This morning at a press conference, President Obama addressed the issues surrounding Trayvon Martin… Many seemed to be happy that he went more into depth about his feelings around this and he acknowledged that this case was about racial profiling.. He also noted that work must be done so trust in the system can be regained… He raised the question as to how the outcome would’ve been different if Trayvon Martin was white..Obama noted that he would’ve been Trayvon 35 years ago..
He wants to figure out ways young African-American men can made to feel as if they a part of society. He wants us all to do some soul searching.. He doesn’t think its productive when politicians try to lead conversations on race..He feels it leads to stilted conversations..He also thinks race relations are getting better
Your thoughts on Obama’s remarks? How do those remarks square away with the fact that he is praising NYPD commissioner Raymond Kelly for his work in New York.. Kelly who is main proponent for Stop and Frisk is now being considered to lead Homeland Security. One has to wonder if Obama spoke to this issue because this Saturday there are protests scheduled in over 100 cities..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qdPX2z_dDjY
Below is the full text of Obama’s remarks
PRESIDENT OBAMA: Well, I wanted to come out here, first of all, to tell you that Jay is prepared for all your questions, and is very much looking forward to the session.
Second thing is, I want to let you know that over the next couple of weeks, there are going to obviously be a whole range of issues – immigration, economics, et cetera. We’ll try to arrange a fuller press conference to address your questions.
The reason I actually wanted to come out today is not to take questions, but to speak to an issue that’s obviously gotten a lot of attention over the course of the last week, the issue of the Trayvon Martin ruling.
I gave a preliminary statement right after the ruling on Sunday, but watching the debate over the course of the last week, I thought it might be useful for me to expand on my thoughts a little bit.
First of all, I want to make sure that once again I send my thought and prayers, as well as Michelle’s, to the family of Trayvon Martin, and to remark on the incredible grace and dignity with which they’ve dealt with the entire situation. I can only imagine what they’re going through and it’s remarkable how they’ve handled it.
The second thing I want to say is to reiterate what I said on Sunday, which is there are going to be a lot of arguments about the legal – the legal issues in the case. I’ll let all the legal analysts and talking heads address those issues.
The judge conducted the trial in a professional manner. The prosecution and the defense made their arguments. The juries (sic) were properly instructed that in a – in a case such as this, reasonable doubt was relevant. And they rendered a verdict.
And once the jury’s spoken, that’s how our system works.
But I did want to just talk a little bit about context and how people have responded to it and how people are feeling.
You know, when Trayvon Martin was first shot, I said that this could have been my son. Another way of saying that is Trayvon Martin could have been me, 35 years ago.
And when you think about why, in the African-American community at least, there’s a lot of pain around what happened here, I think it’s important to recognize that the African-American community is looking at this issue through a set of experiences and a – and a history that – that doesn’t go away.
There are very few African-American men in this country who haven’t had the experience of being followed when they were shopping in a department store. That includes me.
There are probably very few African-American men who haven’t had the experience of walking across the street and hearing the locks click on the doors of cars. That happens to me – at least before I was a senator.
There are very few African-Americans who haven’t had the experience of getting on an elevator and a woman clutching her purse nervously and holding her breath until she had a chance to get off.
That happens often.And, you know, I – I don’t want to exaggerate this, but those sets of experiences inform how the African-American community interprets what happened one night in Florida.
And it’s inescapable for people to bring those experiences to bear.
The African-American community is also knowledgeable that there is a history racial disparities in the application of our criminal laws, everything from the death penalty to enforcement of our drug laws. And that ends up having an impact in terms of how people interpret the case.
Now, this isn’t to say that the African-American community is naive about the fact that African-American young men are disproportionately involved in the criminal justice system, that they’re disproportionately both victims and perpetrators of violence. It’s not to make excuses for that fact.
Although, black folks do interpret the reasons for that in a historical context. They understand that, some of the violence that takes place in poor black neighborhoods around the country is born out of a very violent past in this country. And that the poverty and dysfunction that we see in those communities can be traced to a very difficult history.
