Today in Black Mayors bad leaders, White Mayors good leaders

First it was CNN's Carol Costello,  now it's MSNBC's Morning Mika putting Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed in his place, I mean, taking him to task for refusing to accept total responsibility for something that is not his fault.   I mean, really?  You would think Mayor Reed closed down a bridge for partisan political gain or something.

This is what happens when there is a lack of diversity in the mainstream media.  Black politicians get no love unless it's a republican black politician. Is the media using the snow storm to put Mayor Kasim Reed in his place?

Remember former New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin?  Journalist tired to put him in his place, I mean, smacked him down too.


Black Mayors bad leaders. White Mayors good leaders.

"Superintendent Wardynski, tell us again how there is no 'atmosphere of fear'

 

H/T S.O.S. Support Our Students

Superintendent Wardynski, tell us again how there is no 'atmosphere of fear'. Here are the words of one of your employees from the Underground Educator Network:

"I am writing this against my better judgement. I am so scared to trust and I am scared of what could happen if I am found out. I need my job. I love the children I teach and for the most part, I love to teach. I just don't like what my job has become! Yes, I am a HSV teacher. There is a definite feeling that teachers are not valued. Morale is extremely low. We are treated like glorified baby-sitters/test proctors. I wish it wasn't like this for my kids. They deserve so much more!! I wonder if the powers that be ever thought about how few of us teachers in the system send our own kids (or plan to send our children) to HSV schools. Most teachers I know live out of the district and rather than choosing to have their child come to school with them, they have their child attend the school in their school zone. Says a lot, doesn't it? I could go on and on but I think others have voiced a lot of what I would say. PLEASE...I am writing you because I think you are trying to help us. Please don't let my name/email get out. Thank you for all you are doing for the kids and us!"

No, thank YOU for being a teacher!!!

" Soldiers (Teachers) asking us for our help. What are we to do, Ignore or Help? This affects our children."

"We Shall Overcome Someday"

Rest in Peace and Thank You Pete Seeger.

Please, Casey WARdynski, "Let My People Go"

Superintendent Dr. Casey Wardynski answers questions from the press following Thursday night's Huntsville school board meeting. (The Huntsville Times/Michael Mercier)

Superintendent Dr. Casey Wardynski is doing the job he was hired to do.

Casey you have to break the mold and prove you're not afraid of minorities, democrats, liberals, aclu (sic) types and the entire entitlement crowd! Do that, and you'll be doing the job you were hired to do! Oh yeah, not to mention striking down all racial transfers. And that includes allowing not allowing whites to racially transfer either. If you don't like where your child goes to school, move to where they can be zoned into a school of your preference, that's what I had to do!

In the Sunday, January 29,2012 edition of The Huntsville Times, school board member David Blair is quoted as saying the superintendent is doing what he was hired to to.  That may be true, however the current members of the Board of Education aren't doing what WE THE VOTERS hired YOU to do.  But I digress.

Mission Accomplished?

 The districts goal?

Getting Huntsville City Schools out from under a desegregation order from 40 years ago and achieving unity.

And how does the Mighty Casey go about achieving such unity?  By closing one failing school and combining it with another so called failing school, building a new school that no one asked for, violating the rules to change the name against the wishes of the community, and,  to add insult to injury,  locate the new school .06 miles from an active rock quarry, in spite of air quality concerns.

Now this doesn't sound like achieving unity to me, as the late great James Brown said, it sounds more like The Big Pay Back to me.

Once segregated by law, school systems across the country are coming out from under federal scrutiny at an increasingly faster rate, retiring desegregation court orders from the civil rights era. 
But once free of such orders, those same systems are likely to see rising segregation levels among white and black students.

And that's especially true in elementary grades and in Southern states, according to a comprehensive study published in the current issue of the Journal of Policy Analysis and Management.

He who controls the message controls the outcome.

