Our hearts has been aching for days over the senseless death of Trayvon Martin. A 17 year-old youngster whose crime was to be black and to wear a hoodie as he walked home in a gated community. It seems irrelevant to those reporting that the young man had every right to be in the area and the murdering thug had no business carrying a gun or being part of a neighborhood watch.
The attacks of the right wing posters on a Fox media blog are enough to turn our stomachs but it also gives us a glimpse of what we are dealing with in terms of racism, fear, hatred and delusions foisted on society by a corporate media that is hell-bent on keeping their audience at any cost.
The commentators are blaming the victim, the way he dressed and perpetuating stereotypes while denying race-baiting. A black kid CAN'T be a normal kid. He must be discredited in death by digging into anything that will cast a bad light into his character and take away focus from the fact that he was unarmed and murdered like dog in the streets.
He was 17 years old and had a loving family who's hearts are broken. But it is not about race, is it? No, not at all, but if Trayvon had a been a white kid, would the story be different? Would they bring up a school suspension over an empty bag of weed? a stupid garment?
Could the media be right? Maybe it is not about race at all, but about, "It is all about the money, stupid!" and if a kid has to die, it is just collateral damage well worth the price of admission. Maybe for the media is not about black or white but about the green that keeps rolling in and keeping the audience entrenched in their beliefs.
How many times have we watched the news about some brutal crime or a police shooting and fervently said in our heads "Please don't be Black" or "Please don't be Hispanic" - This may seem a strange line of thought for some but it is a knee jerk reaction based on being bombarded with stereotypes for generations. How many Black and Hispanic parents tell their children to not run because they look suspicious? and how many white parents tell their children to "run fast and get to a safe place?"
We can't continue to have different sets of rules for our children. If threatened, they should be able to run and get to a safe place regardless of their race or ethnic background. Regardless of what they wear.
Racism has to die. Period. For those who say this is not a race issue, please take notice how quickly the Jewish community disavowed themselves from the name Zimmerman and how quickly white folks spouted the guy was Hispanic, not white.
Being white does not make anyone a racist. Being a racist makes you a racist. Perpetuating stereotypes makes you an accomplice and a racist. No one with a conscience would be able to do what Heraldo Rivera did.
We are sick of this. We are sick of our children dying because they are black or Hispanic. We are sick to our hearts that Trayvon Martin won't live in a world where he can live out his dreams and pursue his right to happiness. We are sick of living in a world dominated by a media that lies, distorts and encourages unacceptable mind sets.
We are sick and tired of television shows that depict minorities as less than human.
Racism is alive and well because it is profitable. The death of our children seems to be a minor issue that serves to cement stereotypes in the mind of those whose level of comfort can't be disturbed by the facts.
Edit: While CNN reported this, on further research, it seems that the notion that Zimmerman's father is a former judge came from an application Zimmerman filled in to validate his connection to the legal system. Take the statement below with a grain of salt. CNN may have jumped the gun by simply quoting from the newspaper without really vouching for the information.
Via CNN: "The portrayal of George Zimmerman in the media, as well as the series of events that led to the tragic shooting, are false and extremely misleading," his father, a retired magistrate judge, wrote in a letter published in the Orlando Sentinel. "Unfortunately, some individuals and organizations have used this tragedy to further their own causes and agendas."
Heraldo Rivera thrived on the media by virtue of being Hispanic. Period. He came on the scene at a time where Hispanics on television were a rarity and he was the 'shinny new thing' - He has no talent, he has no intellect, but he is Hispanic. Some were glad to have a face, a cultural background they could relate to in the media. It was a foot in the door for what was hoped would be equality and recognition as valuable members of society.
Heraldo Rivera stated that he told his son not to dress in a hoody or have baggy pants because of 'The association' people make about people who 'dress that way' - What this spineless coward should have done is stand up for his son's (and everyone else's) RIGHT to dress as they please without being targeted for death. Instead he sold Trayvon Martin and his own son down the river to benefit the bottom line of the network he services.
This is the feverish feeding frenzy of the media that continues to perpetuate racial stereotypes and reinforcing the fear of "Others" that makes every non-white seem 'suspicious' when we shop or walk down the street in places we belong and pay taxes on. The way the 'news' are presented is part of what perpetuates racial profiling and brings this 'art form' into the hearts and minds of main street (where we also live)
The media makes a healthy living off established stereotypes. It is a cheap trick that produces sitcoms that consistently degrades human beings based on their racial or ethnic background. Sitcoms are the worst offenders, but so is the multi-billion dollar industry that produces blockbuster movies.