And so, the fact that sometimes that’s unacknowledged adds to the frustration. And the fact that a lot of Africa-American boys are painted with a broad brush and the excuses given, “Well, there are these statistics out there that show that African-American boys are more violent,” using that as an excuse to then see sons treated differently causes pain.
I think the African-American community is also not naive in understanding that, statistically, somebody like Trayvon Martin was probably, statistically, more likely to be shot by a peer than he was
by somebody else.So – so folks understand the challenges that exist for African-American boys. But they get frustrated, I think, if they feel that there’s no context for it, or – and that context is being denied. And – and that all contributes, I think, to a sense that if a white male teen was involved in the same kind of scenario that, from top to bottom, both the outcome and the aftermath might have been different.
Now, the question, for me, at least, and – and I think for a lot of folks is, “Where do we take this? How – how do we learn some lessons from this and move in a positive direction?”
You know, I think it’s understandable that there have been demonstrations and vigils and protests and some of that is just going to have to work its way through as long as it remains nonviolent. If I see any violence, then I will remind folks that that dishonors what happened to Trayvon Martin and his family.
But beyond protests or vigils, the question is: Are there some concrete things that we might be able to do? I know that Eric Holder is reviewing what happened down there, but I think it’s important for people to have some clear expectations here. Traditionally, these are issues of state and local government. The criminal code and law enforcement is traditionally done at the state and local levels, not at the federal levels.
That doesn’t mean, though, that as a nation, we can’t do some things that I think would be productive. So let me just give a couple of specifics that I’m still bouncing around with my staff, you know, so we’re not rolling out some five-point plan, but some areas where I think all of us could potentially focus.
Number one, precisely because law enforcement is often determined at the state and local level, I think it would be productive for the Justice Department, governors, mayors to work with law enforcement about training at the state and local levels in order to reduce the kind of mistrust in the system that sometimes currently exists.
You know, when I was in Illinois, I passed racial profiling legislation, and it actually did just two simple things. One, it collected data on traffic stops and the race of the person who was stopped, but the other things was it resourced us training police departments across the state on how to think about potential racial bias, and ways to further professionalize what they were doing.
And, initially, the police departments across the state were resistant, but actually they came to recognize that if it was done in a fair, straightforward way that, it would allow them to do their jobs better and communities would have more confidence in them, and in turn be more helpful in – in applying the law. And, obviously, law enforcement’s got a very tough job.
So that’s one area where I think there are a lot of resources and best practices that could be brought to bear, if state and local governments are receptive, and I think a lot of them would be. And let’s figure out, are there ways for us to push out that kind of training.
Along the same lines, I think it would be useful for us to examine some state and – and local laws to see if it – if they are designed in such a way that they may encourage the kinds of altercations and confrontations and tragedies that we saw in the Florida case, rather than diffuse potential altercations.
I know that there’s been commentary about the fact that the “Stand Your Ground” laws in Florida were not used as a defense in the case.
On the other hand, if we’re sending a message as a society in our communities that someone who is armed potentially has the right to use those firearms, even if there’s a way for them to exit from a situation, is that really going to be contributing to the kind of peace and security and order that we’d like to see?
And for those who – who resist that idea, that we should think about something like these Stand Your Ground laws, I just ask people to consider, if Trayvon Martin was of age and armed, could he have stood his ground on that sidewalk? And do we actually think that he would have been justified in shooting Mr. Zimmerman, who had followed him in a car, because he felt threatened? And if the answer to that question is at least ambiguous, then it seems to me that we might want to examine those kinds of laws.
Number three – and this is a long-term project – we need to spend some time in thinking about how do we bolster and reinforce our African-American boys? And this is something that Michelle and I talk a lot about. There are a lot of kids out there who need help, who are getting a lot of negative reinforcement. And is there more that we can do to give them the sense that their country cares about them, and values them, and is willing to invest in them?
