What Is Racism Without Any Actual Racists?
Categories: President Bill Clinton, Racism, President Barack H. Obama
Tags: President Bill Clinton Congressman Joe Wilson President Barack H. Obama racism President Jimmy Carter
Former U.S. President Jimmy
Carter delivers his Nobel Lecture after receiving the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize in
the
Copyright© Pressens Bild AB
2002, S-112 88
Les Payne
September 16, 2009
Yelling “you lie” in a crowded Congress at the first black U.S. President was “based on racism” rooted in “an inherent feeling among many [whites] in the country that an African-American should not be president,” according to Jimmy Carter.
It took the wisdom of this Nobel laureate with gravitas as
the 39th President of the republic--and its first deep-South choice in modern
times--to dignify the point the media danced around. Namely, that Congressman
Addison Graves Wilson, known as “Joe,” shares the inherent feeling among many
whites in
On matters of race, the media will intelligently discuss no
plain truth, no matter how obvious, unless it bears the imprint of a gray eminence
or a white columnist for the New York Times column. So Maureen Dowd and Jimmy
Carter, the oddest of couples, have called out “Joe” Wilson for going
Unlike Dowd, who is a soul-mate of the officer who busted Professor Gates and plays footsy on radio with the pernicious Don Imus, Jimmy Carter has credibility in the area of race relations. The Southern diplomat who did not pander to the “inherent feeling” of his people even as state senator and governor of Georgia, responded to a question at his presidential library Tuesday about Wilson’s interruption of the president speech before a joint session of Congress.
The equating of Obama with Hitler and other Nazis at town hall meetings across the country, Carter said, “are not just casual outcomes of a sincere debate on whether we should have a national program on health care.”
Indeed, even when the despised Hillary Clinton set her First Lady shoulders to health care 15 years ago, similar opponents just as lathered up never got down to blasting her as an unworthy, non-citizen “other.” This nasty refrain of those pursuing Obama emanates from their troubling town hallers, the 9/12 hate klatches and from their tea-baggers’ lynching bees.
“Give us our country back!” they shout.
A Nobel laureate need not be trotted out to explain this refrain. This “inherent feeling,” though categorically denied, is, as Carter stated, wide-spread nonetheless. President Obama is viewed as a threat because the overwhelming majority of white voters, 55-43 percent, could not prevent him from getting elected.
Unlike with
The racial paranoia fueling the gathering mobs of
tea-bagging, crypto-subversives does indeed constitute a troubling threat to
domestic tranquility and, perhaps even to the person of President Obama
himself. Disrespect of the presidency that
This, folks, is not politics as usual.
This menace is enabled by a mindless media in denial about race and a clique of broadcast shock-artists exploiting “inherent feelings” among their listeners and viewers. The top dogs of this rabid pack all tend to be “recovering” drunks and self-destructive drug addicts such as Glenn Beck, Don Imus and Rush Limbaugh.
These reckless cynics, who swear that they’ve sworn off whisky, cocaine and illegal pills, are hell-bent these days on venting their impulse by wrecking on-air havoc. Intelligent discourse over cable and the public airwaves is almost a thing of the past. Each of these gentlemen defend, and in one case praise, “Joe” Wilson as a god-send.
Even Jimmy Carter, in what appears to be a clubby
prerogative of white men, stopped short of actually describing
During a White House interview, I once pressed this issue with President Bill Clinton, another Southerner who knows a thing or two about racism.
Like Carter,
As a New Yorker, I told the president that while most Americans might concede that racism exists, the only culprits that had been identified by name were: Louis Farrakhan, Jesse Jackson, Prof. Leonard Jeffries and a certain Newsday columnist. Taking David Duke and Mark Furman, of O.J. Simpson trial fame, off the table, I asked President Clinton to name me a single white racist.
President Clinton would go only so far as to take Rev. Jackson’s name off the table (leaving the others on, ugh). He would not name a single white racist. Not Bob Grant, or Strom Thurmond, Don Imus, Marge Shot, Al Campanis, Trent Lott, ad infinitum, ad naseum.
