Paging Mr. Belafonte
It could be worse, she could have just called them house niggers:
Right Wingers will suggest substituting Jesse Lee Peterson, Larry Elder, Clarence Thomas or some other contemporary handkerchief head for Rev. Jackson. Then, it is time for me to say, ‘Gotcha!’ Right Wing African-American ‘leaders’ owe whatever status they have to the white Right. (There really isn’t a colored one.) They are groomed by it, popularized by it and paid by it. Their only connection to other blacks is the one they are being used for — appearance.
Because, after all, none of them worked to get where they are. So, they must be right wing shills. And, of course, it’s impossible that a black person may identify with the right. They’re all just tokens. Unless they’re on the left, they haven’t worked for it. After all, there are no rich white guys on the left to oppress these black upstarts and pay them off.
As for Jackson and his respect, he’ll get it when he seriously places race relations upon a higher pedestal than his own benefit.
While we engage in rhetoric on why blacks should never identify with the right wing, SayUncle estimates that in America today: 21 black people will commit murder; 22 black people will be murdered; 506 black people will be arrested for drug trafficking crimes; 1,000,000 black people are in prison; and 26,500,000 black people live in poverty.
Via Ricky.
Update: P6 did not write what I quoted, this person did. I couldn’t tell as the quote was not blocked, italicized or otherwise made to appear to be a quote. I guess maybe the “…” could have clued me in.
June 30th, 2004 at 2:49 pm
[…] Didn’t take long |By SayUncle| After receiving some grief for this post, I now point you to Exhibit A in what I mean: Jesse Jackson accused […]
June 27th, 2004 at 6:50 pm
In point of fact, she pretty much did (the person I liked to is female).
By the way, no one is making universal claims about Black folks but you. The post denigrated some specific Black folks because they are being promoted as potential leaders of the Black constituencies by people who have nothing to do with those constituencies.
And yes, that makes them shill for the Right. And as it happens, I know a few conservative Black folks who are NOT shills. But these three in particular are, and that’s why I linked approvongly to the text.
June 27th, 2004 at 7:04 pm
The ‘he’ has been corrected. You should really use blockquotes or italics or something to clue me in that it’s a quote. I guess the … should have done it.
Second, I made no universal claims about black folks. I criticized something someone wrote that appeared to generalize black folks who lean to the right as partisan shills. Now, as you have said, that may not be the case but it appears that way and the author made no effort to say otherwise. That’s generalizing in my book.
I do not consider Thomas to be a shill at all. He has demonstrated ability to get where he is. My disagreement with him on issues (and there are many) are irrelevant to the fact he is successful through his own work.
June 27th, 2004 at 8:36 pm
Uncle:
Whenever a race-related topic comes up, you post this:
I generally let it slide, but this has always bugged the shit out of me. What’s your point here? Are blacks not allowed to discuss or complain about any other issues until they resolve those that you’ve listed? Why do you keep bringing this up?
Honestly, it comes across as exceptionally condescending, and I wouldn’t be surprised if it greatly offended black people who might otherwise agree with you.
I know you well enough to know that this isn’t your point, so I thought you might want to clarify what your point actually is, or better yet re-think parroting that little spiel.
June 28th, 2004 at 4:51 am
Anyone can complain about what they want. However, when you see some of the issues that are raised by black leaders (particularly issues to rile the base), you have to wonder where the priorities are. So, they call Powell a house nigger or complain about ghettopoly but don’t deal with the fact 26.5M black folks are poor.
And i don’t care if it offends anyone. If stating trends offends someone, they’re too easily offended.
June 28th, 2004 at 9:58 am
The original author is Mac Diva.
Do a search on your own……see what she’s said about me, Lisa English, Dwight Meredith, Jesse Taylor……
Nice company you keep, P6.
June 28th, 2004 at 10:23 am
Here you go:
http://pla.blogspot.com/2003_06_08_pla_archive.html#95597062
June 28th, 2004 at 1:24 pm
This from a guy who spends a disproportionate amount of time complaining about gun rights and breed-specific legislation when we’re running record deficits, holding citizens for years without filing charges against them, and are torturing enemy prisoners. I find it humorous that you should find fault with anyone else’s priorities.
Meanwhile, I’m not sure “Mac Diva” qualifies as a black “leader,” any more than Ann Coulter qualifies as a “leader” for the right.
June 28th, 2004 at 1:33 pm
By the way, Harry Belafonte hardly counts as a “black leader” either, and he got the shit smacked out of him (figuratively, anyway) for what he said. Where’s the beef?
It seems like any time anyone in the black community raises a point you don’t like, you decide it’s time to marginalize the entire black community.
Anyway, it’s pointless and stupid.
June 28th, 2004 at 2:09 pm
So, perhaps you can tell me which fallacy this is? Regardless, it’s my blog and I talk about lots of stuff, including deficits, prisoners and detaining folks without a trial. I focus on freedoms and the fact we’re losing them. Even losing the ones that you just marginalized are a big deal. They’re the foot in the door, as it were. Gun rights are very important, there’s a reason it’s the second amendment.
And i talk about issues that affect me and are important to me (like guns and dogs) much like, say, being black is important to a black person.
RE: mac diva and belafonte: but their attitudes seem, imo, to be the result of the issues brought on by black leaders.
And i have never marginalized the entire black community.
June 28th, 2004 at 2:30 pm
Well, it doesn’t help that you only bring it up when somebody says something stupid like this. Just because you don’t notice black leaders working to improve conditions for poor blacks, and working to end black-on-black violence, etc., doesn’t mean that they aren’t doing it. And that’s the implication (intentional or not) when you copy and paste your trite little statistical blurb: that they shouldn’t be worrying about whatever they’ve just mentioned, because those other problems haven’t been solved, and they aren’t doing anything (or maybe just not enough) to solve them.
