The lucrative business of racism
Racism: the belief that all members of each race possess characteristics or abilities specific to that race, especially so as to distinguish it as inferior or superior to another race (Oxford Dictionary). When the primary factor in judging someone is the color of their skin, it is racism whether white to black or black to white or anything in between.
Trayvon Martin died in a tragedy; little did he know that he would become the next meal ticket for certain high-profile Black leaders. The Trayvon gravy train has taken off.
While there are many truly inspirational Black role models, these guys are definitely not in the same league.
At $20,000+ per speaking engagement, Al Sharpton, who calls himself a “Civil Rights Activist” is spreading his condescending, racially divisive message across the country, in the name of Trayvon Martin. Black Harvard Sociologist Orlando Patterson, refers to Sharpton as a “Racial Arsonist”. Sharpton is adding 100 cities to his Trayvon rally schedule, pursuing this “until the end”… meaning, until his donors to the National Action Network, or the rally organizers, go broke. His pursuit of a civil rights investigation with the Justice Dept will increase his speaking engagements and advertising dollars, calling this a “Social Movement for Justice”, which is the high octane fuel needed to keep the Trayvon gravy train running. The promotion of racism, is quite lucrative. The “Justice for Trayvon” rallies should be titled the “Bankroll for Sharpton” rallies or the “I need to pay the IRS” rally, or the “Get the National Action Network out of debt” rally… and oh yeah, a young Black man died. “Activist” is what you become when you continually loose political races ranging from the presidency to local mayor (1988, 1992, 1994, 1997, 2004).
Jessie Jackson has requested the United Nations Human Rights Council (Sierra Leone, Pakistan, UAE, etc) to investigate the Zimmerman case, calling Florida an “Apartheid State”. He claims that Trayvon was “murdered and martyred”. Jackson, who could have taken the reins of leadership after the death of Martin Luther King, did not have the same leadership abilities to continue the civil rights legacy. He hopes to regain power and legacy within the Black community.
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Rev Louis Farrakhan: “Where there is no justice, there will be no peace. Soon and very soon, the law of retaliation may very well be applied.” Farrakhan is a known instigator of racial and religious tension. The greater the inference of conflict and victimization, the stronger the platform for his Nation of Islam organization, thus increasing membership and donations.
Rep Charles Rangel: “I have the upmost confidence that under Attorney General Holder’s leadership, the U.S. Department of Justice will conduct a thorough investigation.” On MSNBC, he said, “I think it’s possible if the police had got a black Zimmerman, the question would be whether they would have beat him to death and then threw handcuffs on him and dragged him into the precinct.” To the Daily Beast, Rangel said, “It is the same group (Tea Party) we faced in the South with those white crackers and the dogs and the police”, inferring that they are the new KKK. This racist statement is a political move that plays well to his constituency.
Bobby Seale, Co-founder the original Black Panthers (1966-1982), followed Malcolm X who believed in Black superiority and advocated total separation of the races; in direct contrast to MLK’s call for integration. Of the Zimmerman verdict, Seale calls the “Stand Your Ground Laws”, the “Vigilante Profiling Laws”. Though, not affiliated with the New Black Panthers, there is a vested interest in keeping the cause of racism alive, thus retaining relevance and legacy.
Julian Bond, former Chair of the NAACP (1998-2010); defended the IRS for targeting Tea Party groups, labeling them “The Taliban wing of American politics.” Bond a professor of race relations, enhances his credibility with the increase of racial tensions, thus securing his professional income.
The New Black Panthers, formed in 1989, a Black militant group whose primary focus is in seeking/instigating racism; offered a $10,000 reward, later increased to $1Million for the capture “Dead or Alive” of Zimmerman, saying “an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.” Their power comes from the impression of oppression, so that they can emerge as the protectors. Most recently known for the 2008 voter intimidation case where they stood in front of Polling Place doorways while carrying batons. They glorify the early militant days of the civil rights movement and have been known to provoke racial tension across the country. They are Civil Rights “wannabe” thugs.
Justice Department: Eric Holder, keeper of the Black race card. Continually seeks racial inequality to justify the wealth redistribution agenda of this administration, has tripled the number of racial investigations since 2008; but has ignored reverse racism, such as the Black Panther voter incident or their public bounty. Regardless of extraordinary evidence to the contrary, Holder called the incident minor and an exaggeration of Fox News, called “Fox Jews” by the New Black Panthers. Holder has threatened to reopen the investigation of civil racist charges on Zimmerman, despite evidence to the contrary, and a verdict of “Not Guilty”.
