posted March 25, 2008 02:27 AM            

WTF????????
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KDSofxxabMA&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBmkvLEhNvs&feature=related

I want the White Christian male power structure gone!

replace it with Multiracial,Multifaith,bigender power structure.

that represents all races,all religions,both sexes

posted March 25, 2008 10:35 AM            

They know the difference between legal and illegal immigration. White eeevil racists.

OMG, I'm one of those who want the US borders shut down to illegal immigration, US immigration laws enforced and no amnesty for those here illegally who have already broken our laws. Well then, we know what that makes me.

If O'Bomber believes half of what you say you believe about America, he isn't going to be elected President and he sure as hell shouldn't be. As the days go by he looks more and more like a stealth candidate whose past and present associations are catching up to him.

Last time I looked, white Christians and black Christians believd in the very same God...a color blind Supreme Being. Of course, given all the other things you've had to say, I could be wrong about that too.

Wright has abandoned the Gospel of Jesus Christ, "the good news of the coming Kingdom of God" and has been preaching Black Liberation Theology in his former church. Perhaps Wright...and some others don't know America fought a civil war in the 1860s partially about slavery and lost upwards of 800,000 men...almost every one of whom was "a white guy".

I'm also sure it must have slipped Wright's mind...and some others too...that the 14th Amendment, passed in 1866, guarantees "due process and "Equal Protection" under the laws of the United States...to everyone.

They must have also missed the 13th Amendment which bans "slavery and involuntary servitude" outright. Of course, that may have happened too recently to have come to their attention...yet...in 1865.

posted March 25, 2008 10:46 AM            

BTW....I am not a Christian

My beliefs with Unitarian Universalism,New Age,Neopaganism.

I just don't believe that Wright is racist for pointing out racism.

as far as I am concerned,people have the right to believe in whatever God/Goddess they want. I believe in freedom of religion. The problem is that too many people force their religious beliefs on others. That's why gay marriages aren't allowed.

I don't think that whites are evil...especially with both my mom and girlfriend being white. I didn't say that those 2 guys were evil either. The talk about White Christian Male Power Structure is something that I strongly have a disdain for. I pointed out that I want multiracial,multifaith,both gender power structure...that means all inclusive. I don't believe that only white christian male should have all the power.

btw USA was built on immigration.

there shouldn't have been slavery in USA to begin with. Therefore, no need to free slaves in a civil war. Also, blacks also fought in the civil war.

posted March 25, 2008 12:02 PM            

Not true at all,What proof is there of that..I attend Trinity and have been a memeber for 10 years, I have gotten nothing but spiritual nourishment from Trinity and Rev Wright..He is not my politcal advisor but my spiritual advisor. What he has taught the congregation is our histroy which alot of blacks have not learned in school nor from our parents. Not touching solely on slavery but important black figures that I never learned about until I joined Trinity.

what you have heard through the media is merely sound bites..

"I just don't believe that Wright is racist for pointing out racism"

Thankyou, I agree..

posted March 25, 2008 12:54 PM            

Preaching the kind of racism which prompts Wright to say...HIV/AIDS is a bio-engineered weapon whites engineered to kill black people.

The kind of racism which prompts Wright to preach whites sell drugs to blacks to put them in prison and keep them there...under the 3 strikes law.

god damn America for...paraphrasing here...not caring about it's people...when about 60% of a 3 trillion dollar US annual budget goes to social services...for the people...oh, that doesn't take into consideration the contributions of the states to internal social service programs.

Wright is a babbling loon leftist racist and by the way, Wright is one at the forefront of "Black Liberation Theology...in a nation where black people and everyone else are already free and have been for more than 140 years.

Wright's so called spiritual message is a message of victimization. Some, who are not quite wide awake buy into this lunacy.

But then, I could go out to most any large city and find those willing to believe Bush is a shape shifting reptilian space alien. Or that they have been abducted by space aliens and programmed.

You name it and there are those prepared to believe it, no matter how much they have to distort reality in order to believe.

posted March 26, 2008 04:22 AM            

1. You cannot excuse Wright without also excusing O'Reilly. There's some truth in Wright's rantings, but there's also some truth in O'Reilly's rantings, too.

2. There is a difference between LEGAL and ILLEGAL immigration, and being opposed to BOTH is racist, while being opposed to just one (be it the legal or illegal kind) is not.

I even know of a liberal (and active in the Democratic Party) who is opposed to illegal immigration as she's concerned what it means for the unions and other issues of worker's rights (like minimum wage laws). I also know legal immigrants and those on visa who dislike illegals, including from their own country.

posted March 26, 2008 06:57 AM            

my post was not about the the immigration thing. I don't care about the immigration issue. that wasn't the point of the thread in the first place.

I said that USA was built on immigration. that could include both legal and illegal. The Native Americans were here first and then the Europeans.

I am not confusing legal immigration with illegal immigration. I know what legal immigration and what illegal immigration are. I am not stupid. Therefore,there is no need to type in caps to emphasize like you want to get it through my head like I am stupid. It's very condescending and patronizing.

jwhop didn't address the White Christian Male Power Structure comment but made leaps implying that I think whites are all evil stuff...assuming stuff about me that's not even true.

"How eeeevil those white people are. They want the immigration laws enforced and the US borders observed. They know the difference between legal and illegal immigration. White eeevil racists. "

I never even said anything remote to that. All I said was about my concern about the White Christian Male Power Structure remark and my wanting that structure gone and replaced with all inclusive power structure that is multiracial,multifaith,and bigender.
That obviously doesn't correlate with whites being racists.

I feel that a lot of people would be very concerned about O'Reilly talking about the White Christian Male Power Structure.

posted March 26, 2008 11:37 AM            

Haha, O'Reilly as the mouthpiece for the "white Christian male power structure"? Get outta town. O'Reilly has a viewership of about 2 million...total. This is a nation of more than 300 million with a white majority.

But, let's discuss what you now say you really meant to convey.

If you believe you're going to destroy the most successful society which ever existed on Earth, you're sadly mistaken because we..interpret the "we" any way you wish, aren't going to let you do that.

If you believe you or anyone else can live here and be successful and happy as separatists, fighting against America, refusing to buy into the American system of government, the economic model, the American model of civilization, then, you're sadly mistaken again.

America has a cadre of sad, old, bitter communists who wasted their lives trying to turn America into a communist gulag, with the former..now on the ash heap of history, Soviet Union as their model. They failed.

America is a welcoming nation. Untold millions have "joined" America and have become "Americans"..in more than "name only". Those who bought into the American model renounced their loyalty and alliegence to their former countries and became "Americans". They are, by and large, happy and successful in their lives.

If you want to overthrow the most successful society that ever existed, accuse America and "Americans" of being racists, uncaring, unfeeling war mongers, imperialists and everything else the "Americans in name only" have, then you're not going to be happy or successful in America. The world is a big place. Either "join" us or go find your place in the sun somewhere else. We are not going to change America to suit you.

posted March 26, 2008 12:21 PM            

My wanting a multiracial,multifaith,and bigender power structure isn't communism.

I believe in equality of all. That is humans being treated equally. I don't believe in racial,religious,nor sex superiority of any kind.

There is nothing wrong with that.