The outburst of “Joe” Wilson, Carter said only, “was based
on racism.” No sooner had this mild rebuke cleared the evening news than
Most Americans admit that racism exists, as in a group abstract, but nobody knows any concretely, as an individual—not even “Joe” Wilson, whose outburst is likely to make him a hero—just watch.
I'm firmly in Payne's a-men corner once again, and why shouldn't I be? The plain truth that is omnipresent American racism is so seldom acknowledged by mainstream media that at times I wonder whether I live in Rod Serling's "Twilight Zone" or in some other parallel universe. Why is it left to Jimmy Carter, a former President and Nobel Laureate as Payne pointed out, to identify the blatantly obvious litany of racial insults hurled continually at President Obama in order that this ugly reality gains "legs" in media? Not only is this Nation hardly "post-racial", but overt racism has worsened since the presidential election. The racism that was always present in American soil is no longer just "coded", no longer "thinly veiled, but blatant- and let's be clear- it's not new either, but routine coverage of the not-so-White House and President Obama and his family along with rapid demographic and economic changes in this Nation have moved these attacks into high gear. Mix into this cauldron a powerful and influential media that drives discussion and debate, a media that can't or won't confront white racism (including its own in many cases), the current deep recession, the continuing export of jobs to overseas markets, and the celebration of wealth and celebrity in any form by media and the picture painted, given this nation's history of slavery and subjugation, is not pretty. And this is not a left vs. right thing either!I would remind your readers that during the presidential campaign a desperate and losing Hillary Clinton commissioned her democratic friend, former vice-presidential candidate Geraldine Ferraro, to use "race" against then candidate Obama in hopes of turning the tide her way. Ferraro's antics and to a lesser extent those of both Bill and Hillary Clinton were worse than the recent actions of South Carolina's pathetic Congressman, Joe Wilson. Let us not forget Wilson's many fellow travelers on both sides of the Congressional aisle either. It's astounding to see responsible media, so-called, report the ranting of hate-radio bigots nightly, and even the rants of their most ignorant, bigoted followers, and pretend this drivel is newsworthy. And what about that Fox network and its line-up of right-wing flacks and liars? Where was the FCC in protection of airways said to be public, and where is the FCC now? 56% of whites voted for the incompetence of a McCain/Palin ticket- that may be frightening to some, but that's the reality President Obama now confronts. Think about it- a moderate President surrounded by white advisers with a not-very-different foreign policy from his predecessors, a President who throws money at Wall St., bows to the wealthy, the military, and large corporations and still he's routinely characterized as Hitler, an ape, a Communist, a Marxist, a socialist, a racist, a Muslim, and very possibly not even an American. Something is happening and some don't know what it is- will the time for a different NRA soon be at hand?
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this is a very good article, for the most part, but the title is a bit puzzling, coming from someone such as you, mr payne. I remember not too long ago, you associated the word "coward" or cowardly "with the assertions" made by mark claxton, member of 100 blacks who care, regarding how black youth, should behave when confronted by white "police officers .I bring this to your attention
because it seems you want, former president carter, to do something that our black congressman, and senators, and
groups like the naacp, should be doing. namely, calling out the racist behavior, of people like JOE WILSON, RUSS LIMBAUGH, GLEN BECK, SEAN HANNITY, LOU DOBBS, THE ANTI-CHRIST REV, who has called for the death of pres obama. Jimmy carter
who is now 85 yrs old, deserves credit and big respect, for having the courage to say what he has said. He dosent have to say anything further, believe me. where are our black leaders? they know who the racists are. yet,amazingly not a peep from most of them. this is the height of cowardiness, in my humble opinion. where is REV BUTTS, REV FLOYD FLAKE, CHARLES RANGEL, GOV PATTERSON, Just to name a few.
