Quote:
Originally Posted by Igottago
Laughable..I don't think anyone should be unjustifiably labelled a racist, but you make it sound like white people are being victimized by this on some massive scale.
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The scale doesn't have to be massive to leave an impression. I'm sure most white Americans hold some empathy for blacks who have suffered from racism. Likewise most white Americans can feel empathy for fellow whites who have been wrongly accused of racism or been unjustly treated in the work place because of affirmative action. It is actually easier to put yourself in someone elses shoes if they are simular to the ones you wear. That is why Al Sharpton and Jessie Jackson are not well thought of by many whites. Whereas John Kennedy and Martin Luther King are highly regarded. Sharpton and Jackson represents a kind of reverse racism where the white man is always wrong and the black man is always the victim.
Obama put himself in the same company as Sharpton and Jackson by judging the police officer's actions as "stupid" without knowing much more than the color of Gates and the officer's respective skins.
This story will die as all stories do but, the impression Obama gave as a biased observer in a matter of race will be remembered. He lost some trust.
Modified to add: Gates said in his interview that this was the first experience he ever had with racial profileing. Perhaps if he had as much empathy for police officers as he had for ill treated black folks he might of contained himself a little more.