When somebody mentions White Christian Male Power Structure, it's like White Supremacy and can be racist.

I don't believe that any race is supreme.

I believe that all races are equal. I believe that all races can be together and work together. There is that chance for unity. There is the possibility to achieve Dr. Martin Luther King Jr's dream. I feel the same way about religions and genders.

that has nothing to do with communism.

also we still have a long way to go in regards to race relations. There is still a lot of racism,discrimination,bigotry against blacks. I pointed that out with a lot of things with urls.

of course,there is racism,bigotry,discrimination against other races.

there is a lot that is wrong with USA. There is serious need for education reform,mental health reform.

gays don't have all their civil rights when they can't marry each other based on laws with a religious basis. These can violate the religous rights of others .....say if couple believes in reincarnation,pastlives and believe that they were together before as a heterosexual couple or one of them was the opposite sex in a different life, and they are barred from being with each other, that could be violation of their religious rights.

That's all I am going to say.

I will agree to disagree. I am done with this thread and I am done with you. It seems like everytime I say something, you jump to conclusions and make assumptions about me. You also talk down to me. I see that you do it with other people too. That's why I never posted here until I posted about race relations issues as I was very steamed by the Rev. Wright fiasco.

you kinda scare me with your strongly singleminded conservatism.

I am glad that I am not like you.

posted March 26, 2008 01:16 PM            

The idea of a bunch of white guys...so called Christians siting around and dreaming up ways to keep their boots on the necks of minorities, including black people...is one of the most absurd concoctions I've encountered. First problem with that is "Christians" would reject those goals and objectives out of hand.

I'm a white guy...Anglo Saxon..with Christian beliefs. Never once in my life have I ever encountered that secret handshake, been invited to their "power structure" group meetings, heard anything like that preached in a Christian church or seen evidence of their existence.

I'm afraid you've fallen victim to the theology of victimization. It's not a model for either happiness or success in America or anyplace else but it is a path to power and fortune for those who preach that theology.

There are white racists and bigots in America. The black community has their fair share too as do others.

Best advice.

Focus on what you want to accomplish. Focus on your desires and dreams and go for it. Dream big and aim high and above all, don't let others derail you..either by what they say about you, say about America or say about your dreams. The only limiting factor to your success and happiness....is you.

posted March 27, 2008 11:05 AM            

http://www.tucc.org/pastoral_staff.htm

Stuff like this and other good things REV Wright has done the media never puts out there..

Rev. Wright in a different light
By William A. Von Hoene Jr.
March 26, 2008

During the last two weeks, excerpts from sermons of the Rev. Jeremiah Wright Jr., pastor for more than 35 years at Trinity United Church of Christ on Chicago's South Side, have flooded the airwaves and dominated our discourse about the presidential campaign and race. Wright has been depicted as a racial extremist, or just a plain racist. A number of political figures and news commentators have attempted to use Sen. Barack Obama's association with him to call into question Obama's judgment and the sincerity of his commitment to unity.

I have been a member of Trinity, a church with an almost entirely African-American congregation, for more than 25 years. I am, however, a white male. From a decidedly different perspective than most Trinitarians, I have heard Wright preach about racial inequality many times, in unvarnished and passionate terms.

In Obama's recent speech in Philadelphia on racial issues confronting our nation, the senator eloquently observed that Rev. Wright's sermons reflect the difficult experiences and frustrations of a generation.

It also is important that we not let media coverage and political gamesmanship isolate selected remarks by Wright to the exclusion of anything else that might define him more accurately and completely.

I find it very troubling that we have distilled Wright's 35-year ministry to a few phrases; no context whatsoever has been offered or explored.

I do have a bit of personal context. About 26 years ago, I became engaged to my wife, an African-American. She was at that time and remains a member of Trinity. Somewhere between the ring and the altar, my wife had second thoughts and broke off the engagement. Her decision was grounded in race: So committed to black causes, the daughter of parents subjected to unthinkable prejudice over the years, an "up-and-coming" leader in the young black community, how could she marry a white man?

Rev. Wright, whom I had met only in passing at the time and who was equally if not more outspoken about "black" issues than he is today, somehow found out about my wife's decision. He called and asked her to "drop everything" and meet with him at Trinity. He spent four hours explaining his reaction to her decision. Racial divisions were unacceptable, he said, no matter how great or prolonged the pain that caused them. God would not want us to assess or make decisions about people based on race. The world could make progress on issues of race only if people were prepared to break down barriers that were much easier to let stand.

Rev. Wright was pretty persuasive; he presided over our wedding a few months later. In the years since, I have watched in utter awe as Wright has overseen and constructed a support system for thousands in need on the South Side that is far more impressive and effective than any governmental program possibly could approach. And never in my life have I been welcomed more warmly and sincerely than at Trinity. Never.

I hope that as a nation, we take advantage of the opportunity the recent focus on Rev. Wright presents—to advance our dialogue on race in a meaningful and unprecedented way. To do so, however, we need to appreciate that passion born of difficulty does not always manifest itself in the kind of words with which we are most comfortable. We also need to recognize that the basic goodness of people like Jeremiah Wright is not always packaged conventionally.

The problems of race confronting us are immense. But if we sensationalize isolated words for political advantage, casting aside the depth of feeling, circumstances and context which inform them, those problems not only will remain immense, they will be insoluble.

William A. Von Hoene Jr. of Chicago is a member of Trinity United Church of Christ.

More articles

Chicago Days: Stories, photos and video from the city's rich history

Copyright © 2008, Chicago Tribune

Here's anther article about Rev Wright they think this man is a monster, I happen to know different..He is one of the most 15 influential black Pastors in the United States..
http://chronicle.com/temp/email2.php?id=BWtsFrjRyrcDnkGBmNMXfvgsTRgMmpvM

posted March 27, 2008 10:15 PM            

First, you don't like the White Christian Male Power Structure. Cool. I don't either. However, what O'Reilly was talking about was liberals not liking it, and there is as much truth to this as there is to Wright's racist and incorrect rantings.

More accurately, most liberals are about class warfare. However, they tend to see the USA as evil capitalists and so anything that foils the USA is good in their view.

One thing that annoys me about liberals is that they have a strong tendency to go defend the guilty and not the innocent. Sure, a MINORITY of liberals are true to what they preach, but the vast majority would rather defend confessed murderers than innocent people that are facing death for trying to help cancer patients (as they did when they chose to aid Tookie over Steve Kubby--but then Steve Kubby is White, and a Christian, though the Christian Right would never accept him).

And when it comes to terrorism, they go on about those locked up in Gitmo. And I can agree that due process should always be available, that the innocent DO have to worry a lot, and all that, just like liberals claim.

But how come there aren't huge demonstrations for the innocent that are picked up? Like Maher Arar and Khalid El-Masri, or even those Australians? Yes, one liberal from Mount Holyoke College really tried to sound the alarm to help Maher...but his cries were for nothing, at least until AFTER he was released and could be used to slam Bush (ie, they didn't care for him, only in what he could be used for). Liberals ignored him. There were too many guilty people they needed to defend instead. And yes, a movie has been made based on what happened to Khalid (which was similar to Maher), but that's too little, too late, just something to attack Bush with. Where were they when they needed him?

