Rangel Guilty of More Than Just Ethics Violations

So, remember how I expressed my abject disappointment with Rep. Charlie Rangel? Turns out, I wasn’t alone with the indictments.

After a two-year investigation, a House ethics subcommittee found former Ways and Means Committee Chairman Rangel guilty of 11 ethics violations. The findings will be sent to the full committee, who will make a recommendation to the House regarding Rangel’s punishment. Though not entirely likely for Rangel, the last time an ethics committee came down this hard was back in 2002 when former House Rep. James Traficant Jr. was sentenced to eight years in prison for bribery, tax evasion and racketeering. Rangel’s storied career in Congress might earn him a few points, but I wouldn’t shed a tear if the book is thrown at him.

Since the initial charges were made, Rangel hasn’t exactly done much to curry sympathy with. And after the episode a few weeks ago when he quite literally walked out of hearing with the a subcommittee lawyer, I think I was pretty done with him. But I suppose I’ve been upset with him for several reasons. One, there is the obvious greed and deceitfulness this man has exuded. He betrayed an entire constituency who placed enough trust in him to [foolishly, in my opinion] give him numerous terms in the House. He tried to act as if he was above the law and beyond reproach. Not a good look.

But then, there is the not-so-openly-discussed notion that black people in certain positions of authority and responsibility (especially in politics, but not limited to this) simply are not afforded the same luxuries as their white counterparts. For every person who says that Rangel did nothing that other politicians haven’t been doing for years, I respond by reminding them that for years African Americans have been required to work just a little harder, be just a little smarter, and have our noses just a little cleaner. Rangel clearly missed that part of the lecture.

It’s unfortunate that a lion in the House is meeting the end of his political career this way. But given all the shennanigans he’s pulled, it’s quite appropriate.

- ACL

Don’t Call ME A Racist, You N**ger!

I have no clue how I missed this video. In the following year-old clip, we have a Massachusetts woman offering up a series of inflammatory rhetoric, racial slurs and even a bit of physical assault toward a USPS employee for not accepting a certified letter she signed for but no longer wanted. What followed, of course, was her subsequent declaration that she was not racist. Check it [Warning: Strong Language]: 

 

Jaw dropping.

Though I was late on this video, the rest of the Internet-using world wasn’t. So it wasn’t too long before the face in this video was matched to a name and a history. That said, I introduce to some and present to others…one, Erica Winchester. As it turns out, Winchester is quite the character. According to the Smoking Gun, she has also reportedly threatened to cut a police officer’s genitals; this occuring after he arrested her for trespassing at a community theater rehearsal where she also directly threatened a member of the cast with gun violence. Also included on her record was an arrest a few years ago for drunk driving. Outside of her issues with the law, Winchester interestingly enough serves as the director for The Speech Company, which offers its customers numerous public speaking and speech communication services. These serves include, but not limited to, “Accent Reduction” (a must for you dirty foreigners trying to take over our country). Based on all this, it’s clear that she has a few screws loose.

As a side note, I also learned that the postal worker in the video was fired following the incident, though the USPS is being very hush about why.

The additional storylines aside, I suppose the reasons I find this story so unnerving are two-fold. What’s most obviously bothering is the overt racism being showcased by this lady. Judging solely by appearance (and perhaps based on some ingrained notion of eurocentric innocence), she looks harmless enough. But she is obviously carrying some very deeply internalized resentment toward racial minorities. For all I know, this woman – this Jane Q. Public – could be my next door neighbor, the person I sit next to on an airplane, or the person I work with everyday. I have absolutely no intentions of indicting an entire group of people based on one person’s decision to promulgate their racist ideology. Still, since it’s becoming increasingly apparent that the practice of racism is no longer solely within the province of the Klan, I’m often left wondering who I should be on the lookout for. These days, hooded sheets are being replaced with jeans, dresses, and pinstriped suits.

