Lou Dobbs: “The Fact is Most Americans Don’t Have a Problem Talking About Race.” at Racialicious

Lou Dobbs: “The Fact is Most Americans Don’t Have a Problem Talking About Race.”

by Racialicious Special Correspondent Latoya Peterson

Apparently, Condoleeza shocked the hell out of people by reminding them that she was black.

For those of you who missed it, here’s the text of what she said in response to Barack Obama’s speech on race:

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said yesterday that the United States still has trouble dealing with race because of a national “birth defect” that denied black Americans the opportunities given to whites at the country’s very founding.

“Black Americans were a founding population,” she said. “Africans and Europeans came here and founded this country together — Europeans by choice and Africans in chains. That’s not a very pretty reality of our founding.”

As a result, Miss Rice told editors and reporters at The Washington Times, “descendants of slaves did not get much of a head start, and I think you continue to see some of the effects of that.”

“That particular birth defect makes it hard for us to confront it, hard for us to talk about it, and hard for us to realize that it has continuing relevance for who we are today,” she said.

Condi pulled out the racial big Joker! Oh snap!

Now, I don’t have a lot of love for Condoleeza Rice’s politics at all. But I have to admit, I smiled a little bit when I saw that quote.

And then came Lou Dobbs, fucking up my day:

(No, I am not even touching the “cotton-picking” comment. I’m still blown away at the fact that he feels like he can challenge Condoleeza on something he has never personally experienced.)

One Drop over at Too Sense points out what Dobbs seems to conveniently forget:

Just a quick history note for those who are shocked by Condoleeza Rice publicly stating that America has a “birth defect” when it comes to race: Rice grew up in Birmingham, Alabama in the late 50s and 60s. One of her childhood playmates was among those four little girls who were murdered by a Klansman’s bomb in the basement of their own church. Stop and think about that: four beautiful little black girls, attending church on a Sunday morning, blown up with dynamite by a white racial terrorist.

This was not an event that Condoleeza Rice heard about on t.v., or saw in the paper. It was her personal friend torn apart by racial hatred. Rice has every right in the world to have the opinions that she does when it comes to race. To suggest that she does not, that somehow she is out of line to voice those opinions (as Dobbs did below), is simply obscene. It is an insult to the history that Rice has lived through firsthand, and a devaluation of the price that she has had to pay for America’s racial sins.

But oh no - we don’t have problems talking about race. Not here. Nope, bastion of racial harmony we have in the good ol’ USA.

If Dobbs wasn’t bad enough, Pam Spaulding spotted some people showing their asses on the Free Republic site:

Did I call it or not? You’ll recall that the denizens of the Free Republic were huge fans of Condoleezza Rice - in fact there was a draft Condi in 08 movement there. However, I was certain once she commented positively about Obama’s speech about race, the love affair would be OVER in the swamps.

And was she ever right about that! Selections from the selections Pam printed:

Ms. Rice…..your forefathers were betrayed by their brothers….and sold into slavery. The white man brought them here to help settle this country….. and God blessed you in that white men helped set them free……so you could be blessed even more……by being born to live in the greatest nation on earth….with freedom and prosperity.

She’s got bad teeth, no boobs and loves the Palestinians and other enemies of Israel and the U.S.! How could ANY patriot want Sleeza for VP?

I didn’t realize Rice was hoping to run with Obama, yet that’s how bad these comments are. This is a sad commentary. I used to respect this woman. Just dang…

Condi is another mealy mouth dufus. In pure pander mode. This is the least racist nation on the planet. Tons of affirmative action and welfare money available. If you don’t like it GTFO. Find a better place to live like Zimbabwe maybe

Maybe she should go back to Africa, where she could get a “founding” experience.

Oh yeah, no trouble at all talking about race - especially if we get to be racist!

Trackbacks & Pings

Link Love for 2008-04-01 | A Slant Truth on 01 Apr 2008 at 1:36 pm

[…] Lou Dobbs: “The Fact is Most Americans Don’t Have a Problem Talking About Race.” at Racialicio… “Apparently, Condoleeza shocked the hell out of people by reminding them that she was black.” (tags: loudobbs Racism racialisious) […]
Condi’s Quiet Endorsement of the Obama Doctrine? « Aaron Shaw’s weblog on 26 Jun 2008 at 12:51 pm

[…] the words of Latoya Peterson: “Apparently, Condoleeza shocked the hell out of people by reminding them that she was […]

Comments

Alicia wrote:

God… that cotton comment was priceless. But no, isn’t Dobbs just using Condoleeza’s comments on race to his own gain?

