NWSF Bullet: Playin' the Played Out Race Card

I have always hated the term "playing race card." The accusation usually comes out of the mouth of a white America that holds the Queen of Hearts, the Jack of Diamonds and all the rest of those suckas.

But I have to admit that when I heard the comments that were being made about disgraced Illinois governor, Rod Blagojevich's, nominee for Barack Obama's vacant Senate seat, Roland Burris, on CNN, I yelled, "I'm so tired of you people playing the darn race card" before I could catch myself.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/12/31/senate.appointment/

Now don't get me wrong. I am a firm believer that racism, bigotry and white supremacy still make the Euro-centric world go round but in some cases playin' the proverbial race card cheapens the value of the whole deck.

This is one of those cases.

Now, nobody is hatin' on Burris because of his credentials; former Illinois Attorney General, nice suit. But it was clear from the jump that anyone who the fallen angel chose to be Senator would face more scrutiny than a tone deaf American Idol contestant wearing a "I hate Simon" t-shirt.

So why put Burris in that predicament?

Maybe, Blagojevich thought that in this new era of change it was only right that there be a black Senator in congress to champion the rights of poor and oppressed people, everywhere. To fulfill the dream of the Right Reverend Martin Luther King Jr when he said....

Aw, who am I kidding?

This was the manipulative action of a typical white male egotistical maniac using black people for personal gain !

There are thousands of cases of racial discrimination all around us, everyday, where black folks are being denied opportunities or being persecuted for merely being black at the wrong place at the wrong time.

There are also many black political prisoners still being held today for standing up for the rights of African Americans.

If we are really concerned about "the race card" we should be championing the causes of black political prisoners like Dr. Matula Shakur and Mumia Abu-Jamal.

These are examples of people who truly did not deserve the hand that they were dealt.

Is a Black President Ready For America ?

Is a Black President Ready for America?

Obama and the Revelation of Racism

Min. Paul Scott

The date is November 5th 2008 and Barack Obama, who has just been elected president of the United States, heads to the jewelry store to buy his wife a trinket of appreciation for her support. He enters the store and the sales person doesn't acknowledge him. "Well, she must be preoccupied," he thinks as he leaves. He tries to hail a cab but the driver speeds away, splashing mud on his new suit. "Poor guy must be in a hurry," Obama rationalizes as he heads into Denny's to grab a quick bite. After waiting 45 minutes to get a seat, he heads for the exit, accidentally bumping into an elderly man who mumbles a barely audible racial epithet. "Hm, I wonder why that nice gentleman thought that I was "Nigerian" he ponders as a white family who just arrived at the restaurant is immediately seated...

While many have posed the question over the last year whether or not America is ready for Obama, the real question is whether Obama, with his colorblind message of Peace, Love and Happiness is ready to face the reality of institutionalized racism still present in America in the upcoming months.

As the possibility of America's first black president goes from being a pipe dream to a probability, it is sure to open up the Pandora's Box of racism that is padlocked in the hearts of even the most liberal minded white folks. Kinda like the cool white dude who, even though he donates money every year to the United Negro College Fund, goes ballistic when his daughter brings her black boyfriend home to dinner for the first time.

(Personally, I'm just waiting for Hillary to drop the N word, accidentally during the heat of battle.)

Let's face it. A white president is one of the two things that America holds sacred, with a white Jesus running a close second.

Just because young white kids buy the majority of Snoop Dog CD's does not mean that their parents are gonna welcome a black resident into the White House.

A black mayor, maybe or even a black senator but the head of the free world? Don't be ridiculous!

Some will argue that a black president will upset what they call the "natural balance of nature," whites on top, blacks on the bottom. Also, known as the "master/slave" relationship.

The aesthetic beauty, alone, of a black president will create a sense of empowerment in African Americans, cutting across economic and social boundaries. How will CEO Bob Whitman react on November 5th if Tyrone Jackson, who has been vice president for 20 years loudly announces that, "It's time to make some changes 'round here !" Or when Shawanda who usually brings him his coffee every morning with a smile tells him that it ain't in her job description and he should fix it his darn self !

The possibilities boggle the mind.

Even without using race as a platform can the Obama campaign avoid inspiring a heightened sense of black awareness as an unattended by- product such as the '84 and '88 Rev. Jesse Jackson campaign which, arguably, gave energy to a black cultural renaissance courtesy of Spike Lee movies and Public Enemy rap records?

Also, will black Hip Hop artists be able to again use slogans like "Vote or Die" if Obama gets the Democratic nod without being charged with promoting "reverse racism" by the talking heads on Fox News?

One would hope that the Democratic Party would take the Obama candidacy more seriously than Jackson's, who was dissed at the '88 Democratic Convention. However, even with Obama in the lead, people are still saying that he would make a good "vice" president. And I am sure, even though they are trailing, Clinton and Edward's handlers are giving them the encouraging words, "come on, John, he's black!"

And we have heard, by now, the whole "Republicans are secretly backing Obama because they know they can beat him" conspiracy theory.

You can best believe that racism will rear it's ugly head in places in which you would least expect it in the upcoming months.

I wonder how many well meaning liberal white folks who are asking if America is ready for a black president realize how racist that question is in and of itself?

Min. Paul Scott's blog is nowarningshotsfired.com He can be reached at (919) 451-8283 info@nowarningshotsfired.com