President Obama, remarked shortly after the Florida tragedy, “If I had a son, he would look like Trayvon.”, further inciting racial tensions. Just after the verdict, he said, “Trayvon Martin could have been me 35-years ago”. And, in a speech on July 24th, Obama, in a Saul Alinsky move of divide and conquer, declared that “social tension will rise”, potentially inciting additional racial conflict. Critics of Obama are frequently labeled racists. This redirects the attention away from current controversies and silences the opposition. An example of the skillful implementation of this strategy was the Harvard professor arrest, where Obama claimed that his friend was racially profiled and the police “acted stupidly”. This conveniently deflected the media away from the Jeremiah Wright, Bill Ayers, and Tony Rezko investigations, while giving credence to Jeremiah’s racist messaging; not to mention the transcripts and birth certificate questions; currently, Benghazi, NSA, IRS, Obamacare, Media Wiretaps. The race card provides a social crisis diversion per the “no crisis should go to waste” theory. It also reinforces his position as a Black victim, allowing free reign with little criticism by media or opponents. The Zimmerman incident reaffirms the impression that all Blacks including himself, are under attack by Whites solely because of race.
Congressional Black Caucus: Members have introduced a resolution that memorializes Trayvon Martin and calls for the repeal of “controversial gun laws that allow shooters to claim self-defense”. The resolution states that the shooting of Martin “sets a horrific precedent of vigilante justice and compromises the integrity of the legal system.” It also says ‘assailant’ George Zimmerman’s “unfounded assumptions and racial bias led to the use of deadly force.” How convenient, to tie it neatly into a gun-control issue. Where is their outrage for Black on Black crime, and who is memorializing those young people murdered daily across the country; 8,000-9,000 Blacks are murdered each year, with 93% of them by other Blacks. Blacks commit homicides at a rate 10 times greater than Whites and Hispanics combined. In a 2005 Bureau of Justice Statistics report, there are twice as many black-on-white murders as the other way around. This isn’t racism, these are unbiased statistical facts. Racism and gun control are their motivating factors.
Housing and Urban Development: Sec. Shaun Donovan, in speech to the NAACP, that they are setting up racial standards for all neighborhoods, requiring agencies to “affirmatively further” the inclusion of minority residents in White neighborhoods (and not the reverse), thus targeting only Whites. Donovan says that prospective minority buyers are not encouraged to move into predominantly White neighborhoods. In addition to punishing exclusion, they will now punish lack of inclusion. The new penalty will be the withholding of federal funds from local and state agencies (another form of “wealth” redistribution). They will use Census data to score communities on their racial and ethnic concentrations, as well as income and community services. What happens if you live in a rural area of West Virginia and no Blacks want to move there? Will this unfairly target farmers? Now, you MUST ask someone’s race prior to selling or renting to them. Isn’t that the definition of racism?
NBC holds the race-card prize in their repackaging of the Zimmerman facts. Through careful editing, in pursuit of ratings, they edited Zimmerman’s 911 call and followed up with old photos of Trayvon Martin as a preteen and Zimmerman in his early 20s to back up their fact-challenged story. Even the use of Trayvon’s first name and Zimmerman’s last, reinforces that one is a child and the other an adult. While technically true, a 6’2”, 17-year-old is hardly a little boy. Perhaps they were initially motivated by the Zimmerman name, to frame the incident as a Jew killing a Black, but oops he was Hispanic, which led to their new classification of “White-Hispanic”. The descriptions of an unarmed Black child walking home with candy, killed by a racist, gun-crazed “White-Hispanic” (providing additional “ammunition” for the anti-gun agenda) caused an emotional uproar across the nation. This was race-baiting for ratings.
The Entertainment industry loves to play up White guilt and Black rage… it sells. Jay-Z and nearly the entire Hip-Hop industry make millions off of glorifying the gang culture, which frames its message around Black ghetto victimization. A Trayvon rally provides tons of free advertising. Even Bruce Springsteen weighed in on Trayvon, dedicating to his memory “American Skin” which includes the lyrics “You can get killed just for living in your American skin.” We will soon be hearing about “Trayvon; The Movie”, as the film industry jumps on the Trayvon gravy train. Oh, and they will be “profiling” an appropriate Black for the lead.
These are not tributes to honor the death of a young Black man; these are people using this family’s grief and the death of their son just to make a buck.
When you have people profiting from the tragedy of others, their message is compromised, as it creates a huge conflict of interest. What happens when blame can no longer be placed on racism… you regain the power to correct it. Peddling racism for personal gain is totally unacceptable and devalues actual racial incidents. We must never accept a double standard. “All men are created equal” are words we strive to live by.
While there are a number of high-profile Black leaders taking advantage of tragedies and promoting racial division for personal gain; there are also a large number of inspirational Black role models who believe that racism has no place in the American mosaic. While people are not perfect, here are a few that are aiming high. These are some of their thoughts.
Thurgood Marshall, as Executive Director of the Legal Defense Fund of the NAACP, wrote in 1954: “Distinctions by race are so evil, so arbitrary and invidious that a state, bound to defend the equal protection of the laws must not invoke them in any public sphere.”
Colin Powell: “The ties that bind us are stronger than the occasional stresses that separate us.”
