Full Title: I 'absolutely' suffered racism in office, says Obama: Some Americans' 'primary concern about me has been that I seem foreign' President Barack Obama says the color of his skin has 'absolutely' contributed to white Americans' negative perceptions of his time in office. The president said in a Wednesday special looking back on his legacy, 'I think there's a reason why attitudes about my presidency among whites in Northern states are very different from whites in Southern states.