There are others. They don't know about them. And I know they lie when you say they care about them, because their actions speak louder than words.

Just as liberals stopped caring about the USAPATRIOT Act after they voted in a bunch of Democrats that voted to renew it (and rubber stamp much the rest of what Bush has done), they'll think torture is fine once it's Hillary or Obama at the top. I've watched them for too long. Again, there are exceptions to the rule, but such liberals that are consistent and principled (as opposed to "my party, right or wrong") are the exception.

It would be so refreshing if liberals stood up for the innocent and say, "THIS is why this is wrong," instead of just defending anyone they think is a threat to the USA (at least as long as the USA is headed by Bush anyway).

And one guy (which I read about in the leftist Utne, btw) joined various groups (from the NRA to ACLU) just to see who'd sell his name. He spelled his name differently each time so he'd know. The ACLU sold his name to groups out fighting Christianity. While I don't mind standing up to the Christian Right, they usually go too far in such that they're just as bad as the Christian Right in their own way. And that, again, is what O'Reilly was talking about. Not in defense of the power structure, but in condemnation of the liberals who hypocritically condemn it.

In addition, I've had liberals tell me outright that this is what they're about: class warfare, and they associate anyone black with someone poor. This is why they came out in defense of those that gang raped that jogger (a rich, white banker) in NYC, and to this day defend them, despite their confessing to it and laughing about it. Such nice people, these liberals. If you want you can read more about it in Angry Women put out by Re/Search, in the first interview with a blasphemous AIDS activist--ie, NOT a conservative--that wanted liberals hung up by their balls along with the gang rapists.

And now what one told me, and the other liberals refused to deny when I asked them if he spoke for them as well: that if I was raped by someone poor, then they'd defend the rapist in court because he should have the same defense as someone rich. But if I were to defend myself successfully, like say shooting the rapist, be the rapist rich or poor, that I should be prosecuted for taking the law into my own hands. In other words, spread my legs and open wide for the rapists. I can't believe the female liberals accepted that, but they refused to deny it. And they all seemed mystified that so many apolitical people were talking about how liberals sucked because of that one guy saying that to me, and the others refusing to separate themselves from his words after I gave them that chance to distance themselves (as I was sure he HAD to be an extremist, but apparently not).

Btw, I don't like Ann Coulter, but I prefer her to those libeals that joke about her being raped, sexually abused by her dad, and her actually being a man. It's amazing how sexist and vile these liberals are. The only people they're impressing are themselves, like monkeys that screech support at each other as they fling crap at an outsider. Even worse, it reminds me of them defending the gang raping of a rich white banker, and that scares me.

And that liberals practice such disgusting hypocrisy is what Bill O'Reilly was talking about. It wasn't about defending the White Male Christian Power Structure (at least not this time), but about liberals attacking anything they perceived as such.

Also, he's not racist as long as he's not opposed to legal immigration. What they were talking about is ILLEGAL immigration. Yes, the country was founded on immigration, but at least once the USA was formed, it was a legal process (like at Ellis Island, for example). Too many forget that, and I think you've forgotten it, given that you're calling O'Reilly a racist for this because you're ignoring the context.

And btw, if you're gonna excuse Wright and not O'Reilly, then you're not treating people equally. You're instead giving one side privilege and persecuting the other side. That's not the actions of someone who is about equality. Which again is what O'Reilly is talking about.

Btw, Jesus wasn't black. (Granted, he wasn't white either.) And if Obama isn't rich or privileged, then he'd have never gone to Harvard. And Hillary loved? Gods, what reality is he in? She is so incredibly hated, including by many Democrats. And she's been called many nasty names herself and had her gender demonized enough. And Italians are white? Depends on your definition. I know that the racist Christian Identity movement consider Italians to be "white," but one guy who had KKK relatives and they considered Italians to be dark and violent (and also Catholic). But hey, at least Wright agrees with the racist Christian Identity anyway (though as Wright says Jesus is black, CI says Jesus is white). Would you excuse McCain, saying "take what you want," if he had a "spiritual adviser" from Christian Identity that said similar things? And I could go on about the double (ie, unequal) standards...

posted March 28, 2008 01:28 AM            

My Mercury and Venus are in the actual constellation of Libra(I am not talking about Sidereal Zodiac either) even though they are in Scorpio in the tropical zodiac. My Mercury in alignment(conjunction by ecliptic longitude) with the beta star of Libra, Zuben Eschamali(Northern Scales) with 38 minutes of arc
My Venus is also in both in culminating and nadir paran with Zuben Eschamali too. According to Bernadette Brady,that star is associated with social justice. I am a strong believer in social justice,and that's why I point out about race relation issues. That's why I am also a neurodivergent,neurodiversity mental health human rights advocate/activist.
The constellation of Libra used to be observed as the Scorpion's Claws by the Greeks.
http://faculty.pepperdine.edu/dgreen/Astronomy/Resources/Constella tion_Guide/constellation_history/libra.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libra_(constellation)]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libra_(constellation)]http://en.wikipedia.or g/wiki/Libra_(constellation)
http://ye-stars.com/tmacons.htm]http://ye-stars.com/tmacons.htm]http://ye-stars.com/tmacons.htm
www.astrologos.co.uk/Pdfs/mandelareport.pdf]http://www.astrologos.co.uk/Pdfs/mandelareport.pdf]www.astrologos.co.uk/Pdfs/man
delareport.pdf

You are the one that doesn't understand me.
Rev. Wright was pointing about racism,and that doesn't make him racist nor Anti-American.

I have pointed out about racism in the past, and that doesn't make me a racist. I don't even observe July 4th as Independence Day. That doesn't make me Anti-American. The Declaration of Independence was signed for only the white people in mind. The Americans didn't free all slaves nor see the Native Americans as equals when they signed that document. The American Revolution wasn't about all people but only the white people living in the original 13 American colonies at the time. Therefore,it makes no sense for me and others who have Black African slave ancestry to observe that day as Independence Day. I don't think many Native Americans would observe that day either..especially being minorities in their own native land. I observe July 2nd as Independence Day because it is the anniversary of Civil Rights 1964. Even then,all civil rights weren't granted. The Loving vs. Virginia Supreme court ruling on June 12, 1967 that led to the end of antimiscegenation laws in all of USA. Maybe that should be Independence Day for interracial couples and people born from interracial relationships. I relate to both of those. Not being able to marry who you love because they are not the same race rules out the notion of having independence.

here is an interesting write up

Some Blind to Self-Evident Truths
Racism in America and Other Uncomfortable Facts

By LINN WASHINGTON, Jr.

The same day that Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama stood in Philadelphia delivering a stirring speech on racism in America, authorities shut down a section of I-95 in that city to conduct emergency repairs on a crumbling support beam.

In many ways this serious infrastructure damage to the East Coast's main north-south interstate highway--causing that closure--is as symbolic of conditions in America as the race-based 'Rev. Wright' controversy triggering Obama's speech.

America's infrastructure--from bridges to railroads to pipes delivering drinking water--is crumbling because of chronic inattention.

The chronic inability of America to really address racism has corroded its lofty promises since before the drafting of the U.S. Constitution in Philadelphia over 200-years ago. Obama began that speech quoting from the Preamble to the Constitution.

