My thoughts started to coalesce from a thread on TalkLeft titled “Politics Has Always Been Stupid which brings up an NYT Op-Ed piece by Bob Herbert titled “Overkill and Short Shrift. This article laments the media play of Jeremiah Wright as a diversion to discussing the real issues of this political season.

It’s not accidental that the discussions of race have been systematically dismissed from this campaign. From the very start, Obama has been the first black candidate to nationally campaign with the premise that no where in his agenda is there a desire to hold white Americans accountable for the past.  Read more 

In the ongoing saga of WKJM, today’s edition tries to answer the question, why did Hillary win Ohio and does it have anything to do with why she’ll win Indiana and Kentucky? Not one to bury the lede, let me say that WKJM’s answer is that there are a whole bunch of racists in those states.  Read more 

Examination at The Root of the perceptions and personas of Oprah and Obama, and how unrealistic stereotypes and expectations—and meeting them and molding yourself to fit them—provide very fragile and shaky foundations for trust.  Read more 

I was reading one too many references to “Archie Bunkers” when it occurred to me that Archie is getting a bad rap.

Yeah, Archie was a bigot in 1971 when “All in the Family” went on the air, but he changed over the years.

From Wikipedia:  Read more 

Jake Tapper tells the tale:

In an interview with National Journal’s Linda Douglass, Obama campaign manager David Plouffe downplays the impact Obama’s race will have on any November match-up, saying “the vast, vast majority of voters who would not vote for Barack Obama in November based on race are probably firmly in John McCain’s camp already.”

Did Obama run out of Democrats to offend? Is this strategy part of the “party building” meme?

Will this be a chapter in How to Win Friends by Insulting People” by Barack Carnegie and Dale Obama?

Expect W.O.R.M. 1.0 by tomoorow morning.

3 NYPD detectives cleared in wedding-day shooting

NEW YORK (AP) — Three detectives were acquitted Friday in the 50-shot killing of an unarmed groom-to-be on his wedding day, a case that put the NYPD at the center of another dispute involving allegations of excessive firepower.

What does it take to send thug-cops to jail?

Via Talk Left, Rep. Geoff Davis (R-KY) on Barack Obama:

I’m going to tell you something: That boy’s finger does not need to be on the button. He could not make a decision in that simulation that related to a nuclear threat to this country.

Not that there is ever any excuse for calling an African American man “boy,” but in case you’re wondering this racist jackass is 49, not 79. And, yes, Geoff Davis is his real name.  Read more 

Part 4 of Misogyny, Sexism, & the Gender Gap in the 2008 Election

In choosing a nominee, the Democratic Party will not merely be deciding who deserves to win, or who would make the best candidate. It will also be a decision about which poisoned landscape the Party wishes to compete upon —- one in which toxic wildflowers of misogyny and sexism are in full bloom, or one in which the poisonous weed of racism is a constant part of the environment, and needs the merest watering to completely despoil the land.  Read more 

Can someone explain this to me?

According to Tweety & the Gang, it’s no big deal for David Bellavia to compare Barack Obama to Tiger Woods, because Tiger is a great golfer.

But when Bill Clinton compared Barack Obama’s win in South Carolina to the earlier victories in South Carolina by Jesse Jackson, it was vile racism.

No, I’m not talking about the Klan, or even the Republicans “southern strategy.”

But I do want to place this post in the context of much of the back and forth that is going on here at Corrente and through-out the liberal blogisphere about race and racism, what is it, when is it, and who is playing with it.

Mary-Beth at Wampum reminds us of an even wider perspective that liberals have as much difficulty even remembering exists as do right-wingers.

For anyone who doesn’t understand why the national discussion of race needs to address more than just African-American concerns, here’s exhibit one, from today’s LA Times editorial page:

Are the Tibetans doomed to go the way of the American Indians? Will they be reduced to being little more than a tourist attraction, peddling cheap mementos of what was once a great culture? In Tibet itself, that sad fate is looking more and more likely.

What makes it all the more remarkable is that aside from its placement in a major American newspaper, the piece in question is by Ian Buruma, a regular contributer at the NYRB, and as Mary-Beth points out, “the Henry R. Luce Professor of Human Rights and Journalism at Bard College.”

Here’s a question I’d like to ask our readers. Have you already been able to spot what it is in this quote that deserves to be considered within our discussions of American racism?

For those of you who might be distracted by Buruma’s tip of the hat to the “once great culture” of native Americans, which, in fact, was actually multi-cultural and multi-lingual, Mary-Beth has a second post up today that will help you see through these apparently innocent bows to a conception of Native American past greatness.

