About twenty years ago, an aunt of mine who has since passed away visited a casino that was on an Indian reservation in Connecticut. When I asked her if she enjoyed the casino, she replied that she loved it but she was disappointed that she didn’t see any Indians with head dresses. Was that a racist statement?
So why has the word racist become synonymous and for that matter, always been synonymous with black .vs. white issues? Would anyone really label my aunt as racist by making that statement? My 4 year old son thinks all cowboys look like Woody on Toy Story and all cops shoot bad guys, is that a bad thing?
I disagree. Yes, we are molded by the media and O’Reilly at one time in his life was not a member of the media. Therefore, he was molded just like you and I. So, what’s the problem. For years, I have seen the media portray black churches as spirited institutions where the entire congregation was singing and at times, even a slight jiggle was seen in their knees to the beat of the music. So, if I went in a black church and left and if someone asked me about my experience and I replied, “It was just like any white church”, would that be racist. Sorry, I don’t think so.
Knowing O’Reilly and knowing that he is a brilliant journalist and media star, he understands that fanning flames equals ratings. He easily could have said that he was expecting to see the Kwanzaa Burger but he didn’t say that. In that case, I could understand Mr. Robinson’s viewpoint. Based on O’Reilly’s remarks in which the record is clear, I don’t see it.