Remarks regarding racism in America by Rev. Jeremiah Wright--the retiring pastor of the Chicago church Obama attends--have become fodder in this year's contentious presidential campaign.

Yet, is Wright wrong about racism--as Obama stated in that speech--or is he right? Are Wright's remarks treasonous as some critics proclaim or do his remarks reveal truths that for many are not self-evident?

Many slam Wright for raising a historically correct albeit uncomfortable fact: the role of racism in America's founding.

The US Constitution that Obama quoted at the outset of his speech enshrined slavery--a point the Senator discussed in the first dozen sentences of that speech.

America's first president, George Washington, kept slaves in the Executive Mansion he occupied in Philadelphia during part of his presidency.

The location of the stable where Washington's slaves lived in Philadelphia is literally at the entrance of the current pavilion housing the iconic Liberty Bell. That stable housing Washington's slaves was steps from Independence Hall, the building where America's Founders approved the Constitution.

Rev. Wright is not the first black to provoke criticism for criticizing constitutional shortcomings.

Legendary US Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall sparked a firestorm in 1987 when he criticized imperfections in the Constitution--like slavery and barring women from voting--during a speech in Philadelphia celebrating the bicentennial of that document.

Critics call Rev. Wright un-American for assailing America's skewed priorities like spending for prisons while short-changing public education and job creation.

During the 1990s Pennsylvania authorities built eleven new prisons yet only one new public high school in Philadelphia, Rev. Wright's hometown. According to Pa government statistics, most of the people sent to that state's prisons are unemployed and undereducated.

Two months ago, America celebrated a national holiday honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the civil rights activist who consistently urged America to rise above its racism--a central theme of Obama's recent speech.

Dr. King provoked intense criticism during the last year of his life for assailing America's skewed priorities, particularly funding a foreign war (Vietnam) while failing to fully attack poverty from Harlem to the hollows of Appalachia.

On the day of his death Dr. King was in Memphis, TN fighting against employment discrimination, a recurring problem in America.

The first major race riot in Philadelphia (1834) involved whites rampaging to bar blacks from jobs.

Six years ago, protests against discriminatory exclusion of minority and female construction workers cast a shadow over completion of the Constitution Center--the magnificent multi-media museum where Obama delivered that Philadelphia speech.

Just weeks before Obama's speech, clashes over continuing construction industry racism dominated deliberations about expanding Philadelphia's Convention Center.

Forty years ago--Feb 1968--the Kerner Commission issued recommendations calling for massive action "backed by resources" to address America's infamous legacy of racism--recommendations never fully funded due partly to siphoning resources into the Vietnam War.

Consistent calls over the past decade for addressing America's crumbling infrastructure encounter claims that 'no-cash' is availabledespite the federal government's ability to find over $500-billion for the Iraq War that hit the five-year mark this month.

Rebuilding America's crumbling infrastructure provides an excellent vehicle for addressing a concern critical to the nation's viability that also energizes the faltering economy with jobs and business opportunities.

The $6-billion cost Pa's Governor recently said is needed to modernize I-95 through his state alone equals a few months of Iraq War costs.

Pumping cash into needed infrastructure renovations can also address the poverty and prejudice underlying America's perennial 'race' problem.

Federal funding for infrastructure upgrades is not unique.

During an economic downturn in the mid-1970s, for example, the federal government distributed two billion dollars to state and local governments for public works projects to stimulate the national economy.

Interestingly, the exclusion of minority contractors from that stimulus resulted in a minority set-aside that prompted a lawsuit from Philadelphia-area contractors backed by trade unions claiming reverse discrimination despite their receipt of over 99% of the initial allocation and 90% under the set-aside provision.

Recounting America's past and present racism by Rev. Wright or others does not brand all whites racist, assert that racism is a barrier to all blacks or ignore the nuances of inequities confronting too many Americas regardless of color or creed.

When America's Founding Fathers issued their Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia over two centuries ago, many in England were unaware of the "history of repeated injuries" that document listed against their King.

Forty years ago, the Introduction of the Kerner Commission report noted white Americans "never fully understood what [blacks] can never forget"--the role of white institutions in sustaining America's racially discriminatory society.

It may surprise some, but blacks want to move beyond racism also. Blacks have always wanted to move beyond racism but racism blocks advance.

In January 1800 Congress debated a petition signed by 73 Free Blacks living in Philadelphia asking for the extension of America's 'promises' of freedom and justice to persons of color. That petition was the first from blacks seeking an end to slavery. Additionally, that petition specifically sought congressional protection from the illegal practice of kidnapping Free Blacks into slavery.

Congress rejected that petition.

During debate on that petition at Independence Hall--two blocks from the Constitution Center--one congressman proclaimed "Thank God for slavery." Rev. Wright is pilloried today for asking God to "damn America" for its racism during a church sermon years ago.

In February 2008, the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination faulted the US for failing to address racism against its racial minorities--criticism receiving scant news media attention in comparison to the orgy of coverage on comments by Rev. Wright.

Irrespective of Rev. Wright's remarks, it's wrong to put America's long festering race woes solely on the back of Barack.

Instead of Hillary Clinton or John McCain showing self-proclaimed leadership by denouncing the duplicity of using Obama's candidacy as a barometer for racism in America, the pair remained silent, savoring political advantage.

Politics like race is a time tested weapon of mass deception exploited to smoke-screen public attention important issues.

Near the dawn of the 20th-Century, power-brokers and their puppet politicians' foisted Jim Crow segregation to splinter inter-racial populism rising in the South at that time.

The 1896 US Supreme Court decision legalizing segregation resulted from a discrimination lawsuit in New Orleansthe city where the pathetic federal response to flooding a few years ago again exposed many Americans to realities of race/racism.

Forty years ago, the Kerner Commission declared the time was now to make good on the "promises of American democracy to all citizenswhite and black, Spanish-surname, American Indian and every minority group."

The Kerner Commission, like Obama in his speech, spoke about "unfinished business" of this Nation.

The issue today is as it was at the time of the 1968 Kerner Report and that 1800 congressional debate: making the promises of democracy real for all Americans.

We have the way. Do we still lack the collective will?

Linn Washington Jr. is a columnist for The Philadelphia Tribune.

http://www.counterpunch.org/washington03252008.html

posted March 28, 2008 01:45 AM            

Why shouldn't they stay here? It's their country too. They worked their butts off to help whites build this country against their will since 1619. A lot of blacks fought in the Civil War, thanks to Abraham Lincoln making that possible. Why shouldn't they get a peace of the pie? Why shouldn't the Native Americans for that matter? Even after the Civil War ended, the Klu Klux Klan terrorized blacks. They had abolutionist Frederick Douglass speaking out against injustice. Black Codes were passed that denied Blacks their civil rights. Blacks wanted to stay in the country because they felt that USA was a country where everybody is equal. Frederick Douglass stressed that. He was dead set against going to Africa. He was half black from his mother and half white from his father. His 2nd/last wife was White. This was a man who believed in interracial harmony to the utmost even though he was a former slave who knew what it was like to get his back whipped. He wanted to live the American Dream. He and many other blacks felt that they had a chance to make it in USA like the whites. They considered themselves "Americans", but unfortunately they were not treated like Americans.