RedEye tiptoeing away from the computer humming Go Down Moses

A Second Open Letter to Mayor Tommy Battle

Madison County Commissioner Phil Riddick, second from right, presents Mayor Tommy Battle with checks totaling $60,000 for construction of a new city park on Chaney Thompson Road in south Huntsville. Looking on are city Parks Manager Steve Ivey and Recreation Director Greg Patterson. (Steve Doyle | sdoyle@al.com)

Dear Mayor Battle,
It's me RedEye again. We haven't talked since you held a town hall meeting on the neglected side of town (aka District 1), to ask the taxpayers who have the least to give more, and support a 1% sales tax increase that will benefit the taxpayers who have the most. But I digress

I am writing you this time to talk about  public education in general, specifically the Huntsville City Schools.  During a recent press conference you said  you want to continue an ongoing push for better roads, new industry, a stronger city school system and "more inclusive" municipal government.  Oh really?

At the  recent HCS BOE rezoning meeting, which excluded comments from the public,  you agreed with superintendent Casey Wardynski   it’s time to be recognized as a progressive city that can make color-blind decisions without the federal government scrutinizing every plan to build a new school. 

You say you want Huntsville to be recognized as a stronger "more inclusive" municipal government but your actions, specifically your support of the superintendent, don't match (for lack of a better word) your words.

Do you support nepotism, favoritism, and intimidation to control schools, and parents not being allowed to speak at public meetings?

Do you support the BOE violating their own rules?

Do you support the BOE refusing to meet with Huntsville's black community leaders? The answer to that must be yes, because it is  my understanding you recently held a meeting with local black clergy and excluded black elected officials.  Is that that the kind of "more inclusive" municipal government you're talking about?

Do you support the desires of the citizens of north Huntsville not to change the name of J.O. Johnson High School to Mae Jemison being ignored?  Were you one of the elected officials who told Casey Wardynski it would be a gargantuan mistake to change the name of a school named after a confederate war general?

Do you support staffing under achieving schools who need the best and the brightest with non certified teachers?

Do you support re-segregating Huntsville City Schools?  I have to ask because at the recent MLK Unity Breakfast you noted  the two schools with the highest test scores were also the most diverse schools. This comment received a huge round of applause from the audience (except those of us who knew better). Well Duh! New Century Technology High School, and The Academy for Academics and Arts, are magnet schools, that's why they are diverse, and also why they have the highest test scores. Which makes me wonder if you are aware the WARdynski plan you said you support will end the majority to minority transfers which increase diversity, and will force parents to send their children to low achieving neighborhood schools? 

Lastly,  and most importantly to, do you support the construction of the new J.O. Johnson High School .06 miles from an active rock quarry, and, would you want your children to attend such a school?  Would you want your family members to work in such an environment?  Are you aware the president of the city council was among the vocal opposition to a rock quarry being located 2 miles from schools in Madison County, citing air quality concerns?

Need I remind you again north Huntsville residents are taxpayers that voted for you twice because you promised we would not be marginalized and our concerns minimized.  North Huntsville taxpayers aren't asking for special treatment, nor are we asking for the government to take care of us.  Para phrasing the words of the late great James Brown, we don't want nobody to give us nothing, open up the door and we'll get it ourselves.

We didn't ask for a new high school.  We don't want to change the name of the school,  and we don't want the new school we didn't ask for, want, or need,  to be located .06 miles from an active rock quarry.  You might as well build the new school next to an industrial park.

Sincerely,
RedEye

Tweet of the Week

Repubs put all kind of makeup on the pig, but the nutjobs still call the shots! #Exerciseinfutility @cspanwj #libcrib pic.twitter.com/tOvKhz196d
— George Monroe (@Nupe117) January 22, 2014

A Third Open Letter to Joe Scarborough

I am re-posting this letter by contributor  Average  Citizen under my byline due to technical difficulties.  Links inserted for emphasis and clarity.~RedEye

I confess to regularly watching “Morning Joe” for the political discourse and as a barometer for what some Republicans are willing to accept as true (Fox News doesn’t work for this purpose) in the face of overwhelming facts. My previous two open letters were related to Joe’s support of the voter ID laws while being highly disingenuous as to their content and impact and failure to acknowledge the political motivation as opposed to fighting a minuscule level of alleged fraud. This letter has to do with his defense of Chris Christie and Bob McDonnell, Republicans who came under fire, but can count on their ally Joe Scarborough to be their apologist and offer a strong defense against the least of what has been alleged, while ignoring the major issues.

