Sunday, January 10, 2010

RACISM AND HARRY REID: A SLIP OF THE TONGUE?

Many of you recently heard about Democratic Majority Senate Leader Harry Reid's remarks during the Obama Presidential campaign but how many of you have given any serious thought to the comments. Personally, I think Reid was dead wrong in his comments and just shows how far we still have to go before we forget these racial divides.

You can read the remarks here and GOP Chairman Michael Steele's remarks as well:
GOP's Steele Calls for Reid to Step Down as Leader Because of Racial Remarks -- Politics Daily

It started with the book "Game Change." The book is a behind-the-scenes look at the 2008 campaign and Reid was quoted as saying that "the country was ready for a black President, especially one who was light skinned and with no Negro dialect, unless he wanted to have one."

Racist? You judge it. Poor taste? Definitely.

Before anyone gets in a tiff let me say this. I do not believe in being politically correct so I am not a fan of "African American" terminology. An American is an American period in my eyes. I certainly do not go around portraying myself as a German, Italian, French, Indian American. Can you imagine someone going around portraying themselves as such? Whew.

No the questions I have are simple. Is this reflective of the Democrats real thoughts on Black America when they are behind the scenes? Democrats typically have carried the "black" vote in major elections and historically have been seen as being the ones who truly cared about Black America but do they really care?

With the advent of affirmative action, as one example, has Black America been able to achieve equality with White America? Many think not.

On one side of the equation people say that affirmative action discounts the intelligence of the black community and therefore inherently creates a divide. It's very nature is one built on division. Many people to this day believe that if you get promoted in the workplace as a black man it is because of affirmative action. Of course in some limited cases that is true, and necessarily so, but is there a better way?

This divide creates adverse reactions amongst co workers and business leaders as well.

Others state that without affirmative action Black America would not have been able to achieve anything of value in the workplace. Less pay, less representation, less promotions and very little that can be done about it.

Still others believe affirmative action has been a complete washout arguing that you cannot get the best quality employees based on race and not qualifications for a job.

Today we are as divided as ever on affirmative action and whether it is necessary or not.

Personally, I believe affirmative action was a necessary action when it first came out but could certainly be reevaluated strengthened or disregarded if necessary. The usefulness of this action has been exploited on both sides of the equation in my opinion.

Since the Democrats traditionally carry the black vote, and some would argue pander for that vote with false promises, one has to wonder whether Reid in essence got caught stating how the Democrats really feel. In short, have the Democrats been using Black America to further their own power and not equality across the board? Are they just acting like they care when in essence their real feelings are those of tolerance and not acceptance of equality?

It is my hope that Black America starts asking these questions today. The days of electing someone because of a political party have to end. We must begin anew to question each and every person who seeks our vote what they are about. We must not automatically assume that historically one party has stood up for one group of people while the other has not. The Democratic Party of old simply does not exist. Nor does the Republican Party of old exist.

We, as AMERICANS first and foremost, must start questioning ourselves and our mindset if we are to move forward.

Why?

Because for the first time in our history we elected a Black President (save the arguments of a mixed race family) and yet we still now have to address the issue of racism and on a much larger scale then ever before.

In today's America we are on the brink of becoming something greater or something much worse. It still is our choice though it seems that window of choice is getting smaller and smaller.

The measure of a man does not lie in the skin color he was born with that is absurd. The measure of a man lies in his thoughts, actions, and deeds in regards to his fellow man. Character and integrity know no skin color boundaries.

In my heart of hearts I believe skin color does not matter it is the character of the person that counts. The actions we as individuals take reflect who we are.

While we continue fighting and arguing over something like skin color, none of us had any choice in deciding anyway, we are being left further and further behind in the real game. The game of life.

This is a game that in the end we all lose so the real question is simple.

What kind of life do we want to lead? A negative one based on racism, hatred, and bigotry or a positive one of peaceful existence based on doing the right thing for our fellow man regardless of something as simple as color.

It's your turn to make a move in this game of life.

The choice is yours and yours alone. Can you handle it?

2 comments:

  1. You are, just like all of the GOP, (I know you're not GOP) are making something out of nothing. Reid apologized for nothing. He meant what he said and said what he meant and there is nothing wrong w/ it. Saying that Americans would elect a light skinned black person that didn't sound black. He was right. If he sounded like Kanye West when he spoke he would never get elected. Period. The only thing he is guilty of is speaking the truth.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Actually I am just laying out the questions concerning why we are still talking about racism, and asking if we really have come as far as some portray, or fallen further behind as some others portray.

    Thanks for the comments.

    ReplyDelete

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