Letters to the Editor
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Can we talk about Illegal Immigration?
It seems that working people have to endure the taunts of racism or being anti-Latino if they speak up. Nothing hurts "hardworking" highschool educated americans more, but dare we speak it's name? While the upper middle class gets their nannies and gardners the rest of us get to watch our standard of living decline.
The Donna Brazile's of the world are trained like Pavlov's dog to race bait to protect her little multi-cultural coalition. Who the hell is she?
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Which one?
You mean NASCAR? Sure. Zoom! Zoom! (Snark, snark)
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Which one?
You mean NASCAR? Sure. Zoom,zoom!(Snark,snark)
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@Ghingis Can
We can talk about illegal immigration, as long as people recognize that it isn't a all about Mexicans. The fact that Hispanics are the most prominent and visible immigrants is a result or proximity and economics. Most Hispanics are in this nation legally and many have been here longer than any other non-Native American race. And before you say that we don't have an illegal immigration problem with Canada, check again. In spite of Canada's prosperity, there are many people who cross the border to work in the U.S. But they look like us and they speak English, so nobody notices.
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Hillary's follies
I disagree with your assumption in that Hillary's remark shouldn't be misconstrued as racist. It is a racist remark, consciously or not, because she could have been uttering other assertions that will not invite such a negative raction from all over the media and political analysts.
The fact that Donna Braziel needs to send her open and direct criticism to Begala is also underlining the kind of psyche that's been dominant among the Hill camp: stop at nothing even if it could destroy the party. It's no secret that the history of the Dems has been colored by racism until only quite recently.So the fact that Hillary (again consciously or otherwise)has been deploying an overtly racist dscourse is, to me at least, hardly surprising, if strongly objectionable.
I think the Obama phenomenon still has a shocking effect on many within the Dems, maybe even to Joan Walsh herself. It needs sometimes to get used to the fact that America could no longer cling into its past. American demography, culture, vision and trajectory are undergoing transformations. Hillary and her supporters are better to get prepared for it.
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proud texax girl
it's interesting that you think that I'm an African. Is this because I was talking about racism? I'm white.
And I don't mean that because you are a Republican there is nothing at all good about you (I've stated that a little badly, but let's say my parents are Republican, my brothers are undecided)...
But I do think when you talk about black people or Africans you are talking about groups of people that are hard to generalize completely.
Have you ever read this book "Black Like Me" by John Howard Griffen? I think you might really like it. It is written by a white journalist who makes himself black by shaving his head and taking a drug that darkens his skin for a while and travels around this country. I wonder what you would think about it. It was written in the 1950's, but some of it still seems to resonate with what our society is still experiencing today. Especially if you are a social worker, I recommend it.
I worked with at-risk teenagers in Massachusettes for about a year, and I tutored children in inner city schools in Tennesee for two years. The most stunning moment I had was with an African American boy who didn't have any idea how to read...or where he lived...he didn't know what a state was. When we worked with him on maps and he could find Tennessee the state on a map he was so proud and I was so proud. He could learn! That was the amazing thing. But he was 18 and graduated from high school and no one bothered to teach him what they could have/should have taught him.
You say that never the two shall meet but we do agree on educational funding. And as for families, I agree with you but I think that it's hard to blame all the social problems that African American families have on themselves without also realizing that many face problems in our society having the same opportunity to find a job, get an education, find justice under the law as white people do. When you have generational poverty, for example, many African Americans face the same problems that white Americans in poverty face (I worked with people from more than one background too) but they also face discrimination, so I can see why many are tempted to "give up."
As for Africa, I wish you would try reading a book called "King Leopold's Ghost" by Adam Hochschild. Warning: It is pretty horrific, but it talks about some of the legacy of colonialism that helps to explain some although obviously not all of the problems that continue there today.
You are probably correct that some people on these boards have read and judged you too quickly, but please understand that in some of your comments about groups of people, these can also come across as inaccurate or not true of many, many, many people.
We are all individuals, not daubs of paint on a canvas.
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Yet Another Disappointing, Wan Posting from Joan
Joan, as usual your criticism are feeble and completely lacking in bite. How can you propose to write a article about whether democrats can talk about race when you yourself lack the courage to attack the way in which the Clinton campaign has consistently exploited race in this campaign.
Obama on the other hand has consistently taken the high road and has not exploited his race in this campaign. He's had the issue of race foisted upon him with the Rev. Wright issue (which I consider to be the media's attempt to race bait him). Nevertheless Obama responded brilliantly and elevated the level of discourse by unfurling an thoughtful speech on race in America.
You also seem ill qualified to discuss class in a manner that approaches the truth. Your critcism of Obama's "bitter" comment is laughable. Given the limited level of discourse regarding in the media, it could possibly classified as an inelegant comment, but it remains a true comment. And it was far from elitist. It's actually far more elitist and dishonest for the well paid folks in the media to be shocked at the use of an appropriate adjective like "bitter" being used to describe the sentiments of the long suffering American working class, many of whom hold multiple jobs just to keep their heads above that poverty line...temporarily. When the minimum wage is under 6 dollars, your family members and friends are dying in an unnecessary war, you can't afford to put gas in your tank to shuttle you to your multiple jobs, the price of food is increasing, and you can't make your house payments or pay off your card (which you use as fiscal life support device), "bitter" is merely a euphemism compared to what the working class in America are really feeling. I mean really what color is the sky on your planet? Purple with tartan pattern?!? The pretension and condescension in yours and many other hacks response to Obama's statements were just off the charts.
To be of any real use, your article should really have focused on how the Hillary Clinton's team, having botched their campaign for the get-go, had to resort to race baiting, and racial parsing of the electorate to even have a chance in this campaign.
Really Joan, you're news editor for christsakes. You should be held to a higher standard. Or am i just being naive.
Pierre