July 21, 2013 by David K. Sutton
07-21-2013 Left Call Radio 02 – President Obama, The Zimmerman Case, And Race Relations In America
Left Call Radio – Episode 02
President Obama, The Zimmerman Case, And Race Relations In America
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Race is still a problem in this country. Just as an example, whites and blacks use marijuana at about the same rate, but blacks have 4 times the incarceration rate as whites for marijuana possession. So what is that all about? Well, certainly economic discrimination could be part of it, but it’s indisputable that race plays a role. Either way, it’s discrimination.
And so if you have bias that targets blacks over whites for marijuana use, it’s not unreasonable to extrapolate from that a bias with other crimes. So are blacks incarcerated at higher rates because they do indeed commit crimes at higher rates, or is it that they are targeted at higher rates than whites by law enforcement and the justice system? I think blacks probably do commit certain types of crimes at higher rates, but does the incarceration rate match up?
If society as a whole already believes a black person is more likely to be guilty, all other things being equal, what outcome should we expect?
This is not a call for making excuses for blacks who commit crimes, it’s a call for a white majority to stop pretending there is no racism, and recognize racial bias has an effect on our institutions, including the criminal justice system.
So I have a request for Republicans, conservatives and anyone else looking to hate on Obama where probable cause for your fake outrage is that he’s Obama and/or not who you voted for: Please let know me when your qualifications are met and you can finally accept a black president talking about African-Americans and issues of racial discrimination and NOT consider it “race baiting.”
Blacks are allowed to talk about racial discrimination. A black president is allowed to talk about racial discrimination. And they are not required to get your prior approval and a guarantee that you won’t call it race baiting.
Calling Obama’s remarks on Friday race baiting validates his remarks. It’s also an incredible dismissal of the real discrimination that black males face every day for being who they are. I cannot, as a white male, identify with this bias, but that doesn’t mean I’m indifferent or incapable of recognizing its continued existence in America. And the hostility towards people who speak the truth about its continued existence, especially if they are black, is all the more reason to continue to speak about its existence.