You see, it seems there was another writer/journalist back in the 19th century who bemoaned the tragedy of exactly that past greatness, in terms remarkably similar to Buruma’s take today.  Read more 

This bit of white entitlement has been widely cited as evidence of the horrible opportunism of the Obama campaign, but actually it shows something rather sad about some of the opposition to Obama.

First, let’s note that the publisher of the Wilentz piece is notorious for its use as a “liberal” place to attack the left left and here for its hyping of Bush’s war and so on.  Read more 

So a friend from Jersey sent me this awful/funny email. These are “Jersey” people. Here are some highlights:

:

 Read more 

How many will it take before we can agree? There is no way one can defend tasering at this point. I mean, I can barely keep up with all the national news, and so I’m sure for every taser-death story like this one I read, I’m not reading 10 others. Other nations don’t give tasers to their police officers and still manage to keep crime down. There are better ways to enforce the law.

A teenager died after police used a Taser on him inside a grocery store in northeast Charlotte.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg police homicide detectives said they will investigate why police used the Taser on 17-year-old Darryl Turner Thursday afternoon.  Read more 

God Damn America!

From The Truth About Trinity United, a blog run by a parishioner of Barack Obama’s church, we see that in 1966, Hospital Corpsman Third Class Jeremiah Wright was personally commended by President Lyndon B. Johnson’s physician for his part in caring for President Johnson, who was a patient of HC3 Wright’s when he had his gallbladder removed. You can see him in the photo above on the right, although part of his face is obscured by the IV pole. photo and letter at link
…
The letter of commendation reads:

Dear Hospital Corpsman Third Class Wright,

The President thanks you for your help at the time of his recent hospitalization.

He greatly appreciates your skill and competence in your field which added greatly to his comfort and speedy recovery from his operation.

With warmest personal regards,

Sincerely,

George G. Burkley, Vice Admiral MC, USN, Physician to the President

Kinda hard to be Killing Whitey when you’re helping keep a president alive, isn’t it?

I’m just saying. Maybe we shouldn’t judge Pastor Wright’s 30 years of service to his country and his community by 30 seconds of passionate, mid-sermon remarks.

Although when I stop and think about the Tuskeegee experiments, where black American citizens were treated worse than lab-rats, injected with toxic chemicals, lied to, and systematically denied proper medical treatment from 1947 to 1972, well, all I can really think is “God damn, America”, myself. I mean, goddamn.

But why on earth are black people so angry? I can’t imagine, can you?

Facts are such annoying things.

No do-over. From an email I just got:

House Speaker Andy Dillon (D-Redford Twp.) and Majority Floor Leader Steve Tobocman (D-Detroit) issued the following statement regarding the subject of a potential presidential primary do-over in the state of Michigan:

“We would like to thank Senator Carl Levin, Congresswoman Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick, Debbie Dingell, Ron Gettelfinger and Mark Brewer for their hard work to create an agreement that would have enabled Michigan Democrats to have a meaningful vote in the Democratic presidential primary.

“Regardless of candidate preference, members had concerns over the estimated 100,000 Michigan Democrats who would have been unable to participate in a do-over election, as well as logistical and legal difficulties faced by local clerks. It appears that some of our Senate colleagues shared these concerns which is why they did not send the legislation to the House.

“Together, we look forward to working with all involved to try and find a solution that ensures that our delegation is seated at the national convention. Regardless of how these issues are resolved, we look forward to offering the voters of Michigan an exciting Democratic candidate that will help us create jobs and win in November.”

Thank the goddess. “Do-over” voting should be reserved only for the most serious, most necessary moments in which the democratic process “didn’t work” the first time. Primaries are party functions, but they leave an impression about the democratic process on enough people that I was very, very disturbed by the notion of a do-over.

I hope all Democratic officials involved have learned a lesson here. Pick some rules, stick to them the whole cycle through, and remember that voters take their votes…seriously. You should too.

Boo tells an interesting story about an encounter he had after the speech:

I had a sad experience yesterday that, while anecdotal, gives saliency to the point. I had just left the Constitution Center after watching Obama’s uplifting speech. I was walking through The Gallery, which is an urban shopping mall on Market Street. I decided to sit down on a bench and see if I could get a wireless signal. An elderly white woman sat down next to me and was silent for a little while. Then she said, “That’s where my tax dollars go.”

I looked up at her, not knowing what she was referring to, and asked, “excuse me?”.