Let’s start with former Governor Bob McDonnell, who along with his wife, was indicted on 14 counts of violating Federal laws. They not only accepted, but requested hundreds of thousands of cash and gifts from a wealthy businessman who wanted support in launching his company. Having access to no more information than you and your producers Joe, I’ve seen the direct flow outlined in the indictment showing both the “quid” and the “pro quo” when calls were made to set up meetings with state officials within hours of receiving gifts. There’s a promotional picture of the ex-Governor doing his best Vanna White imitation holding a can of the product in question at a launch party he hosted at the Governor’s mansion. Yet you Joe are in denial.

You forcefully claim that the Governor broke no Virginia state laws and how the Fed’s had no business getting involved. The law used to indict the couple, the Hobbs Act, was old (1951) and therefore not relevant somehow. This is a portion of what the law states;

 “ Whoever in any way or degree obstructs, delays, or affects commerce or the movement of any article or commodity in commerce, by robbery or extortion or attempts or conspires so to do, or commits or threatens physical violence to any person or property in furtherance of a plan or purpose to do anything in violation of this section shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than twenty years, or both.”

Since you have decided that Federal law doesn’t apply somehow to Republican Governors that you support, I think we can find some Virginia state laws they violated although you have absolved them. They gave away state property to their children including liquor, pots and pans and food from the Governor’s mansion. State law would consider that theft. They obstructed justice by telling lies to prosecutors along with the people of the state in their claims that first they and then their daughter paid for a reception and dinner again held at the mansion. I’ll give you credit for being consistent in your defense of McDonnell as you have backed him for months as this scandal unfolded. No doubt if convicted, you’ll clamor for a fine and no jail time as if he did nothing really wrong.

With Chris Christie your apologist theme is that he hasn’t done anything that politicians haven’t always done. In your view he merely used the levers of power to get others to bend to one’s will. There are two separate issues currently with Christie; the shutting down of access lanes to the GWB in apparently some sort of political retribution, and the alleged extortion attempt involving state controlled Hurricane Sandy relief funds to Hoboken.

Regarding the bridge your first deflection was to try to focus instead on Benghazi and the IRS indicating somehow that it was not worthy of further inspection in light of those other alleged scandals. You tried to suggest that the issue was over after the second round of dismissals of Christie staffers without acknowledging the several other members of Christie’s staff already named in E-mails in having a role, and having no explanation how the Governor was somehow unaware of what was in the newspaper and television daily and the subject of multiple calls and e-mails to his office. His version of the story, and his seeming lack of interest despite his acknowledged micromanaging style, seems perfectly acceptable to you.

Regarding the withholding of Sandy funds until the Mayor of Hoboken approved funding of a development project for the Rockefeller Group (to the exclusion of all other developers), you’re response was to lambaste the Mayor who came forward. She didn’t do what you say you’d have done which was to threaten the Governor who had the power to in this case allow your town to remain crushed in the aftermath of the hurricane. Mayor Zimmer has spoken with the Federal prosecutor for the area and made statements which if untrue could land her in jail. You side with the broad denials of the accused as they shield themselves with defense lawyers and stonewall.

A real news person would follow the story. What efforts have been made by the state to push this development down the throat of Hoboken, while shutting out other developers of similar projects on nearby seemingly equivalent land? What do the E-mails between the Port Authority Chairman Samson, the Governor’s office, the Lt. Governor and others say? You imply she’s a liar but make no effort to ferret out the truth.

Joe you are a defender of the rich and powerful and have lost touch with the people. While you see these instances as either not important or business as usual. It’s clear that your alliance is with the 1% who may no longer be funding your elections but now are your advertisers. You tell the parts of the story that meet your objective and drown out and cut off others with opposing views. The barometer you are is no longer that of the moderate Republican but that of the complete apologist for the rich, wealthy and powerful. Shame on you!