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 6:51 am ¶
Chris wrote:

“Condi is another mealy mouth dufus. In pure pander mode. This is the least racist nation on the planet. Tons of affirmative action and welfare money available. If you don’t like it GTFO. Find a better place to live like Zimbabwe maybe”

Excuse me while I pick my jaw up off the floor.

Also:

“She’s got bad teeth, no boobs and loves the Palestinians and other enemies of Israel and the U.S.! How could ANY patriot want Sleeza for VP?”

I’m pretty sure breast size isn’t an indicator of how good your politics are. If that were the case, Mary Carey would’ve won the election for governor of California way back when, and we would’ve had a woman president a long time ago.

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 7:12 am ¶
Carmen Van Kerckhove wrote:

Um you guys, Lou Dobbs’s wife is Hispanic so OBVIOUSLY he can’t be racist.

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 7:17 am ¶
Orville wrote:

But remember Hispanic is not a race it is a cultural group. Can anyone tell me what is Lou Dobbs wife’s specific racial background? What is Dobbs’s wife specific racial background is an Asian Hispanic, white Hispanic, or black Hispanic or mestizo Hispanic or mixed race Hispanic?

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 7:26 am ¶
Liza wrote:

Wow. It amazes me (does it, really?) the length that people will go to try and convince people that racism is alive and well. I couldn’t even click on the Lou Dobbs video because it makes me sick to watch him spew his poison, especially before my first cup of coffee. I am proud that we do live in a country where people can give their opinions, but absolutely hate that someone like Dobbs has such a following. Great comment, Carmen, about his HISPANIC wife… I had a conversation with some of my students - as were driving back from a Latino Leadership conference in Boston - about how people like to excuse their racism with the “I have Black friends” or “My relative is Hispanic/gay/African American/Biracial/Adopted” permission slip. Dobbs has certainly given me great material for future courses/workshops on race, language, privilege, etc. So, maybe I should thank him (imagine?) for insuring that I have a job for the next 100 years…..

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 7:41 am ¶
islandgirl550 wrote:

Cotton Picking??!?!?!? Are you serious. Way over the line with that one, Lou!!!

Carmen, didn’t know his wife was Hispanic. Interesting that he is ALWAYS talking about illegal immigrants from South of our border. I would love to hear what Lou and his wife talk about at home…

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 9:09 am ¶
atlasien wrote:

Lou Dobbs always whines “but my wife is Mexican!” when someone points out his incessant Mexican-hate-spew.

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 9:47 am ¶
TierList E wrote:

*exasperated sigh at ignorate white people*

*surprised grin at Condi*

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 10:00 am ¶
Ailurophile wrote:

There are quite a few white men (and IME it is almost always men) who have Latina or Asian wives yet spew the most racist hate-filled BS you can imagine. You have to wonder what their marriages are like.

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 10:23 am ¶
macintyre wrote:

I think that the “birth defect” metaphor is kind of brilliant — it conveys the awful truth about the fact of racism, but without being divisive and blaming because, after all, it’s everyone’s child, it arrived with the defect, and now we all have to take care of it.

It’s almost as if Condi was a George Lakoff fan!

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 10:26 am ¶
RoslynHolcomb wrote:

Altasien, I hate when someone does that. Plenty of racists have no trouble pulling cover with members of a group they hate. After all, John Rocker, yes, the racist baseball player has a black girlfriend. And the cop that sodomized Abner Louima had a black fiancee.

I must say that Roger Ebert, the movie reviewer, gained great status in my eyes when he was attacked as a racist for panning a Tyler Perry movie. He defended himself, but not once did he mention that his wife was black. Mad props, Rog.

Lou Dobbs is despicable. The sad part is, at one point, I really liked him. But it’s clear that like most pundits he appeals to the lowest common denominator and in doing so he only makes the situation worse.

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 10:30 am ¶
bradski wrote:

Condi Rice has spoken about race previously. Remember when someone in the Bush administration said that she agreed with Bush’s anti-affirmative action stance? Condi put the slap down on that as did Colin Powell.