You know, I’m not naive about the prospects of some grand new federal program. I’m not sure that that’s what we’re talking about here. But I – I do recognize that, as president, I’ve got some convening power. And there are a lot of good programs that are being done across the country on this front. And for us to be able to gather together business leaders and local elected officials and clergy and celebrities and athletes and figure out, how are we doing a better job helping young African-American men feel that they’re a full part of this society and that – and that they’ve got pathways and avenues to succeed? You know, I think that would be a pretty good outcome from what was, obviously, a tragic situation. And we’re going to spend some time working on that and thinking about that.
And then, finally, I think it’s going to be important for all of us to do some soul-searching. You know, there’s been talk about, should we convene a conversation on race? I haven’t seen that be particularly productive when, you know, politicians try to organize conversations. They end up being stilted and politicized, and folks are locked into the positions they already have.
On the other hand, in families and churches and workplaces, there’s a possibility that people are a little bit more honest and at least you ask yourself your own questions about, am I wringing as much bias out of myself as I can? Am I judging people as much as I can based on not the color of their skin, but the content of their character? That would, I think, be an appropriate exercise in the wake of this tragedy.
And let me just leave you with – with the final thought that, as difficult and challenging as this whole episode has been for a lot of people, I don’t want us to lose sight that things are getting better. Each successive generation seems to be making progress in changing attitudes when it comes to race. It doesn’t mean we’re in a post-racial society. It doesn’t mean that racism is eliminated.
But, you know, when I talk to Malia and Sasha and I listen to their friends and I see them interact, they’re better than we are. They’re better than we were on these issues. And that’s true in every community that I’ve visited all across the country. And so, you know, we have to be vigilant. And we have to work on these issues. And those of us in authority should be doing everything we can to encourage the better angels of our – nature as opposed to using these episodes to heighten divisions.
But we should also have confidence that kids these days, I think, have more sense than we did back then and certainly more than our parents did or our grandparents did, and that along this long and difficult journey, you know, we’re becoming a more perfect union, not a perfect union, but a more perfect union.
All right?
Thank you, guys
for the first time… the nation had a taste of our ‘black’ president… and for one of the first times in a long time obama was able to address the black experience in america without having to give a hoot about being labeled a ‘black’ president. he was able to speak of his experiences as a man who happens to be president, and who happens to be black.
Reblogged this on Zebulon Miletsky: From Boston to Brooklyn and commented:
In Wake of Zimmerman Verdict, Obama Makes Extensive Statement on Race in America
Understoon #2
All I’m going to say, ‘My President Is Black’….
it need to be said!
I think for the most part, this is Obama’s way of trying to pacify the issue of race in America by saying that we should not be compelled to be angered or feel that because the jury made it’s decision that we should just be in acceptance that yet another black youth in this country was murdered by a vigilant wanna-be policeman, and the police department stood by him and this murderer would have got away with it, and would had never went to court if the people didn’t take a stand and demanded that Zimmerman stand before a court of law before a judge for killing young Trayvon because of his “suspicion” that he was up to no good. Many of the people rose up and said that this is not acceptable then, and we say it is not acceptable now.
I guess much of Obama’s speech wasn’t displayed from a teleprompter, as he spoke more slower and sounded like he stumbled on most of his statements, but here are some of my own questions and comments on certain points of his “surprise press conference” speech.
1. (Obama) First of all, I want to make sure that once again I send my thought and prayers, as well as Michelle’s, to the family of Trayvon Martin, and to remark on the incredible grace and dignity with which they’ve dealt with the entire situation. I can only imagine what they’re going through and it’s remarkable how they’ve handled it. The second thing I want to say is to reiterate what I said on Sunday, which is there are going to be a lot of arguments about the legal – the legal issues in the case. I’ll let all the legal analysts and talking heads address those issues. The judge conducted the trial in a professional manner. The prosecution and the defense made their arguments. The juries (sic) were properly instructed that in a – in a case such as this, reasonable doubt was relevant. And they rendered a verdict. And once the jury’s spoken, that’s how our system works.
