On The View this morning, a discussion of Jesse Jackson's FOX News hot mic Barack Obama "nuts off," N-word rant left Elisabeth Hasselbeck in tears.
Goldberg tries to explain to Hasselbeck that the use of the N-word is a black thing.
Goldberg repeatedly used the word in the exchange.
From NewsBusters:
On the news of Jesse Jackson’s use of the "n" word, the conversation quickly developed into the double standard involved between a white and black person’s use of the word. Sherri Shepherd and Whoopi Goldberg admitted there is a double standard, but added there should be. Sherri Shepherd said she uses the word "as a term of endearment," but said to Barbara Walters "I don’t want to hear it coming out of your mouth."
Elisabeth Hasselbeck, puzzled by the obvious double standard, questioned how she can explain to her young daughter why she is not allowed to use that word, but other kids are, when she noted "we live in the same world," Whoopi went off on a tangent that blacks and whites do not live in the same world. Whoopi, who also dismissed Elisabeth Hasselbeck’s concerns as "very white," added Elisabeth just does not "understand."
I wish Obama had been at the table for that discussion.
Would he, the great uniter, the transcendent one, side with Goldberg or Hasselbeck?
WWOD -- What would Obama do?
_________________
Transcript from NewsBusters.
11 comments:
While I don't regard Elizabeth as a great mouthpiece for the conservatives, she was right with her comments. The "what should we teach our children?" was brilliant. Maybe Dopey needs to understand that one the reasons there continues to be a divide in this country is because of the double standard that exists among blacks.
God forbid if Obama becomes president. It is amazing to me that black people can say anything they want and the white person is the racist. But the black people (not all I will say) can call white people cracker, whitey, etc. and the white people are not suppose to say anything because we are still the racist. If you think there is a racial divide now, just wait if Obama wins the presidency.
Jesse Jackson was shown to be a world-class hypocrite.
Whoopi was shown to be an apologist for him and a promoter of a double standard that negatively impacts our society.
She's so angry and condescending when discussing racial issues. She thinks she can shut up Elisabeth by simply saying that she couldn't possibly understand.
That's not productive dialogue.
Hasselbeck's a nut simply for participating on a television program featuring a host of inane females boasting the collective intelligence of a lone orangutan.
Whoopi, Michelle O., and Jesse (God bless 'em!) will end up costing Barack the election, and they'll then punctuate their incredible racism, arrogance, and stupidity with the garden-variety one-size-fits-all statement suggesting that Americans didn't elect Obama only because Caucasians are evil.
Small wonder that giant, mineral resource-rich Africa is drought-stricken, war-torn, and starving, while tiny Europe is evolving into a monolithic empire whose technological and financial achievements are unequalled anywhere on earth.
Thanks anyway, Whoopi--but, personally, I don't want to live next to you for any reason. It's all about brains, honey. Read between the lines. You can keep your L.L. Cool J and I'll stick with my Mozart. Fair enough?
I honestly don't know how Elisabeth Hasselbeck can get up in the morning and go to work.
Obama does have a problem. He can get a speech writer to give him centrist, reassuring words to deliver to American voters, but he can't muzzle his high-profile supporters. The best he can do is throw them under the bus, his predictable response.
"But the black people (not all I will say) can call white people cracker, whitey, etc. and the white people are not suppose to say anything because we are still the racist."
Lame statement. While I don't disagree with the fact that there are blacks that do say these things. I do disagree that black people get away with it just because they are black. I am black and live in a perdominantly white city and state and there is just as many white folks saying racist things as there are black. It's called IGNORANCE and it knows no color. Obama being President is not going to affect people's ignorance. That's is up to the individual.
Hasty generalizations about people because of their race, creed, religion, class or any other difference that makes us unique is why people call others racist. Group all black together because of the few you've seen still makes you a prejudiced person. It's okay though. It's something that every person has to work on. The differnce between you and a card carrying member of the KKK is the understanding of where your predjudices are and dealing with them. You decide....
Sorry, I just realized all of my typos and errors in grammar. I am at work and not supposed to be on the internet for this purpose, but I had to get my point across. Sorry for the errors folks.
Koku_Jin78
No question, both blacks and whites are guilty of racist comments.
I agree. Ignorance is not related to the color of one's skin.
People need to be aware that our differences are so small compared to all that we share as human beings.
The problem with Whoopi's statements is that she dismisses Elisabeth's point that we should be working to understand each other and minimize our differences rather than setting up more barriers and defining boundaries. We need to teach our children that it's not OK under any circumstance to toss around hurtful racist or ethnic terms.
I think that what Mrs Hasselback misses here is that it is perfectly acceptable, and quite common, for an oppressed group of people to embrace demeaning terms aimed at them and flip the meaning of these very harsh words to a meaning of compassion and understanding. My jewish friends joke w/ one another using a very similar type of verbiage. I would never consider using the terms they use. Mrs Hasselback is a conservative white christian. Oppression is not an experience she has dealt with, and it is in this void, that she cannot understand why people do this. The fact that she may hear this term in music or overhear it in conversation, and she is not allowed to use it hearself or oppose it for that matter, is what irks her so much. Speak to your friends and family the way you want to, but please Elizabeth, do not try to take consolation away from an oppressed group that your own ancestors oppressed. Cliff
Hasselbeck is a woman. She's dealt with oppression.
She also is half Polish. She talked about being called a Polack.
She understands. I think that's why she was so hurt. She was trying to say that flipping negative terms around isn't a positive thing. It's not a productive way to battle hatred.
And what do you mean by this?
do not try to take consolation away from an oppressed group that your own ancestors oppressed
Are you familiar with her ancestors? How do YOU know her ancestors oppressed blacks?
Just because she's white doesn't me her ancestors oppressed blacks.
I'm white. My ancestors fought in the Civil War. They fought to free blacks.
It's not fair to assume that a white person has the oppression of blacks in their history.
If Obama was there I would hope he would just turn off Elisabeth's microphone so she can just voice her opinions into a silent void.
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