What about the Native Americans? If they are unhappy here in USA, where should they go?? They were here first. They aren't called Native Americans for nothing. Calling them Indians is geographically incorrect as they are not from India. Christopher Columbus called the people of America, Indios because he thought he was in India after sailing west. He believed the world was round,and that's why he sailed west. Amerigo Vespucci showed that North America,South America was actually different continents and not India. America was named after him.

It is argued that after 143 years after emancipation,blacks grumble about "The Man" keeping them down and whining about how badly they are treated by white institutional racism.

Emancipation didn't end racism,bigotry,mistreatment,discrimination. The Jim Crow laws can tell you that. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. had to lead the civil rights movement to inspire a nation and that led to blacks in the South getting Civil Rights with President Lyndon B. Johnson signing the Civil Rights acts. It took a Southern Black Man to lead the Civil Rights movement. It makes sense. After all, he experienced the racism,bigotry,discrimination,mistreatment of being Black in the South. It's often people that have experienced things themselves that make powerful advocates and activists.

The things that I have pasted with urls in RACISM IS ALIVE thread confirm that racism is alive and well today. It's not about being angry about slavery. It's about the racism,discrimination,and bigotry that goes on here in USA right now. Heck..I am not angry about slavery. I know that I wouldn't be here because of slavery. I can't go back to Africa like some racists whites tell people because my roots aren't just from Africa. They are from Portugal,England,France,Italy,Germany,Spain, Israel, as well as right here in America. USA is a meltingpot, multiracial,multiethnic,multifaith country, and I am glad that I am here. However,that doesn't mean that I shouldn't be in discontent with what goes on here in USA. Racism is a big problem. Absence of slavery and no Jim Crow laws doesn't rule out racism,discrimination,and bigotry.

Another thing is that the average Black is not even all Black. They are tryhybrid mixture of Black,White,and Native American. Blacks and Native Americans mixed. Some blacks joined native american tribes. Many whites raped black women,and so they had mixed children,and that's why there are many lightskinned blacks like Reverend Wright. It was very common for whites to rape their black women slaves. Rape is a form of power like everybody says. For a white master to rape his black slave woman was telling her that he had power over her. That's why a lot of blacks don't like it when a white man and black woman are in a relationship. A lot of whites don't like it when a black man and white woman in a relationship because they view it as the black man getting back at the white man by messing with their women. That's how a lot of people think. Many more people thought that a long time ago. Some indentured white servants even mated with blacks,and so there were interracial relationships without rape. Interracial relationships were considered a threat to society. That's why they passed antimiscegenation laws. That's why they passed the one drop rule(if you are part black,you're black). They wanted to keep the white race pure. Many lightskinned mixed people passed for white too. like my stepfather's mother. Many whites have black in them. I read that a quarter of whites in USA have some black ancestry. Heck...James Watson,the Nobel Prize winning DNA scientist that claimed blacks were less intelligent than whites, was shown to have some black ancestry. Of course,yesterday scientists,doctors(including psychiatrists) came up with theories of blacks being genetically inferior.

As you know, I am born from an interracial relationship. I am a representative of the Great American meltingpot. I defy the one drop rule. I don't like society fitting me into a box. I don't like blacks fitting me into the race box,and I don't like whites fitting me into a race box. Many other multiethnics don't like it either. Tiger Woods is a perfect example. He refers to himself as Cablinasian. I consider myself American,but I embrace all my heritage and background. I am not blind and naive when it comes to racism,bigotry,discrimination,and mistreatment in our country. I won't hesitate to speak out against it. I won't hesitate to defend people who are slammed because they speak out against it. Things need to change. Leaving the country isn't going to change things.

posted March 28, 2008 01:52 AM            

Racism IS STILL A BIG ISSUE

I agree with a lot of what Reverend Wright said. I disagree with him about the AIDS being created for blacks though.

A lot of White ministers have said things so controversial and bigoted,they don't get condemned like a black preacher who focus on the racism issue and points out that racism is still alive and well.

"The United States is doing little to comply with an international
agreement to end racial discrimination and has downplayed widespread
racism, charged an American Civil Liberties Union report released
yesterday." http://www.dailynewstribune.com/news/x773671370

DEKALB, Ill.---- Black students attending Northern Illinois University say they feel unsafe after racial slurs and references to shootings earlier this year at Virginia Tech were found scrawled on a bathroom wall.
The university, which was closed Monday as a security precaution, is scheduled to reopen Tuesday. http://www.suntimes.com/news/metro/691002,niu121107.article

Racial microaggressions add up, researchers say http://www.newsobserver.com/105/story/820146.html

African-Americans are 10 times more likely than whites to serve prison terms for drug offenses, even though the rate of drug use doesn't differ significantly between the two groups, a new national study says. http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07345/840756-85.stm?cmpid=localstate.xml

Overlooking racism may lead to undiagnosed mental health disorders http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2003-09/vu-orm091503.php

Being African American increases a mentally ill individual’s chance of being diagnosed with schizophrenia and reduces the likelihood of that person’s receiving an affective disorder diagnosis. While data have pointed to this fact for several years, psychiatrists are beginning to assess the ramifications of this finding for blacks and how it adds a host of complicating factors to their treatment. http://pn.psychiatryonline.org/cgi/content/full/36/10/17

CONCLUSIONS: The study suggests the possibility of racial and other disparities in the diagnosis and treatment of patients with schizophrenia and comorbid affective and anxiety disorders. Although various causal explanations are plausible, all point toward the need for enhanced cross-cultural competence at all levels of mental health care, especially in the diagnosis and treatment of comorbid psychiatric illnesses. http://psychservices.psychiatryonline.org/cgi/content/full/52/9/1216

Causes, Effects, and Resolutions for Misdiagnosis of African Americans in the Mental Health Sector http://freednerd.wordpress.com/2006/10/

The (Mis)Diagnosis of Mental Disorder in African Americans
Harold W. Neighbors, Associate Professor, Department of Health Behavior and Health Education, School of Public
Health, The University of Michigan www.rcgd.isr.umich.edu/prba/perspectives/winter1997/hneighbors.pdf

Clinical Depression And African Americans http://www.health.am/ab/more/clinical_depression_and_african_americans/

Dec 1, 1999 | It took only a few weeks on the job for William Lawson to notice that there was something very strange going on. The psychiatrist had just joined the staff of the John L. McClellan Veterans Hospital in North Little Rock, Ark., and already he had seen patient after patient -- dozens of them, as it turned out -- with the same ill-fitting diagnosis. All African-American men, all veterans of combat in the Vietnam War, they suffered from terrifying nightmares, gut-twisting anxiety, flashbacks of fighting -- classic symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Yet they'd been assigned a very different condition: schizophrenia. http://dir.salon.com/story/books/it/1999/12/01/schizo?sid=476003

Are schools failing black boys?
Eight percent of the children in America’s public school are black boys, yet their representation in the nation’s special education classes is nearly twice that: 15 percent. African American males are also three times likely as white males to be enrolled in special education programs for "mildly to moderately mentally retarded," according to a 1992 report released by the Office of Civil Rights. http://www.terry.uga.edu/~dawndba/4500FailingBlkBoys.html