In reality, Rice has always been open about the pernicious existence of racism in the U.S.

Like Powell, when Rice does talk openly about Racism she is attacked by the wingers because she does not adhere to their supremacist and delusional view of American society.

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 10:58 am ¶
Kat wrote:

Wow. Racist NAD sexist on the Free Republic site. Are Vice Presidents known for their great teeth and breasts? I thought “no breasts” was one of the qualifications for major political office, along with “no vagina.”

Dear fellow white people,

Admitting that our country has a history of racism that still lingers today is not the same as being personally blamed. If you feel personally attacked by other people’s experiences with racism and need to lash out, maybe you do hold some of the blame and need some self examination. Otherwise, the statement “this country has a history of racism” is a completely neutral statement that you can agree with and do something about or at least acknowledge as factual.

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 11:06 am ¶
Mary wrote:

I’ll never forget reading “The Fortune Tellers” by Howard Kurtz, the “behind the scenes” of financial journalism back in the late ’90s-early ’00s.

Not one single person has a nice thing to say about Lou Dobbs, who comes across as the most pompous mean-spirited diva bully in the book. Even people like Jim Cramer, who comes across just as batshit crazy in the book as he does on his TV show, is moderately likeable by comparison. Kurtz recounts one instance in which Lou Dobbs demanded a short producer stand on a chair so he could yell at him - when the producer said no, Dobbs crouched down and yelled at him anyway. “Loyalty test” stunts like that were apparently pretty common with Dobbs.

Kurtz doesn’t mention race in the book (as far as I can recall - I read it a few years ago). But Lou Dobbs is your most basic kind of playground bully, dressed up like a business reporter. He speaks the language of power. It does not surprise me at all that he picks on immigrants and racial minorities with the frequency that he does… or that he thinks it’s his right to tell a black woman not to speak out of turn about race.

On a lighter note: you can’t see it in this clip so much, but Blitzer often looks like he’s barely concealing a massive eyeroll when he has to transition from his show to Lou’s.

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 11:24 am ¶
Roger Green wrote:

Condi was a pleasant surprise.

Conversely, Pat Buchanan spewed the same old nonsense after the Obama speech:
“First, America has been the best country on earth for black folks. It was here that 600,000 black people, brought from Africa in slave ships, grew into a community of 40 million, were introduced to Christian salvation, and reached the greatest levels of freedom and prosperity blacks have ever known…
“Second, no people anywhere has done more to lift up blacks than white Americans. Untold trillions have been spent since the ’60s on welfare, food stamps, rent supplements, Section 8 housing, Pell grants, student loans, legal services, Medicaid, Earned Income Tax Credits and poverty programs designed to bring the African-American community into the mainstream. ”

http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=25634

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 12:01 pm ¶
DivergentDana wrote:

“he was attacked as a racist for panning a Tyler Perry movie.”

By whom? And had this person actually seen a Tyler Perry movie?

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 12:03 pm ¶
marge twain wrote:

what’s wrong with her teeth?

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 12:03 pm ¶
johnjihoonchang wrote:

I feel like Mr. Dobbs doesn’t have a very good sense of irony or the ability to pick out internal contradictions in his statements. Always amusing in a “what the hell is wrong with you” sort of way.

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 12:09 pm ¶
marge twain wrote:

I don’t have audio to hear Lou Dobbs(thankfully) but Condi’s remarks were awesome and also surprising. Not knowing much about her I imagined she was more like George Bush.

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 12:23 pm ¶
marge twain wrote:

And is it any wonder that white male right-wing hatemongers think they have a qualified opinion on absolutely everything? They get paid boatloads of money to spout off every day on the major networks and in the newspapers with no accountability.

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 12:27 pm ¶
jd wrote:

Just because white people have stopped being racist (let’s assume for a second that that’s true, because it helps the metaphor), doesn’t mean the U.S. instantly doesn’t have racial problems!!

It’s like if you’re an alcoholic, and your relationship with your spouse is bad because of the drinking. On the day you hit bottom and stop, you don’t suddenly have a good marriage. There’s still an aftermath of your previous crappy behavior to work through. If you’re lucky, on that day you can start to work towards havong a good marriage, but you can’t skip the work, declare the marriage good because you’re no longer drinking and have that be reality.

