06.06.07
Is Obama helping to fan the flames of racism in America?
Since my recent posts on racism have been my most popular, I thought I would continue with the trend. It seems that people are growing more and more interested and concerned with racism in this country, and as much as I hate to admit it, I think it’s something that is getting worse.
With that said, the topic of today’s contempt is Barak Obama. It seems that Obama has lost his mind, and has decided to pull out the race card early in this election process. What’s worse is that his recent words are coming dangerously close to a threat against this country, and his threat is one of race.
For those of you who don’t yet know, Obama stood before a group of 8000 members of a conference for black clergy on Tuesday, and claimed that “with black people from New Orleans and the Gulf Coast still displaced 20 months after Hurricane Katrina, frustration and resentments are building explosively as they did before the 1992 riots.”
He also says:
“This administration was colorblind in its incompetence, but the poverty and the hopelessness was there long before the hurricane. All the hurricane did was to pull the curtain back for all the world to see.”
Obama repeatedly accused Bush of ignoring the “quiet riot” that is taking place amongst blacks, and repeatedly referred to the LA riots that took place after the Rodney King beating.
So what I want to know is this:
Is he high??
This sort of rhetoric is what is helping to perpetuate racism in this country. Over and over white people are accused of being racist by black people, and more often than not, it’s unfounded accusations. However, the words are out there, and they breed discontent. When prominent black man, such as Obama, say things like this, other blacks listen and agree with him. His words are helping to breed racist thought, however it’s not racism that everybody’s used to. This is racism in terms of blacks hating whites.
I don’t like racism. I am not a racist. However I am watching this divde grow wider and wider, and I can’t help but to find myself on one side of it. It’s grown too difficult to straddle it. I don’t condone taking sides when it comes to race, but it is reaching the point where you almost have to.
The media is helping to perpetuate this issue, and they ought to feel ashamed of themselves. If they don’t think they are, then they’re living on the wrong planet. Their constant need to saturate everybody with news that involves minorities (Duke rape, Sean Bell, Katrina disaster etc etc) over stories that involve white (Christian/Newsom rape and murders) is not helping. When black America is inundated over and over again with stories about how bad white - especially wealthy white - people are, what do you think is going to happen? When you have Obama standing up and angrily accusing the Bush administration of being racist and turning against the gulf coast people because they’re poor and black… What do you think is going to happen?
I am concerned that Obama’s words are going to become inflammatory. You will have people that hear his words and think that he’s telling the truth, and they’re going to consider doing exactly what he predicts will happen. It’s called a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Yes, the government may have mishandled Katrina, but it wasn’t because they’re a bunch or racists and it’s certainly not because the people were poor. I don’t know why anybody would believe such tripe, yet the story continues and has now reached a new level of danger as Barak Obama has picked up the torch.
I hate to say it, but black America, backed by the mainstream media, is working to perpetuate racism. Every day I see stories that help to create more separation between blacks and whites. As I have said in previous posts, I have never seen segregation as bad as it is now. I don’t want to point fingers, and to be certain, both sides are responsible for the state of things… But as of right now, 2007, the largest problems I am seeing are the result of the black community and outspoken black leaders (Sharpton, Jackson, Obama) telling the black community across the country that they are being held down by the white man, which I think is far from the truth.
I don’t want to see violence, and I certainly don’t advocate it, but I am worried that this is what things are coming to. People on both sides of the line are refusing to listen to reason, and they’re drumming up support from their followers. This perpetuation of race issues by the black community is doing nothing but anger the white side, and white people who aren’t racist are growing tired of being accused of such and are retaliating by becoming racist… Which of course inflames the situation further and the whole thing becomes a dangerous loop that is starting to grow by leaps and bounds.
We need people like Obama to drop the race issue. We don’t need a presidential candidate (and certainly not a president) who is willing to stand up before the black community and accuse the government of being racist. We don’t need black leaders who make outrageous claims regarding race. What most of us moderate people would consider a non-issue (in my 28 years, I have never considered racism to be a problem in modern America) is being viciously spun into a massive issue that stands to cause a great deal of damage to our society.
Shame on Obama for adding fuel to this fire. We would like to think that somebody who wishes to be the first black president of this Nation would be above this, but apparently he’s not. If Barak Obama wants to do some good for this country, he needs to come off the Sharpton.Jackson bandwagon and look for ways to remove this growing rift between whites and blacks. Perpetuating it only discredits him as a decent man.