(Comment) Well, that is basically what you had said in the first speech where he addressed the nation, saying that “We are a nation of laws, and a jury has spoken,” and he also urged all Americans to “respect the call for ‘calm reflection’ from two parents who lost their young son. And as we do, we should ask ourselves if we’re doing all we can to widen the circle of compassion and understanding in our own communities.” Calm reflection? So I ask, how do you calmly reflect on the acquittals of those who had killed many black and brown youth in many major cities in the US, including Lamarley Graham in New York, a couple weeks before Travon, murdered without a trial when police claimed that he was running from them. Or Manuel Loggins, Jr. a former marine in San Clemente, when an Orange County Deputy Sherriff shot and killed him as his two daughters waited for him. The stories changed from he feared for the girls to he feared for his life, (another excuse to why so many were killed because they ‘feared’ for their lives), and the DA ruled the killing ‘unfortunate, but justified’. Or do we “calmly reflect” on the murder of Oscar Grant, murdered by the BART transit police in Oakland, California, or Timothy Russell and Mellissa Williams, a modern day lynching of 137 bullets to two human beings. How do you ‘calmly reflect’ that even little children are not spared from these atrocious acts, like Kimani Gray, (a 16 year old killed by NYPD undercover cops), or 7 year old Aiyana Jones in Detroit, Michigan during a botched police drug raid. Or sir, how do I quietly reflect on my own sister’s death by an off-duty cop who decided, just as these and other murders by law enforcement to execute them all without trial, but their murderers have been acquitted and is still on the job, still walk the streets and is still wear a badge. I guess I have a conscience enough to know that accountability for one’s actions should have some merit, but the one thing in this line is painfully true and need not just quiet reflection, but deeper understanding of the truth behind “that’s how (the) system works.
2. (OBAMA) And when you think about why, in the African-American community at least, there’s a lot of pain around what happened here, I think it’s important to recognize that the African-American community is looking at this issue through a set of experiences and a – and a history that – that doesn’t go away.
(Comment) Now in this point of the speech where he then tries to explain of the experience and the interaction of black society, where “there are very few African-American men in this country who haven’t had the experience of being followed when they were shopping in a department store. That includes me.” or of women clutching their purses in elevators or, in a nutshell, that he had minimal experience of being profiled or of ever being ‘stopped and frisked’, or of ever being in jail or prison as 2.5 million are incarcerated, more than anywhere in the world for lesser crimes than taking a life of human beings without a trial, and then still is free to walk the streets after being deemed as only ‘doing their job.’ ‘And it’s inescapable for people to bring those experiences to bear.’ I guess if it happened to one of your own, then it would be more of a conscience mindset then it just being a reflection, calm or otherwise…anger! But then he goes on…
3. (OBAMA) The African-American community is also knowledgeable that there is a history racial disparities in the application of our criminal laws, everything from the death penalty to enforcement of our drug laws. And that ends up having an impact in terms of how people interpret the case.
(comment) Here is where we can come to much debate on the history of black people in America, rather it is where it began with slavery, which has been an indispensable part of the foundation for the “freedom and prosperity” which stands in stark contradiction to the fact that without slavery, the bourgeois-democratic freedoms, or prosperity would not be possible, or as still today, this struggle to be “created equal” in such a polarized America, as racism is still very much alive, and the new Jim Crow has emerged. Of course, many of the laws, such as ‘stop and frisk’ for example, were implemented to get guns and drugs off the streets. But just as the so-called “drug wars” never stopped the flow of drugs, but it became more of a way on poverty, and a tool of oppression, which can be argued that there were great strides and much have been done, but these accomplishments of history and because there is a black president means that America has become ‘progressive’ to race in any form or fashion.