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 12:30 pm ¶
Orville wrote:

I think people like Lou Dobbs and Roger Ebert prove just because people are involved in interracial relationships doesn’t mean they cannot have racial prejudices. Sometimes interracial relationships are based on misconceptions and prejudices one race has about another. So just because someone is married or dating someone of another race doesn’t mean the individual can be a racist.

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 12:30 pm ¶
Jen* wrote:

I read Condi’s interview last night, and was pleasantly surprised at the full content of her comments on race. She pulls no punches, speaks plainly, and tells the whole truth. Her commentary on world matters was also interesting. Though I’m not fond of her political leanings, I’d love to be able to take a class from her when she gets back into teaching.

As for the horrid comments from racists hiding behind their computer screens? That was some of the worst that I’ve seen. It literally makes me ill.

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 12:35 pm ¶
Mary wrote:

“I think people like Lou Dobbs and Roger Ebert prove…”

Wait, what did Roger Ebert do to deserve being lumped in with Lou Dobbs? All I’ve seen on this thread is that he panned a Tyler Perry movie - did he pan it in a particularly racist way, or just for being a bad movie?

I’m asking sincerely, I don’t have extensive knowledge of Mr. Ebert.

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 1:03 pm ¶
cacy wrote:

I was so glad after reading Condi’s interview. It gave her a new dimension in my mind.

I first read about it on Huffo and read some comments that were awful. The things pple said about her made me want to comment back so I ended up creating an account just so I could point out that Condi had first hand experience with racism/race as a little girl growing up in the south. Many people, including Dobb’s, don’t know that one of her friends was one of those four little girls blown to pieces by dynamite thrown into a church by a klansman.

I’ve never watched Lou Dobbs but I’ve read alot about him. Maybe he works for FOX?

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 1:47 pm ¶
thinkitover wrote:

Lou Dobbs just plain doesn’t get it. He thinks that just because white people don’t gather by the hundreds to eat hot dogs and watch a lynching means that racism is done. And if he had lived in that era, he would’ve been marching around saying “there’s nothing racist in stringing up a colored scalawag — it’s just justice.” Uh huh.

Dr. MLK Jr. had people like Dobbs in mind when he wrote that lots of white people aren’t interested in justice — they’re interested in order.

And that, Louie, is just what you’re preaching: orderliness over justice. Keep the lower castes in their place. Throw them a chicken wing every once in a while and then denounce them when they complain that one wing won’t feed a family of four (”why can’t they just acknowledge that only in America can you get a chicken wing!).

What a country.

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 2:24 pm ¶
Logan wrote:

*runs down the White checklist* Yup, I think he hit every major one.

And I must say, I did get a kick out of watching him squirm right as he said Cotton, just like a kinda sudden realization that oh crap, I said something which could get me in trouble.

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 2:31 pm ¶
gatamala wrote:

Lou Dobbs doesn’t understand that Condi was friends/acquaintainces with children who were killed in a terrorist attack on a Birmingham church. Yes, Lou. Terrorist Attack.

Roger Ebert gets points for panning Tyler Perry. Seems to me like he’s learned something from Mrs. Ebert….

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 2:53 pm ¶
Nadra wrote:

jackandjillpolitics.com first posted Condi’s discussion of race on Friday.

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 3:15 pm ¶
racecritique wrote:

jd: nice analogy.

gatamala, not sure what Rice being “friends/acquaintainces with children who were killed in a terrorist attack on a Birmingham church” has to do with this.

Yes, she was, but one needn’t have her precise history to make the statement she did. And whether or not Dobbs knows this about Rice — he may well — his response was ridiculous.

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 3:40 pm ¶
Orville wrote:

Yes it is true Condoleezza Rice was indeed a friend of the girls that died in that horrific act of terrorism in Birmingham. People need to remember Dobbs also makes outrageous comments for ratings to simply shock people as well. He says things to get people’s attention and of course to be controversial. I read that Dobbs show has high ratings on CNN network.

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 4:37 pm ¶
dnA wrote:

Latoya,

Manolo wrote that post, not One Drop. We’ve got a regular multiracial sausage fest over at Too Sense these days.

Thanks for the shout out!

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 4:57 pm ¶
Pad wrote:

The implication of a “birth defect” is that it can’t be corrected (at least not easily and not without a lot of pain). It is also nobody’s fault.

