Why have a black president?

As I see it the failure of the Barack Hussein Obama presidency is that he does not move African Americans toward liberty. To be sure he is successful as a symbol of what can be achieved in America. He is inspiring. Like his predecessors he has governed and warred effectively enough for the union to hold. Yet the cost of his presidency weighs against his value.
As John A. Powell of the Kirwan institute notes, "On race, he clearly mutes the conversation and confuses people."
Muting that conversation costs tens of millions of African Americans a great deal and has so far gained them nothing that a president of another race or gender could not have produced.