Guns don't kill people....

Coalition to Stop Gun Violence

" There can be no public discourse"

The problem we all live with — by Norman Rockwell (1894–1978), depicting an incident in the American Civil Rights struggle of the early 1960s, when Ruby Bridges entered first grade on the first day of court-ordered desegregation of New Orleans, Louisiana, public schools (November 14, 1960). Originally published in Look magazine.

 Looks like Colonel Casey Wardynski and the Huntsville City Schools Board of Education have taken a play out of the Chris Christie playbook in their quest for "unitary status".   Despite the fact the Feds said there is no need for secrecy, the #hsvboe is doing all it can to make sure there is no public discourse,  and in their infinite wisdom, the  media is helping them.  We the peeps never know what's going on until the deed is done and they think there is not a darn thing we can do about it.

Case in point, who knew the location of the new J.O.Johnson Middle and High School is .06 miles from an active Rock Quarry?  Meanwhile residents on the other side of the Mountain voiced outrage and desperation at a public meeting last month, saying they feared the blasting, increased heavy truck traffic and defacing of the mountain would damage homes, worsen air pollution, endanger lives and lower property values.
State Rep. Wayne Johnson, R-Ryland, is trying to get a bill passed by the Legislature that would prevent a quarry from operating within five miles of a school in Madison County.

So, if State Representative Wayne Johnson was trying to get a bill passed by the Legislature that would prevent a quarry from operating within five miles of a school in Madison County, why would the Huntsville City Schools Boardof Education, with the approval of  Mark Russell,president of the Huntsville City Council and other elected officials, approve the building of a new school .06 miles from an active quarry?

Other elected officials speaking against the quarry were Mark Russell, president of Huntsville City Council, Madison County District 3 Commissioner Eddie Sisk, state Sen. Paul Sanford, state Sen. Shadrack McGill, state Rep. Wayne Johnson, Gurley Mayor Rob Sentell, Gurley Councilman Robert Wren.
Their concerns addressed environmental quality of Flint River and Hayes Nature Preserve, unsafe traffic with trucks crossing Norfolk Southern Railroad along a curve, heavy trucks sharing roads with school buses, air quality at two nearby schools and a lack of local governmental control of the quarry operation.

What about the air quality at the new J.O. Johnson High School?  What about the blasting?  Would you want your children/grand children attending a school that was located .06 miles from an active rock quarry? The Rock Quarry was there first, it can't be moved, why build a new school that may or not be safe for students, teachers, administrator, and support personnel,  in it's back yard?

What Dr. Robert Bullard, Environmental Justice Movement founder said:

No other community, rich or poor, urban or suburban, black, brown, red, yellow or white should be allowed to become an "environmental sacrifice zone."

Today's Must Reads

ALABAMA CONFIDENTIAL

The miss-education of black/brown/poor students in Huntsville,AL continues

The definitition of "unitary status" according to Casey

Brown, not Wardynski. 

So, Huntsville City Schools Superintendent Casey Wardynski presented his demand, I mean plan, HCS  be released from the federal desegregation order because the racial composition of the schools is the same as it was in 1963 and it's just time.  He went on to say (paraphrasing) just because the federal government was dysfunctional didn't mean the school system couldn't run itself,  or something crazy like that.  The reason I say it's crazy talk is because prior to becoming the Superintendent of Huntsville City Schools,  he was Colonel Casey Wardynski. You know, one of them there dysfunctional government employees.  But I digress....

School Board Attorney J.R. Brooks said (paraphrasing) if the DOJ doesn't grant HSC unitary status by the end of the month we are going to take the matter to Circuit Court (Is that a threat?).   Now I'm not a hot shot lawyer like Mr. Brooks, but since when does the Circuit Court over rule the United States Supreme Court?  Maybe he's confused.....