She nodded at a group of young early-20’s black people (some with a baby carriage) walking by, and repeated herself.

The people she was referring to were nicely dressed and appeared to be enjoying themselves as they window shopped in the mall. I think I just mumbled something like “Mmmn” and returned my attention to my laptop. Then the elderly woman said, “Do you know that Hillary is coming here today?”

I nodded, “Yes. I just came from seeing Obama.”

She frowned at this news and then said, “I’m very excited to see Hillary. She knows how to deal with [she swept her hand around to indicate the mall crowd] this.”

I excused myself.

Race is going to be an issue in this race, and we can either worry about it or we can go to work to make sure tolerance and enlightenment prevail. Obama’s speech accomplished a lot, but he is no miracle worker. Let’s not forget that.

This confuses me. Why did you “excuse yourself,” Boo? I mean, if we shouldn’t forget that Obama alone can’t overcome the racism of millions, isn’t what you did passing up a golden opportunity? Here’s what I would’ve said:

“How can you be sure they receive gov’t aid? That’s pretty racist of you. And anyway, more white people receive welfare than Black or other minority groups, and even so, spending on aid to poor people is not even a drop in the bucket compared to what we’ve spent on the war or worthless programs like Star Wars. The difference between them is billions vs. trillions. That’s an order of magnitude, and if you care about waste, look there.”

I’m sure it’s occured to all of us that Obama’s run is “historical” and presents us with wonderful opportunities to make racism and race a conversation topic like never before.

But Dood- ya gotta speak out, yo? I’m a Black, gay woman, and I’ve learned: Silence = Death. Mumbling and walking away are NOT effective techniques for social change.

I like Boo a lot. We disagree on candidates this year, but I still read his work and respect his efforts a lot. However, I think that this anecdote of his is really, really telling of the progressive community and many Obama supporters. You love him, you believe he’s “transformational,” but the only people whom you will yell at and get all “here’s my detailed argument, bitch!” with are…progressives who support another candidate. Racists get a free pass.

That’s just not right. It’s certainly not going to help combat racism.

I guess someone has to say it. Holden, my secret love, has this great series about what Chimpy says and how he talks. Not that actual humans can understand the Decider’s vernacular, but you know, some blogs shame “quality” SCLM analysis of our Chimperor and Holden’s “Your Preznit Speaks” series is one. So I feel compelled to point out something I really hate, something that I’m told slipped into a certain speech today. Here’s the Hard Truth: Black people don’t have and haven’t had real power in this county. It’s pointless and stupid and racist to blame us for being poor, lacking in political authority and agency, or not being rich and connected. I decided this morning my word of the day would be ’canard.’ I didn’t know how approrpriate that would prove to be.

Today, right now, in this political moment, there is plenty of guilt, plenty of blame. Lots of people can have a slice of that cake. But on the grand scale of things, the amount of guilt and blame Black people “own” is pretty minor. Boilerplate: some poor white (and Asian, and Latina, and 1stNat, and…) folks who are straight men and women are also in this sorry club. But specifically, speaking of “what Black people gotta do” to make the world right is…well, Bushian. Bushist? Bushesque? I know it’s racist.

Bush will be gone soon, we need to coin a phrase. Anyway, let’s all stop blaming Black America for problems other people caused. Other rich, not Black, Bush-supporting, actually politically enabled people caused. Yo? People who emulate and mirror Bush-speak and think must be…mocked, at least.

Here is our friend Oliver Willis: another blog I used to enjoy before “unity” destroyed it…

According to Willis..”Barack Obama is not sitting in the back of the Hillary bus.”

http://www.oliverwillis.com/index.php/20…

Yes friends, the very thought that the Obamessiah would even think of being on the ticket with those apparantly racist Clinton folk is the equilavant of African Americans being forced to sit at the back of the bus.

Imagine the horror… the outrage… the fainting couches that would be needed of anyone even remotely associated with the Clinton camp had said something like this.

Who, I ask, is playing the race card here?