The comedy show simply titled as "Rob" is tiresome - White male in a family of Latinos whose obsession with family ties is grossly exaggerated to the point of unbearable rudeness. Lovely, young, sexy Latino woman marries short, dumpy, boring older white male. Overly protective father with stereotypes of his own about white people perpetuates stereotypes about Hispanics and makes white people look like idiots. Don't get me started on the role of the mother and grandmother, or the good-for-nothing-perpetually-out-of-work brother-in-law. The accents are exaggerated, the situations are contrived and the entire show will only bring joy to those who feel their prejudices are reinforced.
Tyler Perry as Madea
The tiresome Madea series are funny to whom? Are all black people fat, loud, obnoxious, caricatures of the worst stereotypes about black people? Certainly NOT. But hey! it sells doesn't it? What's the harm? - The harm is that reducing people to stereotypes prevents them from getting from under the cloud of racism and moving forward as equal members of society.
Heaven's forbid they make comedy shows in which the Huxtables - Bill Cosby Show - are the stereotype for black people. What? too uppidy you say? - It is amazing how many black folks are judges, lawyers, doctors, dentist, police officers, and professors with PhD's but are not properly represented in the media.
How many African-Americans are contractors, builders, mechanics, engineers and school teachers? We gloss over those occupations and stereotype blacks as athletes or entertainers. That is the comfort level of our tiny minds because reality is too uncomfortable. Reality may force us to examine our baggage and feel the pain we have caused others. Reality may force us to see how we have been part of the problem all along and bear responsibility for our actions. No, it is too unsettling, we must go to the movies, or turn on the boob-tube to reinforce our prejudices and make us feel good about our long-held beliefs. African-Americans can't be depicted as normal families with class and elegance. It does not fit the stereotype. President Obama and his family do not fit the stereotype
Hollywood movies - Where is the challenge here? as soon as we see a black guy on almost any movie, we know he will be the first casualty of the serial killer, bomber, car accident, etc. It is inevitable that the poor bastard will give up his life for the main character, invariably a woman or a white person. How noble! Black people exist to sacrifice themselves for a noble cause. Or.... he is the drug dealing pimp of the 70's - perpetually embedded in the neurotic mind of James O'Keeffe and others like him.
Black women are either single-moms living in squalor, prostitutes with drug issues or the 'token' sidekick who must retain some of her 'blackness' - she must use some street lingo at some point, not sound 'white' (read educated), come from humble beginnings and most of all, grateful for her middle-class struggles.
Hispanic women are ... well, just read above but add 'overly sexual' or 'virginal' - those two seem to be interchangeable when it comes to Latin women.
Male Hispanics are relegated to gang members, or decent people who are poor and desperate. They are servants, gardeners, illegals... or a 'funny' sidekick. Funny in a way that entices people to laugh at their accents, their culture, their religion, their physique or perceived lack of intellect.
Take a look at language and how we automatically associate it with stereotypes:
"Inner City" means black folks live there. They are poor, they are welfare queens, they have guns and they are dangerous.
*Barrio - means neighborhood in Spanish and you know who lives there? Mexicans! yes, oh my God! they are ALL illegals. They deal drugs. They are in gangs. They have fake social security cards so they can rob us blind and most of all, they don't speak English so we can't understand what they are saying. They are dangerous.
Neighborhood or Main Street - means middle-class white folks live there and they are the salt of the Earth. Period.
Mississippi - The poorest of the poor, racist, toothless, ignorant, mental defective white people filled with hatred.
Alabama and South Carolina - *See Mississippi
Los Angeles - Chock-full of liberal elites who eat healthy in a smog-filled town and smoke pot before breakfast.
East L.A. - You don't want to go there, that's where the Mexicans live and they are all part of a gang. *See Barrio above.
San Francisco - Chock-full of faggots whose sole purpose is to undermine heterosexual marriage by demanding equality. A city of sinners with no redeeming qualities and a socialist agenda worthy of the Anti-Christ.
New York - East Coast elitist - ALL of N.Y. is Joe Peshi or they have too many Puerto Ricans (they live in Barrios, of course) - All cab drivers in New York are of Middle Eastern decent and they are just terrorist cells waiting to explode (pun intended)
Florida - Ignorant morons who cling to their guns and Bibles. Chock-full of old and dying Jews and Cuban criminals (they live in their own Barrios alongside with Dominicans and Haitians)
It is not a coincidence that Santorum wears sweater vests, it is done by design.