Via al.com

Unitary status would make it official, meaning federal courts agree that Huntsville no longer shows signs of the old dual system.

And how does Casey plan to accomplish this?

The actions they are taking are pure segregation. You are merging every minority failing school onto one piece of land with schools with all black names," he said.

Does he really think that's going to fly with the DOJ?  Nope.  That's probably why they are going to take it to Circuit Court.

 5:10: p.m.: Mayor Tommy Battle and city officials gave closing remarks. Councilman Richard Showers requested more transparency with the district's plans. The meeting ended before citizens got a chance to speak. Citizens were visibly displeased.

Stay tuned.  More to come.

In Honor of the late Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

 

Today as we celebrate and remember the Birthday of Dr. King it is important that we do not let America redefine him into some sweet, gentle Man who had a Dream....Because the Truth is Dr. King spent his life exposing Americas NIGHTMARE for too many of her People! If we truly want to honor Dr. King we need to do what he did with our lives....so let's ask our selves today...WHAT AM I DOING ABOUT POVERTY, RACISM, VIOLENCE, INEQUALITY.....WHAT AM I DOING TO CHANGE THE WORLD? REAL DREAMERS ARE HATED BECAUSE THEY CHALLENGE THE WORLD TO BE WHAT IT DOESN'T SEE OR WANT......IF NO ONE HATES YOU, YOU PROBABLY AREN'T DOING ANYTHING!....HAPPY BIRTHDAY DR. KING!!!! Father Michael Pfledger

Faking the funk when the narrative doesn't fit the facts Huntsville City Schools style

Don't let the headline fool you....Huntsville City Schools Officials to discuss plans publicly.

 Not.

I guess it depends on what the Huntsville City Schools BOE definition of  to consider rezoning publicly IS

District leaders will also hold forums on the following dates to hear comments and concerns from the public on the rezoning plan:

• January 26th from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. at Johnson High School.
• January 30th from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Lee High School.
• January 31st from 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at Grissom High School.
• February 1st from 9 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. at Huntsville High School
• February 3rd from 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at Colombia High School.

Note the date and time for the public forum to be held at the school most affected by rezoning, Johnson High School, is on a Sunday afternoon because they know full well that holding the public forum on Sunday afternoon rather than Saturday evening will mean less criticism from Johnson, and the BOE can tell the DOJ  (me paraphrasing)

   We tried to involve them there Johnson people but they didn't care enough to show up so we did what we always do and decided what was best for them.

We all know the Huntsville City Schools BOE believes they are smarter than the average bear, but here's how their scheme could backfire on them big time.  Everybody knows a church is the one place you don't have to beg black people to attend...what if all the north Huntsville pastors encouraged their congregations to leave church and head on over to J.O. Johnson High School immediately after worship on Sunday, January 26th? 

I'm just saying.....

They are who/what we thought they are

We Are the GOP: We shut down bridges We shut down jobs We shut down govt We shut down the economy @upwithsteve #uppers
— Maxine Baptiste (@brownsugar7878) January 11, 2014

"One of the things we can't do is, we can't let them distract from what we're all about, and what we're trying to accomplish. We're trying to keep the focus on comprehensive, universal health care reform, and they're going all over the place. They are desperate, uh, they don't have leadership, uh, they really don't know what to do, and so, I think we're going to continue to see a lot of crazy things happening, like all of the, uh, outrage that has been demonstrated at these town hall meetings, like the kind of statement that Congresswoman Jenkins made, and let them define themselves, let them reveal who they are. 
The American public needs to see that."~Congresswoman Maxine Waters D. California

"I'm sick of republican apologies where they pretend to be the victim."

A real and sincere apology focuses on the real victims of an event by recognizing what they've suffered, not on delivering a self-serving diatribe on how they, themselves, have been affected.

That is all.  For now.