Of course in Obama saying of course, to put it back on the black community to speak on how black boys and our sons are viewed in this society.
4.(OBAMA) And the fact that a lot of Africa-American boys are painted with a broad brush and the excuses given, “Well, there are these statistics out there that show that African-American boys are more violent,” using that as an excuse to then see sons treated differently causes pain. I think the African-American community is also not naive in understanding that, statistically, somebody like Trayvon Martin was probably, statistically, more likely to be shot by a peer than he was by somebody else. So – so folks understand the challenges that exist for African-American boys. But they get frustrated, I think, if they feel that there’s no context for it, or – and that context is being denied. And – and that all contributes, I think, to a sense that if a white male teen was involved in the same kind of scenario that, from top to bottom, both the outcome and the aftermath might have been different.
(comment) So here we go with the “it is in their nature” bullshit, or blaming the youth for what is wrong with society today. Well if you want to go by stats. then why are many of our youth a statically being killed by police, or even “black on black” crime, which many argue that why is that harsh subject is seemingly ignored when it comes up as opposed to how Trayvon was so revered in the media, and his character smudged by the media to be such an ‘irredeemable monster” I don’t diminish neither type of crime, but when you have 313 cases of those murdered without trial by police, security guards and vigilantes, paid for by your tax dollars, and most taxpayers were victims of black on black crimes, but the focus never much goes beyond crime rather that focusing on the conditions and the desperate measures that cause many of the youth, as well as others, who are locked out and never had a real chance of living the so-called American dream. And I am a father who has a grown son, and I have a newly born grandson, and how could I ever look at the both of them of being on the wrong side of a “statistic” that you would be killed by a policeman’s bullet because statistically, you are deemed ‘suspicious’, ‘criminal’, or your cell phone is a gun, or you are dangerous when you wear a hoodie and a trigger happy cop kills him because he ‘feared for his life’? So is it better to teach my son or grandson to be obedient to authority, and live down to racial stereotypes, or if you pull up your pants you will be more acceptable to society, or if you conform to standards, then you will not be subject to being harassed, confronted, chased, beaten, or killed by such authority that have take the lives of many before and after the brutal murder of Emmitt Till in the 50’s, or to teach them about the history of America, and how they are not a statistic of racism, nor are they’re born as if their fate is sealed, to be destined to a life of pain and misery?
5 (OBAMA) Now, the question, for me, at least, and – and I think for a lot of folks is, “Where do we take this? How – how do we learn some lessons from this and move in a positive direction?”
(comment) I don’t know if I think that “quiet reflection” is going in any direction, and the “positive direction” would be more purposeful to me if we got rid of the very system that exploit, execute, and imprison black and brown people, as well as unjust wars and needless killings around the world, and the torture of prisoners in our prison system, but that is just the brunt of many other discussions and debates.