She was taught by her father that to succeed she needed to be “twice as good”. That is a philosophy that everyone of any color could adopt. We shouldn’t try to create equality of outcome, but rather, equality of opportunity.

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 6:56 pm ¶
Sad wrote:

I find it very condescending that white people are the one saying the country is not racists. Since when did white people suffered racism that affects their livelihood. I have never had a white person talk about race. Most of the race talks occur with non-whites.

Since when do white men have an authority over what racism is like in America. For white Americans to reject a black person view’s on race shows the depth of their ignorance. Don’t waste your breath, these people just don’t get it.

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 8:13 pm ¶
The Cruel Secretary wrote:

Madame Editor (may I call you that, Latoya:-D)–
Actually, both Secretary Rice and Mr. Dobbs made me smile. Rice, because she pleasantly surprised me that she can speak clearly on the issue of black-white racial relations in the US, and Dobbs, because his ignorance gives me a deeper appreciation for the work that y’all do here at Racialicious. And his squirm-tastic realization of his face when “cotton” came out his mouth made me giggle.

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 8:52 pm ¶
Gregory A. Butler wrote:

“Africans and Europeans came here and founded this country together — Europeans by choice and Africans in chains. That’s not a very pretty reality of our founding.”

I never thought I’d agree 100% with Condoleeza Rice - but hey, I guess hell froze over today!

As for Lou Dobbs - I guess he took a day off from ranting about Mexican immigrants (”a Day Without a Mexican-hater” perhaps?) to expand the boundaries of his bigotry to include African Americans!

Posted 01 Apr 2008 at 10:48 pm ¶
Bubba wrote:

I have to say that once I read that Rice said those things, she immediately became a person to me. I couldn’t help but have a snarky thought about her “birth pangs” comment about Lebanon, but that quickly passed because of the sincerity of it.

By the way, those Free Republic idiots would like to know that there is someone else that agrees with Rice who said regarding slavery

If I could be instrumental in eradicating this deepest stain on the character of our country if I could be only instrumental in ridding of this foul blot that revered State that gave me birth or that not less beloved State that kindly adopted me as her son I would not exchange the proud satisfaction which I should enjoy for the honour of all the triumphs ever decreed to the most successful conqueror

That was of course Henry Clay in a speech from 1827. And here is another famous American.

Still it is a hideous blot as well…

Yup, that was Thomas Jefferson. Hmm, seems like the current Secretary of State, the most famous Speaker of the House and a Founding Father all believe one thing and a certain Lou Dobbs believes another. I know which side I am going to chose. The American side.

Posted 02 Apr 2008 at 12:40 am ¶
p wrote:

roger ebert dates a black man? wow who knew

Posted 02 Apr 2008 at 9:41 am ¶
Jamie B. wrote:

Also, Dobbs thinks we live in the most progressive country in the world? Erm…

Posted 02 Apr 2008 at 8:21 pm ¶
macintyre wrote:

“The implication of a “birth defect” is that it can’t be corrected (at least not easily and not without a lot of pain). It is also nobody’s fault. ”

Hmm, I guess that’s one way to see it. You can also see it more positively as something negative that’s a reality, but that you can learn to adapt to. And I actually think the no-fault aspect is why it’s a good metaphor. Slavery is not the fault of any living person today, even though white people are morally required to ameliorate its effects.

Posted 03 Apr 2008 at 12:48 pm ¶
TK wrote:

[Mod Note: Please refer to our current comments policy before you repost. Off-topic comments will be deleted.]

Posted 04 Apr 2008 at 12:03 pm ¶
SOLAR4U wrote:

THE COMMON FEATURES OF A SCOCIOPATH

1. Glibness and Superficial Charm
2. Manipulative and Conning
3. Grandiose Sense of Self
4. Pathological Lying
5. Lack of Remorse, Shame or Guilt
6. Shallow Emotions
7. Incapacity for Love
8. Need for Stimulation
9. Callousness/Lack of Empathy
10. The need to surround oneself with people who like them
or agree with them.

Keep in mind a person needs only to possess the majority of these traits to be considered a sociopath. You be the judge.

I hope someone comes up with a plan on how we can get Lou Dobbs off the air. He’s un-American to say the least and he doesn’t belong on CNN. Maybe Fox would take him.

Posted 15 Apr 2008 at 12:40 pm ¶