Afro-Americans in New York Life and History Leading From Behind the Gap: Post-Racial Politics and the Pedagogy of Black Studies Seneca Vaught^ Introduction An Associated Press Poll released on the eve of the 2012 presidential election revealed that more Americans are overtly racist today than four years ago.^ The implicit conclusion that many pundits made was that a black president caused more racial divisiveness, not less, thania white one. This is a particularly troubling paradox considering the wide-spread editorializing of the Obama presidency as the advent of a prejudice neutral era of post-racialism in America. This poll is also particularly troubling given the results of a recent study that found a greater number of white Americans feeling that they are victims of racism than blacks.^ Both of these studies collectively reveal a complex development in the political, historical, and psychological landscape of the United States that would be best analyzed by academically trained experts on race rather than political pundits. These perspectives however, whether legitimate or not, have certainly influenced the political process and leadership agenda of the nation. For example, in 2009, House Republicans accused President Barack Obama of "leading from behind," in 145