PressPosts / User / laotralluvia / Submitted said,
June 6, 2007 at 6:30 pm
http://pressposts.com/Politics/Is-Obama-helping-to-fan-flames-racism-in-America/
Submited post on PressPosts.com - “Is Obama helping to fan the flames of racism in America?”
ericonpols said,
June 6, 2007 at 9:27 pm
I don’t personally think Bush is a racist, but denouncing him as such doesn’t automatically make someone else a racist. I have quite a few American friends (black and white alike) who say the standard “Bush doesn’t care about black people” line. It doesn’t mean they hate white people. They just hate Bush. (Don’t get me wrong, I hate Bush too, I just don’t think he’s a racist)
I also take issue with throwing Obama into the same boat as Sharpton and Jackson. Personally, I could do without Sharpton or Jackson, but I like Obama for the most part.
Finally, although race isn’t the huge issue it once was, I wouldn’t dismiss the possibility that racial tensions have been building up since hurricane Katrina. You don’t need high-profile blacks to point out the socio-economic divide along racial lines in America today: Hurricane Katrina would have done that whether or not liberals seized on the opportunity to proclaim that Bush is a racist. I also think Obama could be making a valid point in comparing the tension today with that of 15 years ago. In saying so, might I add, he is not calling for violence. If his words are in fact a “self-fulfilling prophecy,” as you suggest, they will be nothing more than the straw that broke the camel’s back.
I guess I’m saying that there needs to be some underlying tension for violence to break out, and if that underlying tension exists, it’s probably ok to criticise the current administration (as well as its predecessors) for allowing it to continue.
arclightzero said,
June 7, 2007 at 6:57 am
Whereas I appreciate your optimism and feel-good attitude, I think you’ve completely lost sight of the real problem here.
The problem isn’t your black friends or my black friends. The problem isn’t with you or me. The problem is with the extremists on both ends, both of which are gathering strength. Sure, rational and decent black people can overlook this sort of rhetoric for what it is, but the urban minority populations and the impoverished minority populations are a completely different story. Many of these people are angry already, and to have anybody - whether it’s Sharpton or Obama or whoever - point the finger at white people is a really bad thing. Sure, Obama may be blaming the administration, but to people who are already angry, they’re seeing past the administration and seeing rich white folks.
You’re also missing the point I was trying to make regarding Katrina. Of course there’s a divide. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist or a prominent black leader to point it out. However, this is not a problem with government or the administration or even white people. To turn this into any sort of racial issue is absurd, and that’s what I’m trying to say. The people who are involved are claiming racism and economic discrimination… But why? Why do they think that race has anything to do with it? I live in small town America where nearly everybody is white, and although there is plenty of poverty, nobody claims that it’s because they’re white. The administration isn’t here helping these people more than they’re helping impoverished black people…
Do you really want to know where these racist feelings are coming from? They’re coming from the people who are pissed off to no end at the fact that these people left New Orleans and flooded into other areas, driving their crime rates through the roof. They come from tensions that build between white people who are sick of all the crap and black people pissed because they think they deserve more than they’re getting. This isn’t a problem of government, this is a problem with culture.
I guess it doesn’t surprise me that you take the stance that you do. For whatever reason you feel that it is the government’s job to babysit people. However, I abhor too much government involvement, especially in social matters. I don’t want to see violence erupt, but maybe that’s what needs to happen. I don’t think the government should step and and blow sunshine up everybody’s asses to try to diffuse the situation. It’s just like putting a band aid over a cancerous growth…
I understand that you like Obama, but he should not be standing before groups of people making the claims he is. I believe he is simply saying the things he is because he’s trying to stir up the black vote, which is a dangerous game to play. In return, he’s going to severely piss off people who are tired of hearing about how America isn’t doing enough to take care of the economically downtrodden black population. Additionally, he’s going to stir up angry in the black population that already believes that they’re getting the short end of the stick… As I said before, Obama should be doing what he can to tone down the “quiet riot” he is speaking of. Black America does not need another person telling them that they’re getting screwed one way or another. They need somebody who will stand up and tell them how to fix things and how to pull their community together. Obama is not doing this.
ericonpols said,
June 7, 2007 at 9:16 am
I don’t believe it’s government’s job to simply “babysit” people. I have told you before about my dissatisfaction with the way Canada encourages welfare dependence. I am not talking about handouts that only serve to perpetuate society’s problem, and neither is Obama. He’s a good candidate because he proposes real solutions to the root causes of America’s inequality; such “root causes” including inequal access to education and a prison system that does nothing to rehabilitate offenders, trapping them in a poverty-crime-prison cycle.
If you listen to him, he is talking about increasing funding to inner city public schools and working in other ways to create more opportunity for disadvantaged groups - but doesn’t hesitate to say that it is up to the individuals to seize that opportunity. That’s basically where I believe the government’s role lies: not in handouts that create a culture of dependence, but in the provision of equal opportunity for individual advancement, regardless of one’s socio-economic background.