The rest of this speech to me is just rambling rhetoric to how we should respect the name of Trayvon and his family and that (He) “think it’s understandable that there have been demonstrations and vigils and protests and some of that is just going to have to work its way through as long as it remains nonviolent. If I see any violence, then I will remind folks that that dishonors what happened to Trayvon Martin and his family”. I guess this is our warning shot as the militarized police will be ever vigilant like the Delta forces on the protesters, like the occupy movement in their protest against systematic crimes by this government. This was not as he described in his earlier speech as a “tragedy” but it was a cold-blooded murder, and the people are outraged. Then he offers his suggestion to how the nation can be productive beyond protest and vigils, as in being able to trust the very laws and departments of state, local and federal government that had failed us in this trial, to also push more legislature to take away our rights of speech, to make an issue around gun violence in his campaign for stricter gun control ( “if we’re sending a message as a society in our communities that someone who is armed potentially has the right to use those firearms, even if there’s a way for them to exit from a situation, is that really going to be contributing to the kind of peace and security and order that we’d like to see?”) or other rights under the constitution that seem to be broken every time someone dies or is detained or is judged without a trial by those who uphold this “nation of laws”. And of course, the president let’s us conveniently know who has the “power” (I do recognize that, as president, I’ve got some convening power.”), In his final remarks he make the suggestion that he “think it’s going to be important for all of us to do some soul-searching.” Well sir, I have had some conscience thought before you made a speech to pacify my thinking to believe that if I leave it up to the ones who justify their action as “business as usual” (“the police departments across the state were resistant, but actually they came to recognize that if it was done in a fair, straightforward way that, it would allow them to do their jobs better and communities would have more confidence in them, and in turn be more helpful in – in applying the law. And, obviously, law enforcement’s got a very tough job.”). And on the last paragraph of his speech, comes a bit of a contradiction to me. (” But we should also have confidence that kids these days, I think, have more sense than we did back then and certainly more than our parents did or our grandparents did, and that along this long and difficult journey, you know, we’re becoming a more perfect union, not a perfect union, but a more perfect union.”) Well, I guess on the graves of many of our children whom. if were given a chance instead of a judgment to be murdered without trial, then maybe they would have much more of a potential to be smart, productive, and would live a good life, but look at the world as many of our children have the good sense to know that there was not and would be a “perfect union” under this system, as the new group of youth in Florida called the Dream Defenders are aware that something got to give, and we need a change, not a “Obama” change, but a systematic change.
Thats crazy mane #12
He’s certainly been very reticent to discuss these issues for obvious reasons. Even though a lot of what he said is standard stuff that we all know, it is really important that someone that Americans cannot ignore made these statements. It would have been a real shame if he encouraged all those “post-racial” folks by never discussing the black experience in America for reasons of political expediency.
Obama is good at speaking to white folks through black folks
thats whats up u know it #12
Reblogged this on David Chery.
wonder whats next
Couple of things:
Looked like it was a very forced speech : not free flowing and definitely not from the heart. Straight teleprompter read.
Though not African – American ; I spent an amount of time I guess you could say around the businesses in the underworld of NYC. I can read someone better than they can read themselves. I know when someone is talking from the heart within about 25 seconds by body language or tone of voice.
Yeah nice speech but quit frontin Jack.
Al Sharpton on the other hand is pretty well straight. Whether you like him or not he believes in what he says !!! He has been reborn suddenly. But dude that Jenny Craig diet I don’t know. Mix in a little White Castle or spend a week in Mulberry Street dining- you got the bucks for it and your lookin emaciated.
Peace,
Nick
Whether people want to admit it or not, there has been tremendous progress in race relations in America over at least the past 50 years or so. This is not to say that racism doesn’t still exist. But today, opportunities that allow people to effectively deal with racism exist more than ever before. Who can or can’t , who does or doesn’t take advantage of these opportunities, and the plethora of reasons why they do or don’t is an entirely different subject. The progress lies in the fact that the opportunities exist. For example, this website that we’re interacting on is one of many vehicles that exists today to help counter racism that didn’t exist 20 or 30 years ago.
With all the fueled back and forth bickering going on across the country, it’s easy to get caught up in that, and miss out on some of the progress being made. And most times, it’s not earth shattering, “news worthy” progress, but progress all the same. It all counts!!! One of the facts of the matter is that blacks have been getting murdered in this country for years by people who up and holler self-defense. And seemingly more times than not, especially when the assailant isn’t black, that defense works, and the rest of the matter is just swept under a rug. That repetitive scenario has not only helped weaken the faith of many black people in the judicial system, but also helped create a nonchalant attitude towards American black homicide (life) in America. That’s exactly what happened at first with Zimmerman. This story didn’t go national until at least a month after Martin was murdered. By then, Zimmerman had been released, and as far as the police and the D.A. were concerned, the case was closed. Once it went national, they basically had to re-group, and put on a trial that they unfortunately knew they couldn’t win from the get-go.
