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Carson, who is
black and grew up poor in Detroit in the 1960s, said of Obama in
a podcast posted on Politico's website, "He was, you know,
raised white."
He added, "I mean, like most Americans, I was proud that we
broke the color barrier when he was elected, but … he didn’t
grow up like I grew up … Many of his formative years were spent
in Indonesia. So, for him to, you know, claim that, you know, he
identifies with the experience of black Americans, I think, is a
bit of a stretch."
Several Twitter users expressed anger over the remarks.
Keith Simmons (@Foreignstorian) said "You cannot distill the
black experience into something so narrow. Being 'poor' or
'rich' does not grant authenticity."
Warren Holstein (@WarrenHolstein) said, "Ben Carson says Obama
was "raised white" and doesn't understand black Americans. That
fails to explain why no one understands Ben Carson."
Shaun King (@ShaunKing), civil rights activist and New York
Daily News writer, said, "Please @RealBenCarson. Step away from
ALL microphones...forever. Saying Obama "grew up white" is
foolishness."
The comments also prompted some to contemplate Obama's
upbringing.
Brahma Chellaney (@Chellaney) said, "I've often wondered why
Obama is regarded as black, not mixed race, despite a white
mother and a white upbringing."
Carson did not back away from his comments in an interview with
CNN on Tuesday afternoon.
"Anybody who is sensible knows that the way that he was brought
up is very different from the way most black people in this
country are brought up," he said, adding, "I don’t think anyone
would deny that someone who was raised in Hawaii by his white
grandparents and then spent formative years in Indonesia with
his white mother does not have the typical black experience."
For more on the 2016 presidential race, see the Reuters blog,
“Tales from the Trail”
(http://blogs.reuters.com/talesfromthetrail/).
(Reporting by Anjali Athavaley; Editing by Chris Reese)
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