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Tuesday, February 15, 2011

The Shirley Sherroding of "Possibly Progressive People" by "white conservative media" and left leaning blogs

You know the drill.

A possibly progressive group holds a press conference

I'm pretty sure the folks who called the aforementioned news conference have good intentions, possibly even progressive intentions, but as most of us have learned, good intentions do not guarantee good outcomes. And poorly chosen words at a press conference not only can't be called back, they are a virtual guarantee of bad press.
I guess it depends on what the definition of poorly chosen words IS. Yes, that's a snark.

The media takes a snippet of the groups remarks out of context and distracts from the real purpose of the press conference.

What we heard in the statement and ensuing answers was more rhetoric instead of solutions.

What we heard were alarming veiled threats. The penultimate paragraph ended with the vow that "We are committed to this end and are willing to fight for (it) if necessary."

Then, to conclude, President John F. Kennedy was quoted as saying, "Those who make peaceful revolution impossible make violent revolution inevitable."

If those weren't veiled threats, they were a poor choice of words.
The pile on commences.
Sams ended her speech with a bold statement.

"Those who make peaceful revolutions impossible make violent revolution inevitable," said Sams, who quoted former president John F. Kennedy. When asked to clarify her remarks and how it applied to the context of the school system, she referred back to the original quote.

"You know what the quote means," said Sams. "I quoted the president (Kennedy). He was a peaceful president, so I did a quote. You can interpret it anyway you want to, I just quoted."
Voila! That's all the righty's need to call for a Race War. Thanks, Mark McCarter.

George Wallace said
February 15, 2011 at 10:48 am
I say bring it on. I’m down for a race war. Everyone can use their 2nd Amendment remedy and God will favor the righteous.
Let's take NAACP Alice Sams remarks in context. She wasn't making a veiled threat. She was quoting President John Fitzgerald Kennedy. I could see McCarter and others taking it as a veiled threat if the NAACP had a history of violent revolutions. The violent revolution Alice Sams is referring to metaphorically is seeking legal redress and remedies.

Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, 347 U.S. 483 (1954),[1] was a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court that declared state laws establishing separate public schools for black and white students unconstitutional. The decision overturned the Plessy v. Ferguson decision of 1896 which allowed state-sponsored segregation. Handed down on May 17, 1954, the Warren Court's unanimous (9–0) decision stated that "separate educational facilities are inherently unequal." As a result, de jure racial segregation was ruled a violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution. This ruling paved the way for integration and the civil rights movement.[2]
Speaking of rhetoric in abundance, McCarter needs to look in the mirror.

What we heard were assertions that the Huntsville City Schools, under the 10-year leadership of a black superintendent and with a diverse elected board, have regressed to become "a dual school system; one for black students, on the North end of town, separate, unequal and academically unsuccessful and one for the white students on the South end of town, marginally academically successful."

What we heard were complaints about "the extreme disparity in the test scores" between black and white students. Alarming, no question. Sixty-seven percent of white students passed at level IV and less than 27 percent of black students passed at that level.

To my question about the accountability students and parents should have rather than placing it on the school system, Sams merely said after a long pause, "I'm not an educator so I'm not going to answer that question."
What you heard is not what was said. The Huntsville City Schools didn't become a dual school system under the 10year leadership of a "black superintendent", it was dual school system long before she was hired. As for the "diverse" school board, one black member has one vote and is often voted against by the white majority. So, in essence, they are a token with no real power.

To your question about the accountability of students and parents, what about it? The students and parents don't run the school system. They don't appropriate funds. They don't set policy. They don't hire and fire teachers, administrators and support personnel. All they do is pay taxes and vote. How dare you try and blame black parents for the achievement gap and the sad sorry state of the Huntsville City School System. What revbobbob said all the damn way.
I re-headlined it: White conservative editor in Alabama minimizes concerns of black residents
mooncat has a nasty little habit of telling grown black people what they should or should not say and how they should or should not say it too. Can you say condescending?
Know your message and communicate your message. Activists earn positive news stories with well prepared* statements that go beyond simple complaints, with a willingness to engage members of the press and the patience to answer questions as long as the reporters will hang around. After all, when you're trying to earn positive media for your cause, you must first convince these people to tell your story. The press is not the adversary, they are the conduit to a larger audience. If you want that audience to hear your story, you have to convince them your cause is just and your ideas are worthy of coverage.
*"Well prepared" means parsing all the words to make sure your meaning is clear and not subject to misinterpretation and eliminating information that's off topic. It's a good idea to get two or three people of different backgrounds to proof the statement and make sure it conveys the proper message.
Alice Sams doesn't need anyone to tell her what well-prepared means, and she wasn't trying to earn positive media whatever that means. The purpose and intent are to put Huntsville City School leaders on notice that black children will no longer be left behind. How's that for a choice of words? In this case and in most cases regarding fairness to black folks, the media most certainly is the adversary. McCarter chose to ignore the substance of Sams remarks by taking a snippet out of context in a veiled attempt discredit the legitimate concerns of "possibly progressive people".

Psst, Possibly Progressive People! The next time you want to call a press conference call me. I'll be happy to write your press release, statements and field questions from the media. In other words, I'll make sure you are "well prepared".