give pres carter his due. anytime a white person dares to do what he has done, he is usually a doomed man "and a certified "N" LOVER.As for the other person you referenced, another ex-pres Bill Clinton, you should not have been surprised, by his refusal to name any of the "virulent" white racists who are on the "American" stage. Clinton was given far more credit than he deserved. When toni morrison crowned him america"s first black president, that was the most ridiculous statement ever made, by a person of her stature". Did he do some good things, that helped black people? sure, but he did a lot of things that were detrimental to black people.The same probably can be said about ex-pres carter. But he has never been held in the kind of high esteem bill clinton has. Also it should be mentioned, that pres carter also had the temerity, to take the state of ISRAEL to task, for the ugly, horrific, destruction perpetrated on the palestinians, in the gaza strip. Finally, in conclusion, we must stand up and admire jimmy carter. He is an old man, who is near the end of his life.He didnt have to say anything at all. Most people would never dare to go where he has gone, no matter their age. Who wants that kind of stress/controversy, at a time in your life, when you should be riding in the sunset? and ask yourself how can we expect, whites or anyone else for that matter,to do things that we should be doing for ourselves? Sadly, too many of us black folks, are afraid to stand up and be counted. People wont stand up on their jobs,wont stand up to better their neighborhoods, dont get involved with their kids. MR Payne, the state of black america, is in dire straits.
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I'm puzzled that you are puzzled about the title Brother B, as it seems very clear to me. Surely you appreciate sarcasm. I don't mean any insult, but perhaps you should read more: in that connection you should read or re-read Payne's piece on his interactions with Marquez Claxton of 100 Blacks Who (allegedly) Care. Any references to "cowardice" from Payne were in connection with Claxton's refusal to demand an increase in African-American representation on the NYPD (apparently Claxton questioned whether there were enough "qualified" Black candidates for those jobs). Payne also suggested that Claxton's organization attempt to enlighten, to educate fellow white officers on more civilized interactions with the citizenry- Claxton however, felt that such "enlightenment" wasn't the mission of his organization. The last point regarding cowardice that I recall was Payne's suggestion, and one I also agree with, that African-American youth act just like everyone else in police interactions; that is to say to remain attentive and respectful, and to be prepared to record names and other helpful information should some "incident" occur. Could acting like "anyone else", say like a white youth, be potentially dangerous? The answer is yes. On the President Carter issues, it seemed to me that Payne appreciated the honesty of former President Carter's remarks about the overt, national racism against President Obama that has nothing to do with policy; racism that media most often fails to confront, but Payne went further. After all, Carter is an educated man of the South in his eighties, a former Governor of Georgia: Payne's point seems clearly to be that the power of white racism is so great in America that even a courageous, aged, former President (Jimmy Carter) was reluctant (or unable) to name a single white racist. And that's power! Your point about the legendary cowardice of Black politicians needs no further amplification from me. I've been critical of some of your positions, however I agree with your assessment of Carter's view on the so-called Middle East and Israel. There can be no serious reduction in the fear of "terrorism", America's new bogeyman, or any prospect of peace in the region until Palestinian oppression is addressed. The actions of the Israeli State, so similar to those of Apartheid South Africa before Mandela's release in many ways parallel the African-American experience historically. Until the Palestinian issue is fairly resolved with land returned and a right to return with a State established, blood likely will continue to flow. Lastly, I also agree with you: Black America is in dire straits. Sorry I ran on so long.
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BROTHER MAYS: i think you have missed my points. I Have no problem with sarcasm by the way. i never said i disagreed with les paynes, critique of mark claxton, i only brought it up, or referenced it, as a lead-in to what i feel is another example, of the kind of cowardice, he felt was shown by, mr claxton and his group 100 blacks who care. Cowardice is cowardice, no matter what the circumstances, or the forum that manifests this behavior. I Know first-hand about the NYPD. if you remember in some of my previous commentary, i revealed that i was a former member of the police dept. so to be honest, im in a better position than even mr payne, to assess the actions, and the response to what les said, by mr claxton. And yes i was puzzled by the title, because to me its like saying, i cant see the forest because of the trees "you like mr payne, seem to forget, no white person is under any obligation, to speak/or stand up for black folks, let alone an old aging ex-pres like jimmy carter. By having the moral decency, and integrity, to say what he has said, is more than enough for me.