"Revolutionary Amiri Baraka Joins the Ancestors "

Polarizing,  Controversial ,  Influential Firebrand, are words being used to describe Amiri Barka, this is why:

"Who knew the World Trade Center was gonna get bombed," read a line from the poem. "Who told 4,000 Israeli workers at the Twin Towers to stay home that day?"
Then-Gov. James E. McGreevey and others demanded his resignation. Baraka refused, denying that "Somebody Blew Up" was anti-Semitic (the poem also attacks Hitler and the Holocaust) and condemning the "dishonest, consciously distorted and insulting non-interpretation of my poem." Discovering he couldn't be fired, the state eliminated the position altogether, in 2003.

 "Let us celebrate Amiri Baraka's life by continuing his bold and courageous legacy of pride and resistance."

Faking the Funk When the Facts Don't Fit the Narrative

@imthe_MAPP @Big6domino 'After this Chris Christie scandal, whoever voted for him, I sincerely hope you feel dumb ', Looking at you Shaq
— Red Eye (@RedEyesPage) January 9, 2014

We have to laugh to keep from crying to see the Mainstream Media Talking TeeVee Pundit Heads faking the Chris Christi funk because their media enabled narrative doesn't fit the facts. Seriously, I just heard a Talking TeeVee Pundit Head say New Jersey Governor Chris Christi could "recover from so called  Bridgegate", because the electorate has a short memory."

Oh really now?  I for one haven't forgotten how House Republicans impeached President Clinton for trying to conceal a private, consensual, sexual, encounter. Nor have I forgotten how they are constantly trying to impeach President Obama because he wants all Americans to have access to quality, affordable, health care.  It seems to me that using your office to punish people for political revenge is...what's the word I'm looking for(?)......horrifying.

"The truth is Christie was never the Straight Shooter that political reporters and pundits made him out to be. Not even close,"

I'm talking to you Shaq.
 

RedEye's Wednesday Rant

#OutInTheCold Nuts ruling the asylum!!  #gop #obama #teaparty #republicans #goodbyegop #conservatives pic.twitter.com/v3uQSRGug3
— Larry  (@crazylary51) January 7, 2014

What do you want to bet if Rodger Shuler's second amendement rights were being violated instead of his first amendment rights they Righty's would be on this like right, I mean, white on rice?  This is proof that democrats and liberals don't have the same rights as republicans and conservatives in Alabama.

This might be the last thing I write about the Crucifixion of Melissa Harris Perry, ....and it might not be.  First of all,  Melissa Harris Perry is not going to be fired because she apologized for something she didn't say or do, so there is no need to stand with her, OK?    White supremacy wins again.  As blogger Mack Lyons said, it's an adventure in double standards. All I can say is I don't know how she can repair her credibility with me after this.

I thought republicans were pro life and pro guns?

The trouble with black sock puppets is not that they are wrong – sometimes they are right – but that they are arguing in bad faith. ~Abagond

"Race Baiting" gone bad, and "look at those shiny objects over there"

I wish Romney would go on TV and say, "No apology needed. All sides need to stop being so sensitive. All this fake outrage chills speech."
— Dale Jackson (@TheDaleJackson) January 4, 2014

This is one of those rare times when Radio Boy and I agree, and from the looks of it, Mitt Romney agreed and  rejected the media enabled race baiting hook, line, and sinker.

By now everyone knows how I feel about this sad, sorry, affair. It was bad enough Melissa Harris Perry was forced to apologize for something she didn't say/do, but the tearful apology was like a kick in the gut. Hate to think it,  much less say it, but I have more respect for Phil Robertson, A&E, Cracker Barrel  and Walmart than I do for MHP and MSNBC right now. "Harris-Perry took responsibility for the segment, even though she never said what the right accused her of saying. Her apology was heartfelt, intelligent, and insightful. It was typical of what viewers see on her program every weekend. What it wasn’t was necessary.

Robertson's comments were bigoted and racist, but I defend his right to say them.

I wonder if MHP broke down because she was being forced to apologize in order to keep her job?  I can see that happening because I was told to stop talking about race so much and accused of making up stuff before I was banned from Left in Alabama and told if I wanted freedom of speech I needed to start my own blog.  Which I did.