This is the media we have instead of the media we wish we had. They can dish out the violent revolutions but they can't take them.

13 comments:

Dale Jackson said...

Wow, please tell me this post is a joke.

That "George Wallace" character is a liberal, he is being facetious. But I would love for you to tell me how Sarah Palin's cross-hairs and Beason's comments are unacceptable but Sams' comments are not.

Out of context? She verified the statements at least twice now, tell me the context.

Anonymous said...

Who listens to mooncat? Isn't she a Republican? What would she know?

Redeye said...

Sams' was using a parody DaleJackson. You know, issuing a phony press release with the State Seal of the Alabama Secretary of State telling democrats they vote the day after the election.
http://www.leftinalabama.com/diary/4089/a-dumb-stoopid-parody-my-donkey

Here are Sams' remarks in context, meaning what she said before and what she said after;

We have compiled a list of concerns, which in short is entitled 'What We Want," said Sams. "If satisfactory steps are not taken to satisfy our concerns, we may petition the state department of education to take over Huntsville City Schools and request Department of Justice and federal court intervention."

NAACP officials say the alleged inequalities will only be made greater if several schools targeted for closure in predominantly black North Huntsville end up shutting their doors. The organization cited a forty point achievement gap between black and white students on standardized state tests, calling the results unfair and unacceptable. Sams said the blame did not fall on students or their parents, but rather on schools she claims are inferior compared to those in predominantly white South Huntsville. School closures are a likelihood as the district aims to overcome a $20 million budget deficit.

"It is our opinion that we have a divided system," said Sams. "One for black students in the north end of town, separate, unequal and academically unsucessful; and one for the white students on the south end of town...All efforts to terminate the 1970 court order will be opposed by us until concerns to satisfy the racial and academic inequalities as stated are resolved."

Sams ended her speech with a bold statement.

"Those who make peaceful revolutions impossible make violent revolution inevitable," said Sams, who quoted former president John F. Kennedy. When asked to clarify her remarks and how it applied to the context of the school system, she referred back to the original quote.

Sams' and the group aren't attacking the school system, the school system is attacking them via the media in an attempt to distract from the substance and to discredit, marginalize and minimize legitimate concerns.

Sams' and the group aren't making threats. They are making a promise to fight for the right of all children to have access to a quality public education regardless of their zip code or the extent of the parental involvement.

Now run tell THAT radio boy.

Redeye said...

I don't know about being a republican but she sure sounds like one with statements like this;


McCarter took the JFK quote way too seriously, but it was also a mistake to wind up the presser with that quote and leave the interpretation to the reporters. I'm completely serious about the need for media training and surprised the NAACP hasn't done more of that for their people. Most of us aren't born knowing how to talk to cameras, but practice and good advice can help tremendously.

"Their people"???? "Most of us aren't born knowing how to talk to cameras"???? "Leave the interpretation to reporters"??? Are reporters supposed to interpret words or report the facts? She should know how words can be taken out of context and how the right wing media enables it.
http://www.leftinalabama.com/diary/4055/down-is-up-white-is-black-and-do-you-see-those-darkskinned-racists

And this;
http://www.theattackmachine.com/
First it was the lunatics at Left in Alabama wanting to stab Rep. Paul Ryan in the neck…


See what I mean?

Dale Jackson said...

Redeye...

A. Your links in your original post do not go where you think they do.
B. You can say all you want that you don't understand what parody is and what it isn't but when it is laid out for your feeble mind, accept it.
C. Did LiA not advocate stabbing Paul Ryan?
D. Did Sams not say "violent revolution" would be "inevitable"?

What context is missed here? She was asked, she confirmed. What am I missing. Run and tell that terrorist sympathizer.

Redeye said...

DaleJackson I-am-typing-slowly-

Let's take NAACP Alice Sams remarks in context. She wasn't making a veiled threat. She was quoting President John Fitzgerald Kennedy. I could see McCarter and others taking it as a veiled threat if the NAACP had a history of violent revolutions. The violent revolution Alice Sams is referring to metaphorically is seeking legal redress and remedies.

Why are white folks so scared of black folks? I could see it if black folks had a documented history of wrong doing towards white folks, like slavery, Jim Crow, lynching, shooting, drowning, bombing churches and stuff like that. So what's up with the fear and loathing of black folks?

Dale Jackson said...

Type slower,

Because you didn't address anything I said.

"Violent revolution" is a metaphor for legal action?

But you think "empty the clip" means kill brown folks?

Try answer questions instead of willfully displaying your ignorance.

Redeye said...

Yes and yes.

Dale Jackson said...

Nice logic.

Redeye said...

Comparing Alice Sam's quote to Scott Beasons remarks are like comparing apples to onions. They aren't even in the same family much less the same league.

Dale Jackson said...

You are right... Beason used a metaphor and Sams' threatened violence if she didn't get "What We Want" and then reiterated it later.

Redeye said...

Sam's threatened a lawsuit, but if it makes you and yours feel better to say she threatened violence towards white people if she didn't get what we want have at it.

A mind is a terrible thing to waste and a hard thing to change.

Dale Jacskson said...

I am sure if Beason had said "violent revolution" was inevitable you would be saying, "he is talking about a lawsuit."

Pathetic.