Where are our black leaders/clergy/congress people/activists? you telling me that we as a people, are so weak/afraid to say
the truth, that we have to depend on an 85 yr old, white ex-president, to name the many racists that are alive/well in america today? If that is indeed the case we are in an even worst place, then i originally thought. lastly, lets take our black president.this may be offensive to some, but mr obama himself, is displaying the same fear/cowardice, that i despise. He is in denial, about what is happening to him, and refuses to stand-up, and be the president we elected him to be. remember its not what you do, but the way you do,what you do. He can call KANYE WEST, a JACKASS, But he has to RECALIBRATE his words, with regards to a STUPID, incompetent police officer named crowley, who had no problem saying he didnt vote for obama. When obama comes down on us, he is PRESIDENTIAL. Well when he backtracks,from something that is the truth,regarding any white person,be they officer crowley,joe wilson,or george w bush,he is acting cowardly.If the top C.E.O of this country,is afraid to say what is right,is it any surprise that no one in the black political elite,will
dare say anything?in closing,with all due respect:how can we expect jimmy carter,to call out the bigots,when we ourselves wont do it? Peace to you my brother,i have a great deal of respect for you,and your opinions.
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I recall a few folks were calling Don Imus a racist. Good point, Mr. Les Payne, that people will not name racists.
I say "racist" because, in my view (as has been stated by many), only the white
population can be racist, as the people of color are not in power.
I have one pen-pal (related by unusual illness), in the South, who is
forbidden to send me anything other than email/letters about her health, due to years of fighting her racism.
Sometimes it comes out as patronizing.
As a NYC Jew, I've heard racist remarks, to which I've protested (when I was an artist-in-residence in Bensonhurst, for a private foundation in a public school decades ago. People were open about it and it caused great pain to the children who were bused in from Coney Island, who were mostly African-American and a few Latinos.)
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The health care debate is enveloped in racism. Everybody wants good health care for themselves. It's just the undeserving "others" of the world who don't seem to deserve it. And there's room for more kinds of bigotry than just racism here. Plenty of room to include hatred of the unemployed, the unskilled, migrants, mentally ill, poorly educated -- none of whom should be allowed to feel that decent health care is a basic right. The "debate," if it can be called that, has been sickening. Joe Wilson gave it a face.
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People who are critical of this president are not racists. We all should be concerned about the performance of this president. He brings no real experience to the position and surrounds himself with ethically flawed people. Telling us that his health care idea will not add to the deficit is dishonest at best.
President Obamas first choice for the Supreme Court is in fact a racist. Just picture a white candidate making the same remark she did about "better choices"- reverse prejudice is still prejudice and it is wrong.
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Hey bob:take off your blinders. You say people who criticize the president are not racists. Wrong,the truth is not every-one who criticizes the president, is racist but many of them are. You referenced the fact,that pres obama came into the presidency, with no experience. Well what experience did george w. bush have? what experience did ronald reagan have?being a governor, doesn't compare to being president, and how about sarah palin? Please explain the racist "signs equating obama with hitler, and the ugly "caricatures, refferring to pres obamas african heritage", how about the cries of we have to take back our country? tell me,what does that mean? Most of these people, that display and spew this kind of DRIVEL, are ignorant, un-educated, and irrational. In my humble opinion, anyone who would follow the lead,of idiots like a GLEN BECK, RUSS LIMBAUGH, JOE WILSON, BILL O'REILLY, all RICH WHITE MEN, i might add, are people who, are several sandwiches short of a "picnic". By the way, it was GEORGE W. BUSH, who has brought america to the brink of destruction, economically, spiritually, morally. Add to that two wars based on lies, an administration consisting of the worst, LIARS, SEX-OFFENDERS, MANIPULATORS OF LAWS, i could go on and on. Obama deserves a lot of credit, for even attempting to restore
america, back to a "credible" world entity. So bob, wake up and take off the blinders, before its to late. ok?
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