I will agree with you that Obama is walking on thin ice with white voters by unnecessarily turning this into a race-based issue: The problem lies with poverty, not race. There are poor white people as well as poor black people, and government policy should aim to provide opportunities for all of them, regardless of race. Black people are disproportionately poor for historical reasons, and the lack of opportunity (particularly in education), I feel, is what has generally held them back. With more equal opportunity, I think the racial divisions present in America today would, at least in a few decades, take care of themselves.
Regarding educational opportunities specifically, I feel that America has done far worse than Canada, where all public schools across a given province receive equal funding. The result of this is that affirmative action later in life is unnecessary because the educational playing field is level from the beginning. (The notable exceptions, I should say, are natives and the handicapped, who do benefit from affirmative action policies for some reason) I feel, on the whole, that Obama might do a lot to rectify this problem in the United States, or at least more than any other presidential candidate. In the long run, I think this would do far more to quell racial violence than simply ignoring the issue and staying silent.
Here is a link to Obama addressing a mainly black audience:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gXlfH8aZpBs
Eric said,
June 7, 2007 at 9:58 am
All I know is that regardless of color or extremes, I will not sit on the sidlines and watch this country that I have defended, tear itself apart due to the color differences. We brought them over here and we can take them back. If it comes down to it, I know what side im fighting for. Extreme or not, I want this country. I want this country free. Free from violence like the type that initiated this blog. Free from the TYPES of people that took part in that incident and incidences like those. Do white people do it? Sure. But you have to look at the stats. The stats say they are responsible for most of them. I could sleep at night knowing we got rid of most of the bad ones. You have to make a choice. What side will you be on if it comes down to it??? Do you love your country??
arclightzero said,
June 7, 2007 at 10:26 am
Bullshit!
I don’t see the inequality in opportunity out there. See, I think that’s one of the great fallacies that other countries have about America. There are always opportunities. People just need to work for them. Giving people more just because they have less is a really bad way to think. Giving more isn’t a fix, it’s a kop-out.
I have watched Obama and I have read his platform. Obama’s theory of making things better is to give more handouts to the “needy.” If the only problem was that there isn’t opportunity out there, then that might help, but the truth of the matter is that people want handouts without putting the work into it.
Wisconsin recently did a study of their welfare system, which includes fan adult basic education system for their welfare recipients, as an attempt to give them a chance to better their situation. According to the study, less than half of the people who began the program even bothered to finish… Anybody who thinks that providing opportunity is what it will take to close the inequality gap is living on a different planet than the rest of us. It’s a feel-good theory that doesn’t work in practice. You want people to better their situations? Make them work for it. I served with thousands of poor people while I was in the military. They were from impoverished backgrounds, both black and white, who decided not to fall into the rut that everybody else chooses to, and decided to put in the hard work required to better their lots in life. Hard work pays off much more than handouts in the end.
Obama has a very typical feel-good liberal attitude towards the state of things; that being the theory that if people just had more opportunity, things would get better. The reality of the situation is that people have to WANT to better their situation. You can give all you want, but without the drive, there isn’t going to be any forward momentum.
As far as quelling racial violence and disparity? There isn’t a good answer. The government has already caused too much damage by mandating silly affirmative action laws. Forcing things to happen just creates more divide. That’s just basic psychology. It creates people who feel they have an entitlement regardless of their qualifications, and people who are pissed off because they disagree with that entitlement. I don’t think people should just sit back and let things explode, but I do think that communities need to take responsibility for their actions. Sad to say, but the black community is being barraged by bad messages from within their own community. When you have people who are claiming that violence (such as the rape/murders of Channon Christian and Chris Newsom) is a good thing because it was violence against wealthy white people, there are problems beyond just the Katrina issue. When every crime committed against a black person by a white person (or people) is jammed down our throats by an over-zealous media, we’ve got a big problem.
The message that is being broadcast across America is that America (particularly white America) is holding the black community down. It’s a lie, but it’s being perpetuated and is growing out of control.
victoria said,
June 7, 2007 at 3:26 pm
What a can of worms!!! My friend was down in Houston,TX last month and her whole family was saddened by the decline of their community and the rise in crime. This is due mainly to the influx of Katrina evacuees. I believe that this nation will always carry scars of what has happened to people in our past, and as long as we have individuals who refuse to take responsibility for their lives and actions, and continue to blame others for their lot in life, we will always have this great divide. I know that when I am around black people, I find myself being too nice, too accomodating. Not so with asian or hispanic. Why is this? There is this attitude that we owe them something. And it is exhausting to be this way. I would like to let down my guard and just be one person meeting another person, without all the crap in-between.
ericonpols said,
June 7, 2007 at 7:13 pm
I guess it just boils down to a fundamental disparity in what we see - I see inequality in opportunity. People in the inner city on welfare have to send their kids to worse schools, where they don’t get the tools to compete in society, and then the kids themselves end up on welfare. On the other hand, you don’t perceive such inequality, you believe that equal opportunity exists, just that those kids should “work for it.” I see society as having given up on inner city kids, and this causing the bulk of the problems. I see inequality in opportunity, and I believe Obama aims to fix it.
