Back in January, Joe Biden was caught on tape referring to Barack Obama as a “clean” candidate, raising the eyebrows of those who felt he was being racist. Obama said he understood what Biden was trying to say, and because he knows Biden personally, didn’t assume that the intent was racism.
Rev. Jesse Jackson said pretty much the same thing about Biden, adding that he did call Biden just to make sure.
“I’m sure he didn’t mean it as off-color, but it is certainly highly suggestive,” Jackson said in an interview with CNN.
On Tuesday, according to The State newspaper in Columbia, Jackson’s latest comment about Barack Obama was far beyond “highly suggestive.” The paper reports that Jackson accused Obama of “acting like he’s white” about the Jena 6 story.
Surely you know by now to what the Jena 6 refers, unless you’ve been so busy circulating those chain emails asking why “the media” isn’t covering the story that you’ve actually missed the coverage. Apparently, that’s happening a good bit. So if you’re of that opinion, I might suggest that you start visiting the websites of media outlets like ABC News, CBS News, MSNBC, CNN and Fox News to read up on the story that some people still seem to think no one is touching.
Essentially, in case you still don’t understand what has happened so far, the story comes to us from the small town of Jena, Louisiana, a predominantly white community of about 3,000. Back on August 31, 2006, a few black students sat under a large tree that happens to be a spot where white students typically congregate. The day after this event, which shouldn’t have mattered to anyone, several small nooses were found hung in the tree, an obvious reference to lynchings, and presumably a threat to make it clear to any “bold” black students who might be eyeing a spot under that “whites only” tree.
No, in case you were wondering, we haven’t entered some kind of time warp; it’s still 2007.
The three white students who were found to be responsible for the placement of the nooses were recommended for expulsion from school, but the school board deemed in-school suspension a reasonable punishment.
On September 4, 2006, a white student was allegedly beaten unconscious by six black students. The white student was treated and released from the hospital, and the black students were arrested and five of the six faced attempted murder charges, leading many to suggest that their potential punishment didn’t fit the crime and was a far cry from the minor punishment the white students who had hung the nooses received.
More details about the case can be found here.
Regardless of how you feel about the case, it appears that in Jackson’s world, there really are two kinds of people: everything always is black or white. Never black and white. If you’re white, you can find nothing to be concerned about in Jena. If you’re black, you can only find things to be concerned about. And never shall common ground occur.
The only thing more ridiculous about his remarks is the news that Obama’s response to Jena — the very response that Jackson so clearly disapproves of — seems to have been the product of great discussion and counseling, and some of that came from Jackson’s own son, Jesse Jackson, Jr.! Maybe Jackson, Sr., should have talked one-on-one with Obama before trying to smear him (and unknowingly, Jackson’s own son) to a reporter.
If he could place a call to Biden, after all, it seems reasonable that he could have placed a call to Obama.