I guess what Kimberly Foster the founder and editor of For Harriet said is true:

I certainly salute Melissa for expeditiously offering a sincere apology. I Stand With Melissa because I understand that in spite of (of perhaps because of) the fact that she is a black woman with a P.HD and a national television platform, she has to walk more cautiously than her peers.

"Do not follow the shiny object".


 Privilege of the Powerful.

Power of the Privileged. 

God, please help America.

"Tearful apology not needed" My Sentiments Exactly!

field negro: Tearful apology not needed, and the evolution deniers.

 The problem is that there is a basic hypocrisy in the media that allows the right to not be held accountable bad behavior. Not only is the right allowed to get away with worse things than the MHP segment on a daily basis, but no one on the left is ever cut the same slack.

"I have said this before and it is worth repeating: Nobody plays the victim card like these wingnuts. Sarah Palin has made a career out of it. (I see you Mr. Bashir). "

More on this later.

Mission Accomplished: The Shirley Sherroding of Melissa Harris- Perry Complete

You know what the GOP calls an accomplished Balck woman who apologizes profusely for what they deemed bad behavior? A nigger.
— problem with that (@problemwthat) January 4, 2014

Melissa Harris-Perry Breaks Down On-Air While Addressing Keiran Romney Controversy

A perfect storm of slow news and cultural provocation elevated Melissa Harris-Perry‘s New Year’s weekend segment, which used Kieran Romney‘s appearance in a Romney family photo as a setup for jokes about diversity, into a full-blown media conflagration. That firestorm has now roiled into a second weekend. Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney (R-MA) is expected to address the controversy tomorrow on Fox News Sunday, and Melissa Harris Perry addressed it on air for the first time on the Saturday morning edition of the Melissa Harris Perry show.

The Struggle Continues......

The Shirley Sherroding of Melissa Harris Perry

 

*Sigh*

You know the drill:

The righties have their panties in a wad because Melissa Harris-Perry dared voice her opinion on a photo of Mitt Romney, the man of the 2%, holding one of his kid’s adopted black baby. 

Some (not to be confused with all) democrats/liberals/lefty's jump on the bandwagon accusing MHP of insulting Mitt Romney's Black Grandchild.

Melissa Harris-Perry apologizes to the Romney family for mocking their black grandson.

Melissa Harris Perry apologized, as liberals are wont to do after right wing persecution takes hold of the media’s endless pity and blind spots. But she never personally attacked the grandchild, and it’s obtuse to pretend that no one gets how absurd it is that the man who ran one of the biggest race-baiting races in history has an adopted black grandchild. It reeks of blind privilege and a failure to connect the dots.
You see, a rich black baby will not have the same experiences as the majority of black people in this country. It’s not about color. It’s about privilege. The privilege that comes with white skin growing up in one of the wealthiest counties in the nation as Mitt and his wife did.

The media enabled GOP propaganda machine wins again.


What  Persephone Clover said.

Oh My God. Seriously? No one called the baby a thing. One person sung one line of a SONG. Those are the words of that Sesame Street song. The other panelist said the picture represented the diversity of the Republican party. The RNC did a whole autopsy about how Republicans need to do better reaching out different communities after the 2012 losses. Melissa herself only said the baby was gorgeous and she wanted to see the wedding between him and Kanye West and Kim Kardashian's baby in another twenty years.

 What patis2 said:

this adoption is a political act. it is designed to appeal to black america to vote for the republican party in upcoming elections. the baby is a sacrifice on the altar of racism. i hope black people don't fall for this crude, unequivocal act of black exploitation.
it is cultural suicide to let the romneys take that black child into that social milieu of morons and republicanism, both institutions that are well known for their racism.
i strongly object to it. i don't think MHP has anything to apologize for. unless she thinks she will lose her lucrative TV spot. 

What lilrock diva said:

Apologize for WHAT?