It may not seem like much now, but with all of the national and international publicity that this situation and it’s aftermath have created, one thing is for sure. It’s not going to be as easy as it has been in the past to up and holler self-defense when murdering a black person. Knowing that you might end up in a very costly murder trial and having your life forever changed irregardless of the outcome are deterrents. Believe me when I say that the only people that want to go through lengthy trials are lawyers for the most part.
Whether you like and believe in Obama or not, that fact that he personalized his speech as a black man to the millions of interracial viewers across the world, helps to start changing the way the country and world view an American black life (esp. young male). That’s progress in a continuing struggle!!!
jubiq
Jubiq,
I agree dialogue is progress.
http://youtu.be/Ebu6Yvzs4Ls
Hello Peoples…….
At face value, on the surface, what Obama said in his speech was meaningful. At least he addressed the issue. It brings me a SMALL relief to see him, speaking to the nation, discuss how Tryavons’s case is yet another example of the serious racial inequality still pervasive in this country. Yes, I feel his speech was very tempered and had ulterior strategic goals….he is a politician after all. Reading the text of his speech, I have to admit, he says some real, potent things. He speaks some truth about both the blatant and more subtle racism that is experienced by black folks in this country every day. My long standing lament is that he is just talking. People are just listening. He seemed to show some real emotion on his face at points, and that is touching and encouraging. Clearly I am trying to be positive. What kills me is that here, in the 2013!…2013!!, something like this can still happen. I really actually thought that, at the least, Z would get involuntary manslaughter……at least. C’mon.
Before I heavily digress, Obama’s speech was positive. He related on a personal level to the larger functions of what happened to Trayvon. I think that’s huge. His speech seemed to be a small glimmer of raw and honest emotion. He tossed out some age old ideas of how to make black men feel that this nation cares about them. (What about black women?) The problem here is that racism in America goes so deep, its is America inherent. Obama addressed The Trayvon Martin case directly. Unfortunately, the collective will move through this experience. Obama will focus on other things. Something like this will happen again to another black man. Perhaps, generationally we will truly get past this ugly American trait of oppressing black people. It’s great to see the president speak on this issue specifically, but it would be greater to see him TAKE ACTION. An action, I feel, would do much more to speed the evolution of America’s consciousness above racism and all its forms.
To Camel Fathoms,
I’m just curious, exactly what type of actions do you think the President of America can take that will “speed the evolution of America’s consciousness above racism and all its forms”?
jubiq
I think it is really simple; stop supporting all the special interest groups and their racial propaganda…Sometimes this blog included….Take President Obama for example….He says he is a African American right….right…But why doesn’t he say he is African -Irish American? Because he is not going after the Irish Vote. He is 50/50 now he says he is christian but supports all Muslim Brotherhood activities and funds terrorists…..So is he 50/50 there too?
How about this for unity?
Are you born and raised American?
Then you are American!
Not Gay American, not african american, not mexican american, not scottish american, not irish american or any other type of this……..
Unity Starts when people think in Unity, WE ARE AMERICANS….NOW George Washington was my 13th great grand father so I was raised on our rights especially with firearms…….never an accident, never a killing and I exercise and practice to ensure I am a responsible gun owner with safes so no one could get hurt with any firearms.
If you want to run around and say I am Black I am black I am a victim then you will drive yourself into victim hood and thus all the internal tension, someone is not keeping you down…if you think about it politicians are keeping everyone down doesn’t matter the color of your skin just the ducketts in your bank…..either democrap or republicant…
The more separation politicians can get the more power they have over the people.
Just a history lesson why we are at it: Irish and African People have a lot more in common than you think. Matter of fact back in the slave days Irish were slaves too…with less value than purchased slaves…WOW…so when Irish Slaves and Black Slaves united it generated what is referred to as the Black Irish. 90% of African Americans today are Black Irish if you were born and raised here as well as the previous generation. http://www.rhettaakamatsu.com/irishslaves.htm
So since we have the same background and African American Slaves were treated better you think we would have better relationships.
I would love you feedback on that?