Condoleezza Rice: “The essence of America, that which really unites us, is not ethnicity, or nationality or religion, it is an idea… and what an idea it is; that you can come from humble circumstances and do great things.”
Clarence Thomas: “I’d grown up fearing the lynch mobs of the Ku Klux Klan; as an adult I was starting to wonder if I’d been afraid of the wrong White people all along; where I was being pursued not by bigots in white robes, but by left-wing zealots draped in flowing sanctimony.”
Allen West: “I’m tired of liberals dividing this country up into little groups, setting them upon each other, breeding spite and envy, and then having the nerve to accuse conservatives of hatred.” Focusing on “the colors red, white, and blue unite; the color of one’s skin, divides”
Herman Cain: “African-Americans have been brainwashed into not being open-minded, not even considering a conservative point of view.” “People sometimes hold themselves back because they want to use racism as an excuse for them not being able to achieve what they want to achieve.”
Alan Keyes: “The Black liberal leadership, for some decades now, have abandoned the fate of the Black community to the likes of people who have supported policies that have destroyed the Black family. They’re doing what’s necessary to keep their position in a liberal and socialist left-wing establishment that has been devastating for the Black community.”
Thomas Sowell: “The word ‘racism’ is like ketchup, it can be put on practically anything; and demanding evidence makes you a racist.” “Liberals seem to assume that, if you don’t believe in their particular political solutions, then you don’t really care about the people that they claim to want to help.”
Dr. Ben Carson: “We need to understand that we are not each other’s’ enemies in this country, and it is the political class that derives its power by creating friction. The media derives its importance by creating friction by using every little thing to create this chasm between people. This is not who we are.”
Mia Love: “Regardless of the difficulties we may face individually, in our families, in our communities and in our nation, the old adage is still true; you can make excuses or you can make progress, but you cannot make both.”
Artur Davis: “I think the most overused words in our vocabulary in the South are black and white.”
Tim Scott: “I think one of the most threatening places to be in politics is a Black conservative because there are so many liberals who want to continue to reinforce a stereotype that doesn’t exist about America.”
J.C. Watts: “I’m looking forward to the day when America will mature to the point that we are a color-blind society. I’m not so sure that in politics that will ever be reality, because politics has a way of separating us based on skin color.” “You always hear ‘Black Republican’, but you never hear ‘White Democrat.’ We’ve got to get beyond the labels and stereotypes.” “Most black people don’t think alike; most black people just vote alike.” “Reparations, I believe, are talked about for political reasons, trying to cater for the purpose of getting votes. If Congress was serious about reparations, in ‘93 and ‘94 the Democrats controlled the House, the Senate, and the White House, and not one single Republican vote was needed for reparations.” “There’s a whole lot more to the African-American community than entertainment and sports.”
Bill Cosby: Regarding millionaire football players who cannot read or write two paragraphs. “We, as Black folks, have to do a better job. We have to start holding each other to a higher standard.” “Brown or Black versus the Board of Education is no longer the White person’s problem. We have got to take the neighborhood back.”
T.D. Jakes: “I do not believe in a Black race and White race. Human life started with Adam and Eve; that means we all trace our origins back to one race.”
There were many excellent examples of true Black leadership: Booker T. Washington, Harriet Tubman, Jackie Robinson, Sammy Davis Jr, George Washington Carver, Sojourner Truth, and of course, Martin Luther King; and surprisingly they were Republicans. More recent affiliations include some unexpected conservatives, Don King, Karl Malone, The Rock, 50-Cent, LL Cool J, Eazy-E, Wilt Chamberlain, Sheryl Underwood, Lynn Swann, Jimmy Walker, and a number of other high-profile entertainers, sports figures, business executives, spiritual leaders, and most Blacks across the country. These are Americans who see beyond race and have become successful in pursuing the American Dream by not accepting the limiting stereotypes imposed upon them by certain Black leaders.
Martin Luther King, Jr, “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.”
By contrast, “Civil Rights Leaders” like Sharpton, promote a level of reverse discrimination under the guise of equality with money and power as their prime motivators. Perhaps our new Black leaders can improve the content of their character by improving the content of their actions. The race-card is still the most valuable card in the deck to the highly-profitable grievance industry, specializing in victimization. Welcome aboard the Trayvon Express.
America is a “Melting Pot” of diversity. Although not perfect, we love our differences, for that is what makes us uniquely American. Despite detractors, the United States remains the place that others dream of, where freedom reins for all races and cultures. Our founding principles make us the envy of the world. This is why so many people, upon landing on our shores say, “God bless America!”
Jacqueline Cartier, who has more than 25 years of political communications experience and is the president and CEO of Winning Images, recently moved back to Eagle-Vail from Washington, D.C. She can be reached by email at WinningImages.Cartier@gmail.com or by phone at 202-271-4165. Visit her website at http://www.cartier winningimages.com.