Public radio’s longest-running daily global news program.
©2025 The World from PRX
PRX is a 501(c)(3) organization recognized by the IRS: #263347402.

For the hour of Wednesday’s State of the Union address, MSNBC anchor Chris Matthews said he ‘forgot’ President Obama was black. Do we all need to forget about race to be post-racial? Or do we just need to acknowledge and accept people’s race?
For the hour of Wednesday’s State of the Union address, MSNBC anchor Chris Matthews said he “forgot” President Obama was black, causing a wide range of responses (including some on our show) the next day. Do we all need to forget about race to be post-racial? Or do we just need to acknowledge and accept people’s race?
We talk with Boyce Watkins, a professor at Syracuse University and the founder of Your Black World coalition, and Gustavo Arellano, who writes the syndicated “Ask a Mexican” column, about what it means to be post-racial in America.