We ARE a "Nation of Cowards"
Kudos to Attorney General Eric Holder who, with his bold and frank speech about race in the United States, gives me hope the we will truly have a Department of JUSTICE during the Obama administration...
DON'T GET REV. WRIGHT-ED! READ THE WHOLE SPEECH HERE!
Some excerpts:
..."Simply put, to get to the heart of this country one must examine its racial soul. Though this nation has proudly thought of itself as an ethnic melting pot, in things racial we have always been and continue to be, in too many ways, essentially a nation of cowards. Though race related issues continue to occupy a significant portion of our political discussion,...we, average Americans, simply do not talk enough with each other about race."...
"...this nation has still not come to grips with its racial past..."
"{Black History Month}...is admittedly an artificial device to generate discussion that should come more naturally, but our history is such that we must find ways to force ourselves to confront that which we have become expert at avoiding." Wow...well said (Vox)
(Check this one out! Holder sums up the right wing conservative mentality right here!-Vox):
"I fear however, that we are taking steps that, rather than advancing us as a nation are actually dividing us even further. We still speak too much of "them" and not "us". There can, for instance, be very legitimate debate about the question of affirmative action. This debate can, and should, be nuanced, principled and spirited. But the conversation that we now engage in as a nation on this and other racial subjects is too often simplistic and left to those on the extremes who are not hesitant to use these issues to advance nothing more than their own, narrow self interest. Our history has demonstrated that the vast majority of Americans are uncomfortable with, and would like to not have to deal with, racial matters and that is why those, black or white, elected or self-appointed, who promise relief in easy, quick solutions, no matter how divisive, are embraced."
..."Perhaps the greatest strength of the United States is the diversity of its people and to truly understand this country one must have knowledge of its constituent parts. But an unstudied, not discussed and ultimately misunderstood diversity can become a divisive force."...
Great speech...It really has to be read to be appreciated.
- Vox
DON'T GET REV. WRIGHT-ED! READ THE WHOLE SPEECH HERE!
Some excerpts:
..."Simply put, to get to the heart of this country one must examine its racial soul. Though this nation has proudly thought of itself as an ethnic melting pot, in things racial we have always been and continue to be, in too many ways, essentially a nation of cowards. Though race related issues continue to occupy a significant portion of our political discussion,...we, average Americans, simply do not talk enough with each other about race."...
"...this nation has still not come to grips with its racial past..."
"{Black History Month}...is admittedly an artificial device to generate discussion that should come more naturally, but our history is such that we must find ways to force ourselves to confront that which we have become expert at avoiding." Wow...well said (Vox)
(Check this one out! Holder sums up the right wing conservative mentality right here!-Vox):
"I fear however, that we are taking steps that, rather than advancing us as a nation are actually dividing us even further. We still speak too much of "them" and not "us". There can, for instance, be very legitimate debate about the question of affirmative action. This debate can, and should, be nuanced, principled and spirited. But the conversation that we now engage in as a nation on this and other racial subjects is too often simplistic and left to those on the extremes who are not hesitant to use these issues to advance nothing more than their own, narrow self interest. Our history has demonstrated that the vast majority of Americans are uncomfortable with, and would like to not have to deal with, racial matters and that is why those, black or white, elected or self-appointed, who promise relief in easy, quick solutions, no matter how divisive, are embraced."
..."Perhaps the greatest strength of the United States is the diversity of its people and to truly understand this country one must have knowledge of its constituent parts. But an unstudied, not discussed and ultimately misunderstood diversity can become a divisive force."...
Great speech...It really has to be read to be appreciated.
- Vox
posted by VoxInfo at 10:14 PM
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