So many here, are responding to what they think was said, not what was actually said. Why don't you try reading it:

“Everybody loves a baby picture,” Harris-Perry said, “and this was one that really, a lot of people had emotions about this baby picture this year. This is the Romney family. And, of course, there on Governor Romney’s knee is his adopted grandson, who is an African-American, an adopted African-American [grand]child, Kieran Romney.”
[PHOTO]
When asked to caption the picture, comedian and actress Pia Glenn sang: “One of these things is not like the others, one of these things just isn’t the same … “And that little baby, front and center, would be the one.”
Laughter erupts.
“And isn’t he the most gorgeous?” Harris-Perry responded in an attempt to divert from Glenn’s impromptu song. “My goal is that in 2040, the biggest thing of the year will be the wedding between Kieran Romney and North West. Can you imagine Mitt Romney and Kanye West as in-laws?”Comedian Dean Obeidallah had already taken the ball and run with it though: “I think this picture is great,” he said. “It really sums up the diversity of the Republican party, the RNC. At the convention, they find the one Black person.”
Yes, that is all -- THE END!

Call me cynical, but could this be a media-enabled weapon of mass distraction from the real insult to LBGT's, African Americans, and women?

PS:  If You're Outraged by Melissa Harris Perry's Romney Remarks, Here's Some Recent History For You

2014 Links I Like

 

 Colorlines A Racial Justice Bucket List for 2014:

The fresh page of a new year—what a thrilling place to be. And to kick off 2014, Colorlines asked several community leaders to share their racial justice wishes for the year. We wanted to to know, what are some truly attainable victories for justice in the coming year? And how could any one of us help achieve them? Just reading the list we received gives me a lot of life and excitement for what lies ahead.

Three Ways to Fight Racism in 2014

2014 will be the year this is made clear to everyone: Racism is not simply personal prejudice/bigotry that only manifests in the form of being unkind to someone on the basis of their skin color or calling them a derogatory name. Racism is a system of oppression, one that creates a society of first- and second-class citizens by denying rights and access to resources to non-white people. Racism is a system of power created by and maintained through public policy. Racist rhetoric or action is anything that reinforces/upholds that system.

Why do whites hate, demonize and look down on blacks?

• Racist messages in jokes, history books, the news and on television, etc,
• Material self-interest,
• Fear of becoming an outcast among whites

Why Courts should matter to African Americans

We must begin to educate the African American Community to understand the importance of their vote and how these courts impact their lives. Since the war on drugs began, more African Americans have been sentenced to prison under the Federal Court System because of the drug laws that have been implemented. African Americans have been disenfranchised because of decisions by Judges regarding voting rights laws that have been enacted in the states. Employment discrimination suits are heard by federal judges and most of the decisions are rendered by a judge. It is important to understand the power that you, the African American Voter have on your livelihoods and well being. There are environmental issues that physically affect our communities and depending on the position of the judge, these issues results don’t necessarily end in our favor.

KarremAbdul-Jabbar:   Supreme Court "Back Sliding" on Race Relations

When asked how the country was doing “on the racial front” but Rose, Abdul-Jabbar answered, “I think we’ve been doing some back sliding. You know what I’ve seen you know some of the Supreme Court decisions and all this effort to suppress….minority voters. I don’t get it. It seems like we’re moving backwards. But I guess we are just gonna have to keep up the fight.”

Feel free to share any links you like! 

Happy New Year?

 

I'm back..... sort of.  Trying to catch up with all of the political news and views after my annual holiday mental health break.  Just for kicks I tuned in to Morning Joke, I mean, Joe to determine what the right wing is whining about in 2014, only to learn they are whining about  the same things they whined about in 2013.

1.  The Federal Government is impeding job growth.  Oh really?  I guess they think the American people are too stupid to realize the republicans control the house, and their counter parts in the senate are the party of obstructionist.

2. The red state democratic candidates are in an up hill battle for re-election because having access to Obama Care, I mean, affordable health health care, is so unpopular in their states?  Oh really?  I guess that's why people are signing up like crazy in the red, republican, Confederate, slave states.

3.  New York's rich fear their new mayor because he's going to take all their money and give it to the poor.  Not.

The more things change, the  more they remain the same...


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