Shirley Sherrod
Shirley Sherrod the ousted senior official of USDA who was forced to resign from the Agriculture Department, says she is indecisive about rejoining USDA.
The senior official was asked to resign from office following the release of a controversial video of hers in a conservative web site. The edited video showed Shirley Sherrod in a NAACP conference, making racist remarks.
The video raised a media furor because of which Shirley Sherrod was asked to resign by Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack on Monday.
Later however the full video was released which showed that Shirley was in fact recounting a tale dating back to 20yrs earlier where she had helped a white farmer.
Shirley remarked that contrary to being racist this incident had taught her to completely disregard biasing people based on their race. Sherrod who appeared on ABC’s show ‘Good Morning America’ mused that she may not be treated well after all the negative publicity that she had received.
The fact that none of her colleagues had bothered to contact her after this incident, only confirmed her apprehensions. After the appearance of the full video Agriculture Secretary Vilsack said that they will now look in to the matter & may withdraw the dismissal order on Shirley.
Shirley Sherrod claimed that the neither the White House nor the ministry made an attempt to hear her story. While speaking on NBC’s ‘Today Show’ she said-”I’m a bit disappointed that things happened in the way that they happened. It doesn’t take away my support for the administration, When I accepted the position at rural development, always in the back of my mind was doing the very best that I could to have that be a good reflection on [Obama] and what he was trying to do.”
I am not so sure the firing was inappropriate. Had we reversed black and white in her story of bias and “reconciliation” most media would have clearly drawn a reasonable conclusion of racism. The totality of her comments are being ignored …. claims of racism against those who opposed health care, referring the white farmer to one of his own kind, derisive comments about the Bush administrations, her father being killed by a white man , no white men ever punished if the victim was black ..and more. In fact, the only part of her speech that conveyed reconciliation …was essentially a talking point from the Socialists handbook…poor people oppressed and class struggle rhetoric. Seems the Hatch Act bars government officials from politically oriented speech which she violated. And, of all the topics, stories, and words she could have woven into a speech , even at the NAACP, she CHOSE words that revealed her politics and lingering anti-white sentiments. So, taken as a whole, absent access to the whole 45 minutes, I feel the firing while hasty was nonetheless deserved. Beyond race her attitudes about civil service job security were offensive to anyone in civil or private sector employment who feels employees who don’t or can’t perform should face discipline and even dismissal. It is called accountability. Driving that point deeper, the white guy ( yes, i am a white guy too ) that headed the agency mentioned in his apology that he had not had much experience in such matters , i.e. firing … Which suggests every last person at the department of agriculture is doing a fully satisfactory job and there are no occasions where firing becomes required??? Bottom-line we have a deep, sad, and ugly racial divide in this country where it exists among whites and blacks but seems that African Americans get a pass because in our culture being a racist or being accused of racism or uttering the “N” word is the most repugnant and reprehensible label possible …worse than traitor, worse than child molester, worse than murderer, worse than Nazi…. it is a weapon used by race hustlers and left wing radicals ( Socialists now out of the closet ) to demonize conservatives and as a strategy to deflect negative news away from Obama. Healing the racial divide can not happen without an honest conversation that is way over due. Obama could have secured his place in history as the first “Post Racial President ” but instead is busy playing the Race Card through his constituents and mainstream media not to heal a nation but to further his political objectives and Socialist Ideology. Electing an African American, really bi-racial man, to the Presidency was truly a historic event for all people of all hues to take great pride. And, indisputable proof of our progress toward becoming a color blind society. But he has lost the support of the majority of Americans not because of his skin color but because of Socialist policies / Agenda that are destructive, wrongheaded, and alien to our collective heritage and culture. Black Panthers with clubs at a voting site get a pass, Holder, the attorney general calls Americans cowards ( as respects race ), Nancy Pelosi & the NAACP and other Obama supporters characterizes the tea party as fascist / racists, Obama takes a white cop to the woodshed in his beer summit admitting he did not have the facts before saying the arrest was stupid … yet, poor Shirley was taken out of context and deserves to be reinstated. I think not. Time to demand we all start behaving as a color-blind society for the benefit of all Americans irrespective of skin color. And, quickly condemn any person or organization, black, brown, or white that attempts to play the “race card” in a dishonest way motivated by hate, power, ideology, or politics. No more, we are on to that corrosive game and no one can diminish you with a baseless tag of Racist without your consent.
Peter G. Elk Grove, CA