The purpose of this research was to evaluate the degree to which Black students are overrepresented and misplaced in special education, as a result of current testing and placement practices, insufficient parental knowledge of special education rights and responsibilities, and the need for more cultural diversity training for teachers. The two subjects interviewed were a special education teacher/chairperson and a principal; both employed in the same school. A class of special education students was unknowingly observed. Interview responses show little satisfaction with the current methods of placing Black children into special education programs. The observations demonstrated that the majority of the children did not need to be placed there. The use of Black psychologists, increased parental support and knowledge, a non-biased test for placement and increased preservice and inservice training was recommended. http://www.inmotionmagazine.com/peterz1.html

Minority parents want prompt diagnosis of child autism
In Hartford, Merva Jackson, executive director of the nonprofit African Caribbean American Parents of Children With Disabilities, said she believes that many black children with autism-spectrum disorders are misdiagnosed as having defiant, oppositional or behavioral problems.
"I think it's just a lack of knowledge" on the part of black families about what autism is, said Jackson, as well as cultural insensitivities or racism on the part of doctors and other professionals who evaluate children. http://www.dailytidings.com/2007/0525/stories/0525_bp_autism.php

According to the federal Household Survey, "most current illicit drug users are white. There were an estimated 9.9 million whites (72 percent of all users), 2.0 million blacks (15 percent), and 1.4 million Hispanics (10 percent) who were current illicit drug users in 1998." And yet, blacks constitute 36.8% of those arrested for drug violations, over 42% of those in federal prisons for drug violations. African-Americans comprise almost 58% of those in state prisons for drug felonies; Hispanics account for 20.7%. http://www.drugwarfacts.org/racepris.htm

Job applicants with African-American sounding names are far less likely to get a callback as are similarly qualified "white" candidates, according to researchers at the University of Chicago and MIT, who submitted 5,000 bogus resumes in response to job ads. Half the resumes bore stereotypical African-American names such as Latonya and Tyrone; half sported traditionally Anglo names like Kristin and Brad. http://www.psychologytoday.com/rss/pto-20030430-000001.html

Can a 'Black' Name Affect Job Prospects?
Can a Black-Sounding Name Hurt Your Career Prospects?
But capable doesn't always matter. A job recruiter for Fortune 500 companies in northern California revealed an ugly secret."There is rampant racism everywhere. And people who deny that are being naïve," said the recruiter, who spoke on the condition her name would not be used. http://abcnews.go.com/2020/Story?id=124232&page=3

Thomas is one of eight black women suing the department store for racial discrimination after she allegedly was told that Dillard's beauty salons charge black customers more than whites because of the "kinky" nature of "ethnic" hair. http://www.courttv.com/people/2006/0425/dillardssalon_ctv.html

Black Customers File Discrimination Lawsuit Against Waffle House http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/georgia/news-article.aspx?storyid=31028

(CNN) -- Most Americans, white and black, see racism as a lingering problem in the United States, and many say they know people who are racist, according to a new poll.
But few Americans of either race -- about one out of eight -- consider themselves racist.
And experts say racism has evolved from the days of Jim Crow to the point that people may not even recognize it in themselves. http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/12/12/racism.poll/index.html

WASHINGTON (AP) - President Bush acknowledged persistent racism in America and lamented the Republican Party's bumpy relations with black voters as he addressed the NAACP's annual convention Thursday for the first time in his presidency.
"I understand that racism still lingers in America," Bush told the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. "It's a lot easier to change a law than to change a human heart. And I understand that many African-Americans distrust my political party." http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D8IVQT000&show_article=1

The researchers performed fMRIs on 13 white participants. During the scans, participants viewed a series of faces -– some of which could be consciously seen and some of which were presented so quickly that participants did not report seeing them. The researchers found that for the ultra-brief subliminal images, amygdala activity was greater in response to black faces than to white faces, suggesting that at least initially, black faces provoked a stronger emotional reaction than white faces. http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2004-12/hu-bar120804.php

Stereotypes of black people http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stereotypes_of_Blacks

Despite the fact that half of all blacks say they have experienced discrimination in the past 30 days, whites persist in believing that we know their realities better than they do, and that black complaints of racism are the rantings of oversensitive racial hypochondriacs. Blacks, we seem to believe, make mountains out of molehills, for Lord knows we would never make a molehill out of a mountain! http://www.guerrillanews.com/threads/13568/why_whites_think_blacks_have_no_problems

Being Black and Beautiful Against Stereotypes http://www.blackamericaweb.com/site.aspx/entertainment/index/beautiful042507

Affirmative Action: Who Benefits? http://www.apa.org/pubinfo/affirmaction.html

No Surprise - Skin Tone Study Reveals Preference for Light-Skinned Employees http://www.blackamericaweb.com/site.aspx/bawnews/skintonestudy925

WASHINGTON (NNPA)- Some thought color discrimination among African Americans had pretty much blown away with the black cultural revolution of the 1960s and 1970s.
But according to sociologists, academics and other measures of the nation's social barometer, the issue is still rooted in day-to-day life. http://www.frostillustrated.com/atf.php?sid=2381

Failed party promotion underscores color divide between US black women
Yasmine Toney describes herself as a "dark-skinned sista." So when she heard about a recent club promotion in Detroit, allowing all-night free admission to black women with fair or light skin, she was incensed.
"It's offensive," Toney said. "It continues a negative stereotype."
"I'm perceived to be aggressive, assertive, attitude-having ... a lot of things, because my complexion is darker," said the 24-year-old receptionist. http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/10/19/america/NA-GEN-US-Skin-Tone.php

Obviously Wright made some true statements. I feel that a lot of people are blind to the reality of what blacks(especially darkskinned blacks) still deal with in regards to racism,discrimination,bigotry,and mistreatment. When a black preacher points it out,they are seen as crazy,racist,and God knows what else. I have a big problem with that. I am very concerned about how people can be so naive and be in denial about racism. We still have a long way to go to achieve Dr. Martin Luther King Jr's dream.

I want to reiterate that all racism,discrimination,bigotry,and mistreatment is wrong......it doesn't matter if you're Black,White,Native American,Asian,Pacific Islander,or whatever a person's background is.

posted March 28, 2008 03:45 AM            

The United States is doing little to comply with an international agreement to end racial discrimination and has downplayed widespread racism, charged an American Civil Liberties Union report released yesterday.

In 1994, the United States signed a United Nations treaty to end all forms of racial discrimination.

But according to the ACLU, when the United States updated the international community on its progress in April, it "swept under the rug" problems such as racial profiling, the disproportionate incarceration of minorities, and civil rights violations against immigrants.

Vera Dias-Freitas, a Framingham businesswoman who has lived in Massachusetts for 19 years, said that despite being an American citizen she has faced more discrimination and anti-immigrant sentiment in recent years.

"There are kids being beat up in school, storefronts being thrown stones at, things that didn't happen before," she said, attributing the change to increased media and public focus on illegal immigration.

"At a certain point they will have to accept us because they are on the wrong side of the equation ... we are just trying to live our lives."

Local and state governments are not doing enough to eradicate racism where it has been identified, said a panel of ACLU staff members and minority rights advocates at a State House press conference yesterday.