Santorum is representing the ideal of a patriarch that never existed. Robert Young played a role on television in the series 'Father Knows Best' - he was the wise patriarch everyone respected. His wife was subservient and his children were obedient. Americana as seen through Norman Rockwell paintings.
In reality, nothing more than a fantasy. No one in the 50's had a family like that. Robert Young was an abusive alcoholic who hated the role he played and the actors he worked with.
But this is America. Illusion is fed to us like mother's milk and served with a steaming piece of apple pie on a daily basis.
Racial stereotypes are alive and well. Perhaps Trayvon Martin and children like him would not have to die if the networks did not perpetuate the notion that blacks are criminals. Maybe the news could explain to their audiences that Hispanics and blacks are incarcerated and murdered in disproportionate numbers.
The media could explain that a for-profit prison system thrives on rounding up minorities because if they rounded up white folks, they could not get away with it. They could do more than a passing soundbite on judges with financial ties to these institutions and the role they play in long sentences and death penalties.
Maybe, just for kicks, the black guy does not have to be the first to die in the movies, or in real life.
The war on women's reproductive rights is enough to make the most uninformed among us to sit up straight and take notice that something is horribly wrong with the men who see themselves "in charge" of leading the Nation - For some strange reason, they want to take our society to a time when women had no property rights, no right to vote, no right to an opinion and most of all, no right to live their lives as they saw fit.
This upcoming election reeks of desperation on the part of the right wing zealots. We have seen the desperate moves to pass laws that will create indenture servitude and gratitude for having a measly paying job. We have seen them attempt to destroy the Unions that made it possible for there to be a middle class in this great country of ours. We have seen their racial hatred and rhetoric all over the internet and on television. Now, they want women to bear children even if they were raped or if they could die from complications. They want us under their boots in a submissive position with our mouths shut.
Perhaps we all know a woman who thinks this is her lot in life. A woman that is happy to leave the decision making process to elected officials because she has been taught to believe that they know better and are, in fact, better. But most of us don't think or feel this way and we have a few choices available to us. At least for now, because if we don't do what we need to do, we will be joining that woman, and others like her in total silence and abject submission.
Vote - Vote for a President that respects women and their choices. Vote for a senator or congresswoman that reflects and defends our ideals. Vote for judges and governors that will fight for our rights and will help their states move into the 21st Century - alongside the rest of the industrialized world.
Do not allow anyone to get a stranglehold of our public educational system. Do not trust anyone who insists the government is bad and everything must be privatized. Do not trust anyone who hates the government to get a government position. Most of all, do not allow anyone to degrade our womanhood and our standing in society. We are better than this, we deserve better than this.
The state of Alaska has very few women. Perhaps it is the cold climate. Perhaps it is the persistent abuse, rape and murders inflicted on women, but the fact remains that women don't migrate to Alaska and there is no better birth control solution than a lack of willing participants.
Migrant workers left Alabama in droves. Alabama is realizing how damaging their degrading attitudes toward other human beings is to their economy.
If your state is treating you like dirt and you fail to make a dent in the political discourse: MOVE and go where you are wanted. Take other women with you. Help them out. Let the men in charge figure out how to keep warm at night without you. Let them see your contribution to society by your mere absence.
You think moving is hard? Try staying! - your daughters deserve a better future and your sons deserve better women.
No one has to put up with an abusive relationship and it is criminal to pass that legacy to the next generation. Find your strength and vote against it. Find your strength and move to a state that respects you as an equal partner. If migrant workers can do it with holes in their pockets and nothing more than a dream of a better life, so can we.
From one woman to another: Change is hard, but we have molded and shaped our lives countless of times to suit the circumstances. Being doormats and second class citizens is not something we deserve, nor should we have to put up with again. Many came before us so we could have these types of conversations in the open. If we allow the laws to take effect, we are spitting on the graves of men and women who gave their lives so we could live ours.
Today's post requires very few words from this writer. Last night we watched Bill Maher. If anyone is wondering why Rush Limbaugh has such a devoted and large audience, look no further. Here is the segment that kept me shaking my head and remembering my mom's words "I'll never move below the Mason-Dixon line." - I can see why.
In all fairness. The producer of this segment will be having cameras rolling on a future segment of some-yet-unamed inner city.
This is a loaded question I have been asked more times than I care to remember. We usually assumed that with all the media hoopla and pundits flaming the fire, the sheer volume of haters overwhelms the handful of people who look at President Obama as someone worthy of respect and appreciation.