What exactly do you think it does when you pretend or imply that Harry Belafonte (or some other idiot) speaks for the entire black community?
June 28th, 2004 at 2:38 pm
I hope you’re right and they are doing it. However, most folks don’t see it. What we see is stuff like this, reparations, outrage over ghettopoly, etc.
When did i state the belafonte speaks for the entire black community? I pointed out, as you said, some idiot saying something stupid.
June 28th, 2004 at 2:45 pm
Then that’s more a beef with media coverage than it is with black leadership, I’d say.
Maybe not the entire community, but you refer to these people as “black leaders.”
June 28th, 2004 at 2:46 pm
While SayUncle works to make guns more easily accessible and remove firearm restrictions, tgirsch estimates that 27.8 people will be killed with firearms, 1,213.4 people will be injured with firearms, and 980.3 crimes will be committed using firearms today. (Sources: here, here and here)
Hey, that’s fun! Now I can see why you do it.
June 28th, 2004 at 2:48 pm
Belafonte is a nut.
The sad thing is that there are supposed “black leaders”…..I don’t know of “white leaders”. Why not just “leaders”? Is the black family living 8 houses down from mine looking for something different for their kids than I am mine? Are they expecting different outcomes from the gov’t that is there to help run the country?
Hey, we’re all people & the sooner we stop categorizing the better.
BTW, no one said Mac Diva was a leader…..just P6 feels her drivel is quotable (and notable) is troubling enough.
June 28th, 2004 at 4:02 pm
Hey, we’re all people & the sooner we stop categorizing the better.
Amen!
Hey, that’s fun! Now I can see why you do it.
But i have addressed those things in the past. When, for example, was the last time Al Sharpton took to the streets to protest black on black violence? You can, however, more easily find the last time he called someone a racist who was trying to talk about black on black violence.
June 28th, 2004 at 4:56 pm
Ricky, as long as I don’t quote her when she’s talking about you, you should have no beef with me. I’m not attacking you OR ger. I’m not defending you OR her. Because I have no beef with you OR her. You should do nothing to change that because you can only change how I relate to you.
SayUncle, I usually blockquote bloggers, but I experimented briefly with treating them like newspaper quotes. Lack of byline makes it confusing, so it’s back to the quotes, or a specific acknowledgement. And your last paragraph had the feel of a generalization but there was no literal generalizations in your post.
June 28th, 2004 at 8:46 pm
Pointing out out-of-line rhetoric need not be necessitated that I be the primary target.
If so, John Rocker deserves an apology from everyone not on the #7.
Don’t know where you designed your own rules, but something out of line is out of line, whether Rush Limbaugh says it on ESPN or you’re hyping ‘handkerchief head’.
Really….
June 29th, 2004 at 3:12 am
Show me where I back up out of line rhetoric.
June 29th, 2004 at 4:51 am
Show me where I back up out of line rhetoric.
THat’s rather what this whole post is about, don’t you think?
June 29th, 2004 at 8:03 am
All the more reason to call out Al Sharpton in particular, rather than a condescending diatribe against black leaders in general.
June 29th, 2004 at 8:05 am
Fine, P6, here’s your chance to distance yourself from the hankerchief head notation.
You up to it?
June 29th, 2004 at 3:35 pm
Nope.
The post is not about out of line rhetoric, at least mine wasn’t. Ricky’s point is he needs to whine because someone said bad things about him (that, not having seen them and not knowing him, I have no way to confirm or deny) and I’m not taking his side. I’m not taking ANYONE’S side on this personalities crap and anyone that tries to get me to do so will simply turn me against him-or-herself.
So remember my name: Prometheus 6, P6, Earl Dunovant. If, under any of those names, you see an agreement with an analysis of a news item, editorial or whatever , don’t bother disputing me on the basis of who wrote the thing. I will ignore your camplaints and generally disrespect your wishes. If you want to debate issues, that’s fine too.
June 29th, 2004 at 5:56 pm
Didn’t think so.
Nice act you had going, though.
If you ever wonder why you’re part of a minority party nowadays, that sort of mindset, obfuscation, attempted distortion & hatred is one reason.
You have a nice day now.
June 29th, 2004 at 7:11 pm
Ricky, I’ve been direct and honest. No obfuscation, no distortion (your attempt to make th etopic personal is a distortion), and no hatred…and I had PLENTY OF OPPORTUNITY to flip over at Oliver’s.
I don’t hate you. I don’t KNOW you. But if you’re going to insult me because I don’t have a problem with someone who you don’t like…
Let’s see…nah, no obcenities in someone else’s house.
I should probably find out what Mac Diva said about you. But you haven’t really inspired me to care.
June 29th, 2004 at 7:44 pm
I pointed to the handkerchief head comment, which was over the line & as SayUncle noted, was basically your entire post.
You refused to distance yourself from it and brought the whole MD note back into it.
That’s obfuscation.
You’re trying to change the premise of the discussion. That’s distortion.
Fine. Your perogative. I can understand someone not wanting to hurt the feelings of another blogger….
just don’t pretend that you’re not attached to the over the line rhetoric, as you pretty much endorsed it and it attempts to destroy the humanity of someone like Clarence Thomas. That’s hatred.
Have a nice life.
June 29th, 2004 at 8:28 pm
So let me be clear. Your problem is that my rhetoric isn’t nice enough? Even though you entered the discussion by pointing out the author of the piece I linked to?
You see, the major reason you in particular are getting no respect for me is you apparently think I’m stupid.
And I think that’s enough. Mr. SayUncle, thanks for the hospitality.
September 5th, 2006 at 12:06 pm
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