Joebasic
Recovered DU member

I’ll be completely honest: it’s personal. I can’t get behind BHO or HRC* for petty, personal reasons. Or matters of loyalty and friendship, take your pick. Either way, I know what I know about both of them, and their campaigns, and I can’t honestly get behind either one of them or have “faith.” Either one is better than a Republican and that’s enough this time around. But let me lay some deep irony on you. They are both about to turn to people like me to finalize this “process” of “choice.” People like me who have self-ejected from the system, mainly because we’re sickened by it. What sickens us most? The incestuous, corrupt, undemocratic root of the system: the need to raise lots of money to buy ads on teevee and in the media. That same SCLM which distorts the process, hides facts and promotes lies, and is like a demonic maw when it comes to money. You know they will break records this year, again, in terms of total media spending before it’s all over. So here’s the funny part:  Read more 

It occurs to me, reading various threads here and elsewhere, it’s all good, and all this sniping can only have a good long-term effect/affect. I’ve really enjoyed seeing how various arguments are laid out, by people with whom I’ve associated certain ideas, specific beliefs, misguided assumptions, etc. Sometimes I’m the Ass, and sometimes I learn about one I’d not really perceived before…

I’m not trying to be snarky or snide, I really mean to be positive. It’s going to be painful, like ’cancer is painful’ painful, for America to work out the whole of its issues about race, and gender. I’m going to set aside the latter for a minute and just say on about race: We can hack it. Let’s make it more complex, let’s hurt some feelings, let’s feel some confusion, doubt and uncertainty.

Seriously, just writing those words is like a burden off my shoulders. If people, people who “aren’t like” Obama, are debating “what it means” as they speak and he speaks and we speak about what we said while speaking about each other…ah, blessed critical examination and reflection. It’s like a train wreck, a virgin’s deflowering, and a souffle falling all at the same time. You just can’t help but look, and hope something will rise out of it all. I’ll note that Jesse’s run didn’t bring this conversation about when it happened; only the notion of “he’s actually got a fighting chance” has rubbed this season’s scab raw.  Read more 

This doesn’t surprise me at all, indeed, I would name it a “feature” and not a “bug.” Democracy Now!

A startling new report has predicted the subprime mortgage crisis will cause people of color to lose up to $213 billion, leading to the greatest loss of wealth in modern U.S. history. The figure appears in a new report from United for a Fair Economy called “Foreclosed: The State of the Dream 2008.” The group accuses mortgage lenders of deliberately targeting the poor and people of color with high-cost loans.

Predatory lending is as old as 40 Acres and a Mule. Poor people are the easiest to scam when it comes to complex financial vehicles, and I would like more bloggers to speak about this angle of “how we got this crisis.”

It’s pretty clear that greed, willful ignorance, Bushist “logic” and a criminal lack of regulation brought about the mortgage crisis. But so too did racism- again and again I’ve read of poor and brown and black people conned into believing they could afford mortgages when they couldn’t. Now this report confirms this endemic of racist lending practices. Want to impress me, Obama, Hillary? Speak about this angle of the mess one of you will be cleaning up soon.

Obviously, I agree with the idea: you don’t smoke in front of nor around young children. Period. That’s pretty obvious to me, most parents, and smokers of all kinds everywhere. Yet I have some fond memories of sitting with Grandpa after dinner at the ranch, sometimes inside and sometimes out on the porch, watching the sun go down over the lake, the sweet smell of his pipe a perfect compliment to fading odors of the fried fish and greens Grandma used to cook for him. I suppose it’s a small sacrifice to make, to know that my nieces and nephews will be healthy nonsmokers with no romantic or foolish notions about why smoking is “cool.”

Still, I call bullshit. There are a hundred better ways to ’protect the children.’ Starting with universal health care and programs for poor parents to help them quit smoking. You and I both know how this law will be used: when they can’t find another legal reason to pull over some black or brown person, bingo! Time to Protect the Children! We can add “Smoking while Black” to “Driving while Black” and the rest of that long list of Laws for Thee but not for Me. Yes, I’m sure some poor White folks will get tagged by this too, but trust me- you won’t see a lot of rich smokers worring about this.

I’ll point out that cars themselves produce quite a large amount of poisons that one breaths while around them or in them. Are we rushing off to regulate their emissions, punishing automakers for failing to employ the cleanest technology and make the air safer for even those kids who walk and take buses? No, of course not. But we can pass laws that punish the poor regressively, and give even more opportunity to racist cops to crack heads, all to “protect the children.”

Happy Martin Luther King day, peeps! Share your favorite quotes and stories about Black America* here. I’ll go first, and this one is for you OFB folks who think it’s ok to have homophobes on stage:

“There can be no black-white unity until there is first some black unity…. We cannot think of uniting with others, until after we have first united among ourselves. We cannot think of being acceptable to others until we have first proven acceptable to ourselves.”

When you leave me behind, that’s not “unity.” More here.  Read more 

Why is it that Black and Native (and now Latina/o) people are just supposed to “get over” genocide and slavery and segregation, but White folks get to mourn the loss of the Confederacy for ever and ever?

(h/t Phila)