In an AOL editorial published yesterday, some bald headed guy named Walter Shapiro went out of his way to defend the Novice Politician, Barack Obama, against any complicity in the Shirley Sherrod story. Midknight Review had sworn off this story three days ago, but it just will not go away. In fact, the story has evolved into a full blown rewrite of history.
Point one in the rewrite: Ben Jealous, head of the NCAAP, had to take 24 hours to investigate "the situation." Understand that at the beginning of this speech, Sherrod thanks the President of the NAACP for his attendance and then expresses her appreciation toward "the Obama Administration." Conclusion: this video incidence took place in March of 2009, after Obama had assumed the throne, after the 2008 placement of Jealous as NAACP head. So why did Ben Jealous need time to investigate a meeting he attended ??
Point two in the rewrite: Shirley Sherrod used to be a racial bigot but she had an epiphany that included a white farmer. Understand that Sherrod's speech includes an admission of racial bigotry, that while she was considering NOT helping the white farmer, she suddenly realized that the issue was not "black and white." What did she do? According to the video, Sherrod turned the farmer over to someone "of his kind" -- nothing racist there, right ?? !!
Point three in the rewrite: the White House and Mr. Obama had nothing to do with her dismissal. Shirley Sherrod made it clear in a recent AP interview that her dismissal was the result of pressure coming directly from the White House. As she made this claim, explaining that she was told to pull over to the side of the road and offer her resignation, she made it clear that the person relaying this order explained to her that this was coming from the White House. In the article referenced above, Walter Shapiro argues that we have no source for this claim except Shirley Sherrod !! Yet, he chooses to use all of Sherrod testimony about the firing EXCEPT the part that ties Obama to the ordeal:
Shapiro writes: Cook's telephone manner seems to have been about as tactful as that of Rahm Emanuel in the middle of a tirade. As Sherrod told The Associated Press, apparently using the word "they" to refer to Cook, "They asked me to pull over to the side of the road and submit my resignation on my BlackBerry -- and that's what I did." The scene is novelistic in its horror: Sherrod sitting in her government-issue car on the side of a rural road typing with her thumbs a forced farewell to her governmental career because Vilsack's stand-in could not wait for her to return to her office to compose a graceful letter of resignation. . . . . But Cheryl Cook (and again we have only Sherrod's word for it) claimed that the White House needed an immediate resignation to deflate the story before Glenn Beck went on Fox News.
Point four in the rewrite: the press since, the blow-up, has done its best to convince people that Sherrod is anything but a racist. By contrast, the notion that Sherrod is "racially disposed" against the white man and "people of their kind" is well established in her speech -- the speech in question. For starters, she is speaking to the NAACP, an organization that has devolved over the years into a racist organization. In the NAACP speech and interviews that have followed the posting of the speech, it is clear that Sherrod is quite racially oriented. She is a kind hearted racist but a racist, nonetheless. She makes her hatred for Bush, the Tea Party and FoxNews clear in the speech and ensuing interviews.
BUT, she did not allow her prejudice to override her duties on the job -- as far as the evidence is concerned . She did send the farmer to others "of his kind," who helped him in the saving of his farm. She did become "friends" with the farmer and personally helped him over a period of two years.
Point of post: turns out that folks got "their shorts in a bunch" for the wrong reason. Sherrod clearly harbors a high level of racially oriented feelings toward conservative whites but not toward the particular white former in question.
The full length NAACP speech is here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E9NcCa_KjXk
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