But secondly – and perhaps most notably – what bothers me is her vehement denial of being racist.  Fortunately, in this instance we have clear video evidence to the contrary. But generally speaking, when people deny being racist, it’s then  left up to the group subjected to the racism to offer explanations as to why certain statements and actions are offensive. What others may see as innocuous observations (though I don’t know how this lady could find anything innocent in her statements), others see as hurtful and offensive. And instead of certain folks using the experience as an educational tool in learning about offensive language and behavior, their typical retort is something to the effect of “Oh, you’re just playing the race card.”

So my dear readers of The Unmitigated Word, tell me: was this lady being racist or was she just venting frustration? The floor is yours.

- ACL

Random Thoughts: Tyler Perry

Tyler Perry’s body of work is a bonafide showcase of coonery. Even his more serious pieces (“For Colored Girls”, the “Why Did I Get Married” joints, etc.) do their fair share in portraying the disfunction of black male/black female relationships. That is my official position. I’m not likely to deviate from that stance anytime soon, so don’t waste your time trying to convert me. However, Tyler Perry is not – I repeat – NOT responsible for any of the following:

• The continuously spreading pandemic of HIV/AIDS
• Obesity
• The proliferating (yet often ignored) existence of mental illness
• Racism
• Staggering unemployment numbers
• The destruction of the family
• Individual and/or institutional racism
• Alarming crime statistics, both locally and nationwide
• Drug peddling and usage
• Police brutality
• This nation’s Prison-Industrial Complex
• Fox News and the wave of oppressive conservatism sweeping across this country
• BET, rap music, and the litany of other ghetto dictatorships
• Inept “leadership” coming from black politicians, ministers, and other greedy, morally objectionable personalities.

For all the evilness that Tyler Perry’s work represents, it ain’t nothing like any of the above.

- ACL

Miscommunicating the Communication

Anybody who believes all our hopes of being informed lie in the media, think again:

- ACL

Election Day: The Tale of Two Evils

Today is Election Day. Today is the day some people have been looking forward to, while others have dreaded. Today is the day voters are given the charge to set the course for the country over the next few years. As I’ve stated numerous times before, I predict a major shift in the country’s political position. Namely, I see Republicans picking up at least eight seats in the Senate and at least 40 seats in the House of Representatives. It won’t be pretty for the Democrats.

What role will I play in this, you ask? Let’s put it this way:

While I think some Republicans have certainly proven their worth, the overwhleming majority of them have nothing quality-laden to bring to the table (except, perhaps, when it comes to preserving the interests of the wealthy). Meanwhile, many Democrats have done more to manipulatively play on the sensibilities of the working class, minorities, and the poor than even their opponents on the right. So given my status as a [relatively] young, black, working class citizen with aspirations of seeing progressive reform through governmental actions, the question becomes: Do I support the Party of Bad Ideas or the Party of No Ideas?

There’s no doubt that this country is governed by two parties. Even the Tea Party - who is supposedly committed to the principles of Libertarianism - is nothing more than a radical fringe of the Republican party. So despite being an industrialized nation which has made advancements in virutally every field of science and art, we find ourselves in a position where all of our hopes rest in an archaeic system only represented two political agendas; both evil in their own rights. Therein lies the ultimate problem with the political philosophy of this country; and the root of my frustration as a political scientist. We work within a system that grants a particular person or group of people with power, but then limits our choices to binary options. In turn, we accept and abjectly capitulate to certain electoral limitations (often times self-imposed, since we’re the ones actually doing the voting) despite ostensibly being committed to true democracy.

All that said, who am I voting for? What party will I support? Who do I think will best represnt the collective interests of this country? Hard to tell. And I certainly won’t use this post (or this blog) to preach to you about who to support. But I will urge you to at least get out and vote. Voting (even in the system of limitations we have in place) is one of the most sacred tenants our democracy. Now, should you decide to walk into the box today and select candidates at random, that’s fine and dandy. In fact, maybe we all should. 

- ACL