Washblog || Racism in America - Yesterday and Today

Racism in America - Yesterday and Today

By The Left Shue
Fri Apr 04, 2008 at 11:21:11 AM PST
Section: Diary Topic: Social Justice

Forty years ago today Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in Memphis Tennessee. Just the night before he was shot to death outside his motel room, he delivered a prophetic speech to a crowd of people who had come to hear him speak in support of striking sanitation workers in that city. Our good friend Luis Moscoso forwarded me a reminder of that speech ( "I've Been to the Mountain Top") yesterday. I have to admit that I needed the memory jolt. Not that I haven't been thinking about the current state of racism in our country.

In fact, not since the days of Richard Nixon and his so-called "Southern Strategy" has there been such overt reference to racism in a presidential election cycle. Under the convenient title of "Immigration Reform" the Republicans spent much of their early campaigns spewing their particular brand of racial venom that covered the bases from pitting blacks against browns in the battle for jobs to equating Mexicans with Osama bin Laden and Al Qaeda. However, with the recent obsession over Barrack Obama's former pastor, Jeremiah Wright, and certain statements made from his pulpit; the issue of racism has been brought back into the public arena in a way that it has not been in many years. In one of the best pieces done on these pages in recent times, diarist "fake consultant" wrote "On Truth, Or, An Open Letter To A Reverend" Most recently I have been following a column from David Sirota and some of the responses ~~that~~ to that column from folks in my neck of the woods in Snohomish County.

In his March 30th column entitled, "Perhaps Wright has it right about racism", Sirota takes the position that racism in the United States, far from being on decline, has simply shifted from men in white robes to white men in dark suits.

"Since the 1960s, bigotry has undergone an aesthetic makeover. Today, the most pernicious racists do not wear pointy hoods, scream epithets and anonymously burn crosses from behind masks. They don starched suits, recite sententious bromides and stage political lynchings before television cameras. For proof, behold the mob stalking Barack Obama's former pastor, Jeremiah Wright.
Wright has long delivered fiery (and occasionally outrageous) sermons, to little fanfare. Now, though, a gang of thugs is inflicting a guilt-by-association blow to Obama by excoriating his spiritual adviser for three specific declarations.
Sean Hannity, Fox News' own George Wallace, turned a fire hose on Wright for his church's focus. "(The church) is all about the black community," Hannity thundered, claiming that means Wright supports "a black-separatist agenda."
Pat Buchanan billy-clubbed Wright for saying, "God damn America." The MSNBC commentator, who avoided the draft, implied that Wright, a former Marine, lacks sufficient loyalty to country. Out of context, Wright's exclamation was admittedly offensive. But remember: It punctuated a speech about segregation. Buchanan, nonetheless, unleashed, deriding "black hustlers" and insisting descendants of those "brought from Africa in slave ships" owe whites a thank you. "Where is the gratitude?" he asked.

Fox's Charles Krauthammer berated Wright for saying the 9/11 attacks were "chickens coming home to roost." Krauthammer labeled the pronouncement "vitriolic divisiveness" despite our government acknowledging the concept of "blowback" -- or retaliation -- Wright was referencing. The CIA knows that when it supports foreign dictatorships, there can be blowback from radicals. While blowback is often immoral and undeserved, its existence is undisputed. Yet, Krauthammer alleged that Wright takes "satisfaction in the deaths of 3,000 innocents.""

In response to Sirota's column, one letter writer from Marysville decried his lack of journalistic integrity and actually accuses him of some form of "reverse discrimination :

" In Sunday's Forum, David Sirota asserts that racism is alive and well in America today, in the same scope and breadth as in the 1960s. The only difference, in his opinion, is that racism today is more covert. As proof, he holds up "the mob stalking Barak Obama's former pastor, Jeremiah Wright." He, as does Wright, conveniently omits the huge strides that have been made in last four or five decades.

This is actually a whole different style of racism, and Mr. Sirota is one of its practitioners. In the new racism, any non-white person of notoriety must be allowed to say anything outrageous, and disagreement is proof of racism..."

Barrack Obama, in what I referred to at The Left Shue as "... one of the most important speeches by a public official since the days of my wide eyed youth..." gave his own eloquent response to those who would have us believe that racism is on the decline or even gone from our society. On this day of remembrance of one of the tragic days in our country's sad racial history, I wonder if Dr. King would be disappointed to realize that Obama would have to make such a speech or proud to know that he did.

Peace,
Chad (The Left) Shue

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Racism in America - Yesterday and Today | 3 comments (3 topical)

ABC News - Stephanopolous the Bigot

for weeks, like last night, when discussing Barack, George Stephanopolous (sp?) had to mention that there are concerns about the Wright issue, or some such code word loaded fucking LIE.

I don't watch Roger Ailes' Fox news, BUT, stephanololous is certainly quailified to work for that network dispensing lies and smears as 'news'.

Racism in America? This Wright bullshit has been created the Media and perpetuated by the media cuz the media wants people discussing a couple of soundbites

INSTEAD OF

why are our public airwaves used to push fucking lies down our throats, AND

why do those who are pushing the lies get to get rich while lying?

Ooops! Nevermind - time to get the 3 ton SUV / Pickup / Sedan out and waddle to the supermallsuperstore to get a 5 gallon bucket of velveeta to stuff into my super fat and super stupid ass.

rmm.

http://www.liemail.com/BambooGrassroots.html

by rmdSeaBos on Fri Apr 04, 2008 at 12:27:27 PM PST

* 1 none 0 *

The discourse over racism is not all bad.

In a year where we have among the top contenders, a black man, a Hispanic/American, a white woman and an old white guy who opposed recognition in his state for MLKing day, we were bound to have some dialog on these issues.

The sad fact is that we have not come as far as a nation in terms of race as we have for instance in terms of gender (male / female). In politics and in TV/radio news (read showbiz), use of what exists just below the surface to gain votes or ratings is so attractive to some as to become acceptable.

The talking heads want to attract viewers. FOX is at one extreme and all the rest are fighting for the market share they can grab without sinking to FOX's level. Does this stink? Yes, but the likes of FOX and Rush have given the rest way too much range to keep things artificially stirred up so as to keep viewers interest. One good thing though, is that more of our sleepy nation is paying attention than ever before.

Now as I watch the candidates and their segregates through the eyes of one who knows how campaigns use segregates, I would have to say that Edwards and Richardson ran and ceased to do so with distinction. You could almost see Edwards saying to himself "man I am just not running at the right time".
Contrast their campaigns with the Clinton machine and the difference is truly stark. The media plays right along with crap like the Ferraro comments or the whole "Oh that Bill...you just got to love that crazy guy" and is quick to pretend that the comments of a pastor are key to understanding Obama and the voters.

Just imagine Obama running a sexist add asking folks if they really want Hillery answering the phone at three AM when she is having one of those "emotional moments only a woman can have".
Not even close! No what Obama did was elevate the debate. He did not push back in kind. He rose above and he brought much of the nation with him.

Dr. King defined the struggle and to a great degree the rules for that struggle. History I expect will rightly credit Obama with ending that struggle despite the weakness shown by news producers and Clinton's political hacks.

It may just be that this like so many other episodes in our history is a nothing more than phase along the way.

by Particle Man on Fri Apr 04, 2008 at 03:34:28 PM PST

* 2 none 0 *

(Comment Deleted)

This comment has been deleted by The Left Shue

by brg8 on Sun Jun 01, 2008 at 10:56:15 AM PST

* 3 none 0 *

Racism in America - Yesterday and Today | 3 comments (3 topical)

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