Among the examples of inaction cited by the report was a 2000 Massachusetts law, which found that 249 of 341 local police departments showed racial disparities in traffic stops, but allowed the departments to stop reporting disparities after one year.

"You tend to think you're addressing the issues as necessary, but we can do a better job (enforcing) anti-discrimination laws," said state Rep. Peter Koutoujian, D-Waltham, who serves on a legislative commission to end racial health disparities in Massachusetts.

Koutoujian said the commission has impressed him with the effect of discrimination on health, stress, and every aspect of life.

"Racism is far more than individual racial prejudice - racism is cultural and structural ... institutional discrimination against people of color by people we call white," state Rep. Byron Rushing, D-Boston, said at the press conference.

Rushing said that Massachusetts is not exempt from the ACLU's criticism, pointing to the lawsuit that a black ACLU employee won last week after being unfairly detained at Logan Airport because of his appearance.

A federal jury ruled that state police had unlawfully stopped King Downing, coordinator of the ACLU campaign against racial profiling, without reasonable suspicion. The jury did not award Downing any damages.

"For many Americans, human rights violations are about what happens over there, in some remote corner of Africa called Darfur, perhaps, or in an Iraq prison cell ... respect for universal human rights begins at home," said Steven Watt, one of the ACLU report's authors at the press conference.

Watt said the information that the U.S. State Department submitted to the United Nations in April was replete with inaccuracies.

Yet the U.S. report discusses many of the same problems identified by the ACLU: bias against people of Arab and South Asian descent, subtle and overt discrimination against minorities, and disparities in education and achievement, among others.

U.S. State Department spokeswoman Nicole Thompson said she had not seen the ACLU report, but that "the Department of State has taken a firm stance on human rights over the years both at home and abroad." http://www.dailynewstribune.com/homepage/x773671370

posted March 28, 2008 03:49 AM            

Poll: Most Americans see lingering racism -- in others
POSTED: 8:43 p.m. EST, December 12, 2006
Story Highlights
• Poll shows most Americans consider racism a problem
• Blacks more than twice as likely to call racism a "very serious" problem
• Almost half of whites and blacks say they know someone who is racist
• Only a few of either race say they are racially biased themselves
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(CNN) -- Most Americans, white and black, see racism as a lingering problem in the United States, and many say they know people who are racist, according to a new poll.

But few Americans of either race -- about one out of eight -- consider themselves racist.

And experts say racism has evolved from the days of Jim Crow to the point that people may not even recognize it in themselves. (Watch how many blacks are still afraid to stop in a Texas town Video)

A poll conducted last week by Opinion Research Corp. for CNN indicates that whites and blacks disagree on how serious a problem racial bias is in the United States.

Almost half of black respondents -- 49 percent -- said racism is a "very serious" problem, while 18 percent of whites shared that view. Forty-eight percent of whites and 35 percent of blacks chose the description "somewhat serious." (See the poll results)

Asked if they know someone they consider racist, 43 percent of whites and 48 percent of blacks said yes.

But just 13 percent of whites and 12 percent of blacks consider themselves racially biased.

The poll was based on phone interviews conducted December 5 through Thursday with 1,207 Americans, including 328 blacks and 703 non-Hispanic whites.
Blind to bias?

University of Connecticut professor Jack Dovidio, who has researched racism for more than 30 years, estimates up to 80 percent of white Americans have racist feelings they may not even recognize.

"We've reached a point that racism is like a virus that has mutated into a new form that we don't recognize," Dovidio said.

He added that 21st-century racism is different from that of the past.

"Contemporary racism is not conscious, and it is not accompanied by dislike, so it gets expressed in indirect, subtle ways," he said.

That "stealth" discrimination reveals itself in many different situations.

A three-year undercover investigation by the National Fair Housing Alliance found that real estate agents steered whites away from integrated neighborhoods and steered blacks toward predominantly black neighborhoods.

"Racism here is quite subtle," e-mailed CNN.com reader Blair William, originally from Trinidad, who now lives in Lexington, South Carolina. "I think that the issue is twofold. I believe that white America's perception of blacks is still generally negative based on their limited interaction with blacks, whether this is via the media or in person. ...

"On the other hand, black Americans need to stop devaluing themselves and their people," he added. "Another race can only respect you if you respect yourself and currently, I find that blacks still devalue and disgrace each other and themselves."
Applicants' names may sway employers

Racism also can be a factor in getting a job. (Watch how poll respondents feel about race and the top job in the U.S. Video)

Candidates named Emily O'Brien or Neil McCarthy were much more likely to get calls back from potential employers than applicants named Tamika Williams and Jamal Jackson, even though they had the same credentials, according to a study by the University of Chicago.

Racial bias may even determine whether you can flag a cab.

New York Times writer Calvin Sims recently wrote about his experiences in the city.

"If a cab passes you by, obviously it is frustrating, it's degrading and it's just really confusing, because this is akin to being in the South and being refused service at a lunch counter, which is what happened in the '60s and '70s," he said.
'Differences ... make this world exciting'

The Opinion Research poll shows that blacks and whites disagree on how each race feels about the other.

Asked how many whites dislike blacks, 40 percent of black respondents said "all" or "many." Twenty-six percent of whites chose one of those replies.

On the question of how many blacks dislike whites, 33 percent of blacks said "all" or "many," while 38 percent of whites agreed -- not a significant difference statistically because of the poll's 5 percent margin of error.

About half of black respondents said they had been a victim of discrimination because of their race. A little more than a quarter of whites said they had been victims of racial discrimination.

"I am a firm believer that racism is rampant in the United States," wrote another CNN.com reader, Mark Boyle, of Muncie, Indiana.

"The concept of 'race' is flawed," he added. "Our differences as human beings are what make this world exciting and interesting. If we were all of the same culture, how boring would that be? The world needs to take a page from the atmosphere in Hawaii -- the most racially diverse place in which I have lived."
http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/12/12/racism.poll/index.html

posted March 28, 2008 03:59 AM            

"I understand that racism still lingers in America," Bush told the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. "It's a lot easier to change a law than to change a human heart. And I understand that many African-Americans distrust my political party."

That line generated boisterous applause and cheers from the thousands in the audience, which generally gave the president a polite, reserved reception.

"I consider it a tragedy that the party of Abraham Lincoln let go of its historical ties with the African-American community," Bush said. "For too long, my party wrote off the African-American vote, and many African-Americans wrote off the Republican Party."

Black support for Republicans in elections has hovered around 10 percent for more than a decade. In 2004, Bush drew 11 percent of the black vote against Democrat John Kerry.

Most of the president's remarks were greeted with smatterings of applause, but many in the convention center stood up to clap when he urged the Senate to renew a landmark civil rights law passed in the to stop racist voting practices in the South.

"President Johnson called the right to vote the lifeblood of our democracy. That was true then and it remains true today," Bush said.

Bush, joined by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and chief political adviser Karl Rove, spoke as the Senate debated a bill to approve a 25-year extension of expiring provisions of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. The House has passed the bill, and the Senate was expected to pass it quickly, propelled by a Republican push to increase the party's credibility with minorities.