Nothing could be further from the truth. More people support President Obama than not. Let us examine a few key points and address the nature of the 'haters' and what constitutes the basis of hate. Also, let's examine the voices we relentlessly hear on radio and television and their motivations to fan the flames of hatred.
The Haters
In my opinion, they are ignorant. Period. There is no other reason for them to carry such a flaming hatred of such a good President. These people information comes from the pundits that stoke the flames of hatred. Their entire discourse is composed primarily of bumper sticker slogans that have been hurled at them while they are held captive in their morning and afternoon commutes.
They are relentlessly pelted with nuggets of truth surrounded by spin and lies while they drive goods in our interstate highways. They are told that everything that is wrong in their lives is the fault of the government and the government is represented by that 'off-color-Kenyan-liberal-Marxist-socialist-communist-elitist-food stamp President.'
The fact that a socialist can't be an elitist or that an elitist can't be for food stamps, or that an American president would have not been elected to office if he had been born in another country, never enters their minds. The facts don't matter to these kinds of people.
Facts are terrifying. It means they would have to change the way they think and analyze irrational feelings and fears. This is a key component of their personality; They can never be wrong and their feelings represent the cleverly constructed lies they have been bombarded with over their lifetime.
The haters refuse to ask themselves logical questions, like; What has a republican government ever done for me? and yet, when we point out to the changes made by democratic governors and presidents, the ones that impact their lives in a positive and direct manner, their eyes glaze over and their brains shut down. They get defensive, not rational. They must protect their turf because looking at their fears makes them feel like cowards. They are.
Only a coward would look at this list and pretend he/she has not benefited from it.
Unionized labor- 40 hr. work week, paid vacations, health insurance, Family leave, abolishing child labor, equal pay for equal work, legal representation, highways, bridges, Food and Drug safety, Social Security, Medicare, Unemployment Insurance, Public education and a host of other things we take for granted. Republicans did not do accomplish these things, in fact, they fought against them.
For all the 'lack of spine' rhetoric hurled at Democrats, we are the only ones fighting to keep these social foundations that benefit all of us in place. The cowards will rather fight against our own collective interest than stand together and fight for what is right for all of us. For the haters, this is too much of a socialist activity and it is viewed with suspicion. A plot, a way to infiltrate their carefully guarded compounds. A conspiracy of the hated Left.
The haters are the fools who easily part with their money to protect themselves from irrational fears and non-existent threats.
They spend their money on the NRA, Military rations, guns, ammunition, bunkers, survivalist equipment and spend weekends training themselves in preparation for the apocalypse and those hordes of people who will want their bottles of water. In the meantime, the rest of us go camping and to the beach. They hate that.
Here is a partial list of what President Obama has accomplished in three years with an obstructionist Congress - The question to ask of the haters is: What has a republican governor, congressman, senator or president done for anyone in that period of time? or ever? - The most clever answer the haters can come up with is: "It is not good enough" - We can't fully blame them, the political pundits rule their emotions.
The Political Pundits
They know who these haters are. They know how they feel, and most importantly, they know what they fear. They have convinced the haters that they must be armed to the gills because at some point, the 'others' will become violent and exact retribution from having been enslaved, unlawfully arrested and imprisoned.
Unfortunately to their way of feeling, The Others don't rush to arms to give them exactly what they want. They rush to the law, to the voting booths, to a government that must represent all, not just the haters. They become educated and they vote for those who will represent our diverse country. This is frightening to the haters and enraging to their controlled media.
For example, Rush Limbaugh has attacked President Obama relentlessly. He has used racist rhetoric that comforts his audience. The fact is that in many areas in this country, his is the only voice. The captives can't change the Clear Channel station, owned by Mitt Romney's Bain Capital, to get a different perspective. There isn't one. So the haters are justified in their hatred because the radio tells them their version of the truth and Fox 'news' continues graphically where their radio left off.
It is a great plan. It has been successful and has accomplished much to keep a nation divided.
Hate can be one of the most useful tools to propel people to act without thinking. It is a primal instinct that forces people to follow a leader that will make everything go 'back to normal' - whatever that means, since such ambiguous language lacks concrete meaning.
The powerful corporatists are outraged they can't control the internet. They ask A.L.E.C. to design laws that will allow them to do so. They can't control women, as President Obama said "Women are not one-issue voters" - So they design laws to control women and their health care.
