OT Black Man In Minnesota Dies After Cop Kneels On His Neck/ Portland Riots

All I was saying is, Obama (and many Presidents before him) had his share of woes on the matter. I mean, considering he started SO strongly to be the seeming Great Emancipator.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/jan/13/barack-obama-legacy-racism-criminal-justice-system

 

He is talking about racism being worse. The rest is not part of the equation of the discussion. Of course Covid has made everything worse. That's a side step.


With that said, I do not believe racism was worse in 2016 than it is now. I think its about the same as it was before. The difference now is that the masses on both sides of the fence are out and about and vocal, instead of holding their views in. This has created a conflict that now makes it seem worse, but its always been there. Its just finally boiled over.

I dont think Trump has done a damn thing to help make things better or more peaceable in the states, but I do not buy that he has made us more racist. Its just the racist folk have now come out of the wood.s But they were there before Trump too.

 

The Morgan Freeman's of the World are the exception(s) to the rule...

 

Dude, I LOVE posting videos of Black people! We need to interconnect....and now!

 

You know. Maybe Trump was a good thing for race relations in this country. Look at how up front and a priority it is now. Would it have been this way with another president?

Don't take this the wrong way, but at some point it had to come to a head right? And usually the longer things simmer the harder they are to fix. So maybe this is all really for the best in the long run?

 

If there's even "really" a problem there that needs fixing.

 

I greatly admire Morgan Freeman, and not to take anything away from him and everything he has genuinely earned, but celebrity and money helps soften many of the rough edges of racism. Three years ago I spent a very (too long from a hangover point of view) afternoon and evening at Ground Zero, Freeman’s juke joint in Clarksdale MS (You should visit if you already haven’t. Stay at The Lofts at The Five and Dime). The majority of the customers appeared to be either white tourists or white locals. The employees were a mix of black and white. It was easy to tell the tourists because they of the way they addressed the blacks. Everyone seemed to get along and cooperate in general but I was struck by how patronizing the local whites were to black people. The civility had all the depth of veneer. When I commented on it to the black bar maid (a really sweet kid who made a genuinely lethal Long Island Iced Tea) she just shrugged and said, “that’s just the way it is down here”. When I opined that that just wasn’t right, she shrugged again and gave me a very sad smile. And it made me wonder why a man of Morgan Freeman stature would allow his employees to be treated that way. At the end of the day all I could figure out was that all that mattered was the financial bottom line. Whatever, it made me feel very uncomfortable in my white skin.

 

That's what they said about MLK. Another person to take the attitude of peace towards reform. His peaceful march gained national attention...and the rest is history. To me, the systemic part is more perception than anything else. Who's in charge of the system? Was Obama, the most powerful man in the world...and a Black man, no less, able to change this system? Seemingly, no. Wasn't it his battle cry from day-1? Hmmmm.....

When King led those folks to Selma, I'm sure many hearts were changed.....including plenty of white folk. Sure, he was able to get access to many top circles. But his approach was always anti-violence, anti-destruction. We need more Martin Luther Kings and Morgan Freemans in the world.

 

Thanks for sharing that. Indeed, I see some of that same ignorance. I won't even dignify that with a, "Bless their hearts."

My wife and I recently spent a couple of days in Tupelo, MS (Elvis' birthplace), an incredibly friendly town, and met this really cool old white guy that had a story for every occasion. He told us how much he admired Morgan and that they've hung out a few times. I'm not certain how close Clarksdale is from Tupelo, but next time we get down there (we love driving the Natchez Trace!) we'll be certain to check that town out....and, hopefully, Ground Zero! That old man told us that Clint Eastwood used to like dressing up in dirty farmer's clothes, hop in an old beat up pickup truck,then drive to visit Morgan (Clarksdale?). Apparently, they're close friends.

 

The more I look at it, the more I find it disgusting.

 

I'm going ballistic.

 

Keep digging that ditch...

 

This means you've never seen any videos of Donald Trump.

 

Duh. Is there anyone who doesn't get this?

 

Watch your ticker, Lanny.

 

Obviously, you didn't watch the video, but that's OK.

 

Notice that most of my threads end in a question?

Love it.

 

My Asian wife gets very little racism displayed toward her. The doctors, nurses and technicians at the VA hospital love her to pieces. Our Mormon next door neighbors think she's the best and I have to agree. I once smacked a guy good and hard who mouthed off to her. He apologized immediately because he knew I meant business even though he was substantially bigger. I would have wiped the floor with his ass had he not apologized.

 

Obviously neither did Julius.