I agree with you that people have to also want to better their situation. I differ with you in that I see that as part of the solution - not the solution in itself. I believe that if people perceive opportunity, they’ll often take it upon themselves to act on it. If kids aren’t getting motivation from home, they shouldn’t be given up on by the school system.
For the most part, I won’t bother refuting you: welfare bums in general are parasites on our society, scum of the worst kind. Our differences lie in that I see part of the role of the state as being to prevent the children of welfare bums from falling into that same rut (because God knows their parents aren’t gonna do it).
At the same time, while less than half of those enrolled in the education program in Wisconsin didn’t finish, you’re ignoring the fact that a substantial portion still did. Some people on welfare seemed to want to get ahead, and took the bone that was thrown them. I don’t understand why giving them that opportunity is a bad thing - in the long run, with such a program behind them, they’re probably less likely to continue receiving welfare. Even if the majority doesn’t go for it, it’s still worth having. I just hate the idea of an unemployment benefits system that is seen by its users as a crutch, and not as a means to help someone get their act together and back into working society. Rather than a safety net, it should be thought of as a trampoline.
You say that equalising opportunity in this way won’t completely iron out racial inequalities, and (in a partial concession), you’re probably right. I still believe, however, that it would go a long way, and it’s necessary and worth doing.
Victoria, if you take a different attitude when talking to your black friends, I feel sorry for you. I talk with mine about race relations quite often, and I find it interesting that they generally come closer to arclightzero’s stance than I do. (black university students, as any, tend to be an ambitious group of individuals) Your friends will understand that you’re not racist - if you were, why would you talk to them in the first place?. As long as you don’t start justifying KKK lynchings in the 60s, they’ll be happy to listen to your views on the subject, and then tell you their own.
Finally, can we all agree at least that the other Eric’s comment about sending “them” back is just ignorant and does nothing to contribute to this discussion? There is a line between legitimate discussion and outright racism, and he has crossed it by a mile. His remarks are far worse and more inflammatory than Jackson’s and Sharpton’s on the other extreme. Black people disproportionately commit crimes, yes. But they are not the majority of criminals, and while WE are discussing, with reasonable language, what (if anything) needs to be done about it, this guy just writes off the entire race. Can we agree that this is wrong?
arclightzero said,
June 8, 2007 at 8:05 am
We can certainly agree on that. And we can certainly agree to disagree on this topic. It’s all a matter of perspective. I’ve been around so many different people and lived in so many different areas of the country during my time in the Navy, that I have perhaps a different perspective than you. I have known and had many black friends from the heart of the south. My current friend up here in the sticks moved here from Detroit because he was scared of his own people (his words).
I also think there is more opportunity out there than you might think, and the inequality isn’t quite as bad as the media portrays it. My ex-wife’s sister is a high school teacher in inner-city Los Angeles, and I know how much she made, how much funding her schools got and what sort of education the kids were getting. As she said, the biggest hurdle was the students, not the education system. Many of the students didn’t want to be there, there were disruptions, there was a lot of apathy towards school…
So, of course, there will be differences between education in predominantly white suburbs and predominantly black urban schools, but I have always been skeptical regarding where that disparity comes from. People are quick to point their fingers, but the people who are directly involved in the system are not the ones who are pointing their fingers at system inequality. There’s more there than people are willing to admit.
ericonpols said,
June 8, 2007 at 9:16 am
Point well taken, but I still think you’re underestimating what inner city kids might be capable of.
You’re definitely right about “agreeing to disagree,” on this topic, as on every other topic we’ve discussed. In fact, I think it’s something we’re pretty good at.
Cheers
goodtimepolitics said,
June 15, 2008 at 12:46 am
A very good post about racist and I wish that I could write as well! Yes I think Obama is spreading racism in America to keep the blacks following his footsteps! I could understand their reason in the 60’s but now that they have just as much if not more than we do they should stop their non-sense! Check this out and you will see a stupid reason to call racist on this toy!
http://goodtimepolitics.com/2008/06/14/obama-sock-monkey-racist/