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.