For five years in a row, Bush has declined invitations to address the NAACP convention. This year, he said yes. He was introduced by NAACP head Bruce Gordon.

"Bruce was a polite guy," Bush said. "I thought what he was going to say, `It's about time you showed up.' And I'm glad I did."

He knew it would be a tough audience. According to AP-Ipsos polling conducted in June and July, 86 percent of blacks disapprove of the way Bush is handling his job as president, compared with 56 percent of whites who disapprove.

Bush said he saw his attendance at the convention as a moment of opportunity to celebrate the civil rights movement and the accomplishments of the NAACP.

"I come from a family committed to civil rights," Bush said. "My faith tells me that we are all children of God—equally loved, equally cherished, equally entitled to the rights He grants us all.

"For nearly 200 years, our nation failed the test of extending the blessings of liberty to African-Americans. Slavery was legal for nearly 100 years, and discrimination legal in many places for nearly 100 years more."

The White House denied claims that Bush's appearance was a way of atoning for the government's slow response to Hurricane Katrina. The Rev. Jesse Jackson and some black elected officials alleged that indifference to black suffering and racial injustice was to blame for the sluggish reaction to the disaster.

Bush, noting that he has met several times with Gordon, and that they have discussed Katrina. "We've got a plan and we've got a commitment," Bush said. "It's commitment to the people of the Gulf Coast of the United States to see to it that their lives are brighter and better than before the storm."

Bush also recalled his visit in June to Elvis Presley's Graceland mansion in Memphis, Tenn., with Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi. While in Memphis, the two made an unscheduled stop at the National Civil Rights Museum at The Lorraine Motel, where the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in 1968. Bush and Koizumi emerged from a tour to stand on the spot on the motel balcony where King was slain.

They were joined by former NAACP head Benjamin Hooks.

"It's a powerful reminder of hardships this nation has been through in a struggle for decency," Bush said. "I was honored that Dr. Hooks took time to visit with me. He talked about the hardships of the movement. With the gentle wisdom that comes from experience, he made it clear we must work as one. And that's why I have come today."

Toward the end of his remarks, two protesters interrupted the president, shouting inquiries about Vice President Dick Cheney and the situation in the Middle East. "Don't worry. I'm almost done," Bush whispered to NAACP board chairman Julian Bond, one of the dignitaries with him on the stage.

posted March 28, 2008 06:03 AM            

Also perhaps you may read following:

posted March 31, 2008 01:38 AM            

Because I didn't say he was wrong about everything, I said there was some truth to what he said...just as there's some truth to what O'Reilly said.

And how many sermons have you heard from white bigots? Spouting such views sure affected David Duke enough to ruin his chances of getting elected.

And btw, anything on there about black racism against other blacks? My best friend got grief because she was "too dark," and also "too white" in how she was smart and wasn't afraid to show it. Another person near and dear to me is from a mixed racial background, technically called "blasian," and she was treated so badly that it hurts just to think about. And I'm not sure which have treated her worse, Asian Americans are blacks. Whites weren't nice to her very often either, but they weren't as mean.

As a runaway, I saw race hating and prejudice go in every conceivable way. Everyone has cause to complain. Wright has cause to complain, and so does O'Reilly, but that doesn't mean that everything they say is right, or helpful, or anything to inspire hope (as it just perpetuates that hate instead of fighting it).

And btw, since you're so much into equality, how do you personally feel about Obama's stance against homosexual equality?

Don't know what I'm talking about?
http://www.advocate.com/exclusive_detail_ektid39485.asp

quote:

---

“I was reminded that it is my obligation not only as an elected official in a pluralistic society, but also as a Christian, to remain open to the possibility that my unwillingness to support gay marriage is misguided,” Obama wrote in his recent memoir, The Audacity of Hope.

But Obama’s audacity is not only his unwillingness to support the issue, but also his misunderstanding and misuse of the term “gay marriage.” The terminology “gay marriage” not only stigmatizes and stymies our efforts for marriage equality, but it also suggests that LGBT people’s marriages are or would be wholly different from those of heterosexuals, thus altering its landscape, if not annihilating the institution of marriage entirely.

---

quote:

---

“I must admit that I may have been inflected with society’s prejudices and predilections and attribute them to God, ” Obama writes in his book. “My work with pastors and lay people deepened my resolve to lead a public life. ... I had no community or shared traditions in which to ground my most deeply held beliefs. The Christians with whom I worked recognized themselves in me; they saw that I knew their Book and shared their values and sang their songs.”

Religion has become a peculiar institution in the theater of American politics. Although its Latin root, religio, means to bind, it has served as a legitimate power in binding people's shared hatred in both red states and blue states, both intentionally and unintentionally.

Obama’s The Audacity of Hope is not a must-read for LGBT voters because he fails to fully comprehend or sincerely commit to the issue of social justice for all Americans. He does not tackle head-on how the religious rhetoric of this political era has played an audacious role in discrimination against LGBT people, leaving us with little to no hope, his rhetoric included.

“In years hence, I may be seen as someone who was on the wrong side of history. I don’t believe such doubts make me a bad Christian, ” Obama writes.

---

Maybe you can't see how marriage and civil unions differ?
http://lesbianlife.about.com/cs/wedding/a/unionvmarriage.htm

Can't see why it ultimately matters? Here's just one example of why it matters:
http://www.365gay.com/Newscon08/02/022208fla.htm

quote:

---

Janice Langbehn and Lisa Pond had planned to take their three children on a family cruise. The Olympia, Washington couple had been together 18 years and with their children were looking forward to the holiday. But just as they were about to depart on the cruise from Miami, Florida. Pond, a healthy 39-year-old, suddenly collapsed. She was rushed to Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami with Langbehn and the children following close behind.

But once Langbehn and the children arrived at the hospital the hospital refused to accept information from her about Ponds’s medical history.

Langbehn says she was informed that she was in an antigay city and state, and she could expect to receive no information or acknowledgment as family.

A doctor finally spoke with Janice telling her that there was no chance of recovery.

Other than one five minute visit, which was orchestrated by a Catholic priest at Langbehn’s request to perform last rites, and despite the doctor’s acknowledgement that no medical reason existed to prevent visitation, neither she nor her children were allowed to see Pond until nearly eight hours after their arrival.

Soon after Pond'’s death, Langbehn tried to get her death certificate in order to get life insurance and Social Security benefits for their children. She was denied both by the State of Florida and the Dade County Medical Examiner.

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Now maybe you think, "At least Obama is better than them Republicans." Overall, you're still wrong. It was Bill Clinton that pushed through the Defense of Marriage Act, and the ONLY Democrat to call it gay bashing was Kerry, and even he recanted and said he supported it. Plus, many Republicans also support civil unions, because they know it's a sham. However, one Republican did what Obama couldn't do, the ability to see people without prejudice:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5PrGNhczw9U

He's a minority. But then, there are few Democrats that would promote what he did, too, most of them, like Obama (and formerly Sanders himself before he realized it was wrong and unfair) promote "civil union alternatives." Which is the equivalent of offering drinking fountains for one group of people and a filthy, dirty "separate but equal" drinking fountain for everyone else.

Does Wright ever speak on this? And how do you personally deal with Obama promoting this prejudice and inequality? Have you written to Obama about your concerns?