to, uh, edit his language
(laughing): quite as carefully,
because I am still subject to,
you know, some restraints...
You still got your last few days.
...on-on those seven words
-George Carlin talked about. -Yes.
See, I-I can't use those,
uh, as a general proposition,
because a lot of children are watching.
I try to comport myself in a way
that, uh,
my mother would approve of.
Well, I just want to say thank you so much
for being on the show.
Thank you for being an inspiration,
and, most importantly, thank you
for giving me an opportunity to see what I would look like
after eight years of the toughest job in the world.
You know, I-I will say that I resent
how young and good looking you are,
'cause, uh, I used to think of myself in those terms,
and, uh, it's been downhill for quite some time.
-Thank you, sir. -Thank you, man.
-Thank you very much. -Appreciate it.