Thursday, July 31, 2008

The Race Card

Paul Dirks :
I'm going to repost something I put on another thread. Lets look at it again within the context of race.

http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Politics/story?id=5487322&page=1

Michelle Cottle of the New Republic noted, "Americans don't like Presidents who think they are better than the average guy."

Think about the above statement for a moment.

We are a nation of 301 Million People. We are hard at work selecting the ONE PERSON who will represent us all and be the voice of America and the Leader of the Free World and yet we're supposed to believe that this person should be no better than "the average guy"

I'm trying to come up with adjectives but I'm unable to get past 'pathetic' 'sick' or 'insane'.....

If we look at it within the context of racial attitudes, it starts to make more sense but still not enough.

Under what circumstance can we think that the President of The United Sates is too smart, or too successful or too classy? Only if he doesn't already have the proper family membership required to earn those attributes.

Why do we ignore McCains $500 dollor shoes?

Same reason. He has the right to wear expensive shoes by virtue of his birthright.

Even if race has nothing to do with it, there is obviously a priveleged class in America and anyone who deigns to exhibit it's attributes without earning it's membership gets the whole weight of the "Presumptious - Elitist - Celebrity - Rock Star" slur directed at him.

1 comment:

Soulsonsix said...

"Well said" - from an average, underrepresented, stultifyingly pigeon-holed Black American man.

Thanks for the objective post!