They design laws to prevent people from voting. They are trying everything that is underhanded hoping to put the breaks on progress. The rest of the country is pushing back. Information flows on the darn internet and we are coming to the realization that there are fewer haters than we thought.
Q. "Why do they hate President Obama?"
A. "Because the haters are ignorant cowards."
We got President Obama's Back. He has ours.
Now click on the 1st article of interest listed below and sign the petition to educate the haters.
Across the Nation everyone has heard about Rush Limbaugh because your corporation ONLY carries right-wing talk shows in most major markets. Rural areas have never heard of Randi Rhodes, Stephanie Miller, Thom Hartman or Ed Schultz.
We have a right to hear more than the slanted and vile rhetoric of Rush Limbaugh and others like him. We request that the aforementioned shows, and others like them, be given equal access to all major markets in comparable time slots.
Rush Limbaugh does not represent the views and feelings of the vast majority of Americans. Our public airwaves need to represent our views and opinions, not be used as a right-wing tool of misinformation and political gain. A boycott of Rush Limbaugh and its advertisers is already in progress. We urge you to do the right thing before the radio goes permanently silent on our end.
You can also let the FCC know what you think. Remember, these are OUR airwaves!
Rush Limbaugh owns his own show. He is his own boss. Clear Channel can stop carrying him but they NEED to carry other points of views and balance the diatribe on the airwaves.
In my town, we have ONE radio station that carries Randi Rhodes and others, but traveling out of my area and into other states, there is only one type of talk radio carried by the monopoly that is Clear Channel: Conservative and Evangelical.
Clear Channel has swallowed up most independent radio stations. The choice of programming is up to them. It is time we take control of the public airwaves since Clear Channel is only renting them.
If you prefer to contact them directly, here is Clear Channel information:
Everyone and their mother is telling liberals, democrats, women... well..., anyone with a sense of common decency that is offended by Rush Limbaugh's continuous attack on women to boycott the show sponsors.
I am asking you... actually begging you... DON'T do it. I know you are angry, I know you are upset. Don't overreact, please. Here is why:
Rush Limbaugh is on The Clear Channel radio network. So is Randi Rhodes, Stephanie Miller and Ed Schultz among many other liberal and progressive voices.
In many of our states, we only have one radio station that carries these liberal shows and in other places, there are none.
The Sponsors for these shows pay to have their ads played throughout the day in various markets. They are not necessarily endorsing the policies of liberals or conservatives, they are selling their products to all markets.
For instance Bill@ProFlower issued a following statement on Left Leaning Liberal Lady blog: "We would like to assure you that we do not endorse the views expressed by Rush Limbaugh. We understand your concerns and we will ensure that your feedback is communicated to the producers of that show. We appreciate your feedback as it allow us to more effectively manage our relationship with our advertising partners."
*** I am hoping all the other companies listed below will follow suit. If they fully sponsor those points of view, we need to find out first and withdraw or continue our support as the case may be.
Clear Channel was 're-organized' by Bain Capital. Yes, the one that Mitt Romney was so successful at and made his millions from. He gutted a good company and a skeleton crew is pretty much what was left to run the liberal shows. Good people were let go in order to suck the marrow off the bones after carving up the meat and distributing the goods to the 1 percent.
A better alternative to boycotting products you might enjoy without cutting the support to the few good liberals left on talk radio is to bombard Clear Channel with e-mails, letters and phone calls to pull Rush Limbaugh off the air.
A three-hour daily monopoly on public airwaves has rendered Rush Limbaugh incapable of filling the time with anything worth listening to and provided him with a three hour of continuous lashing and on-the-air venting/therapy.
We are not qualified to treat all that ails this man. Yes, there is freedom of speech, but this freedom does not guarantee him an audience. He can talk to the wall - You don't have to listen.
Boycott the show, not the sponsors.
Sandra Fluke Testifying - Congress- Women's Health
Follow @SandraFluke on Twitter to show your support for women's rights and to thank her for standing up in front of Congress on behalf of ALL women's right to health care.
This is one of the strongest messages we can send to Congress, that people of all stripes are united, not divided.
This can't be lost on Clear Channel either. After all, they just want to make money. This is not a partisan issue, but a green issue - Money!
Please remember that in YOUR particular state or city, you may have most of these sponsors, not all, and quite a few local shops and restaurants purchase space to promote their business. These local businesses don't necessarily support the contents of the show - liberal or conservative - They just want to sell their products to whoever is listening.
The Companies Everyone is Asking You to Boycott (Not me - See above)
