Will The Right Make This Obama’s “Wise Latina” Moment?
Over the weekend a tipster directed our attention to a part of the “President Obama’s African Journey” AC 360 special featuring the interviews Anderson Cooper conducted with President Barack Obama during his trip to Ghana.
One line of the President’s stood out as possible fodder for criticism in much the same way Judge Sonia Sotomayor’s “wise Latina” comment became a conservative talking point.
Here’s the full passage:
That’s part of the African American experience. You are, in some ways, connected to this distant land, but on the other end, you’re about as American as it gets in some ways. African Americans are more fundamentally rooted in the American experience because they don’t have a recent immigrant experience to draw on. It’s that unique African American culture that has existed in North America for hundreds of years long before we actually founded the nation.
The key line, of course, is “African Americans are more fundamentally rooted in the American experience.” Obama did not expand on this, nor did Anderson Cooper ask a follow up. So did Mr. Obama mean that African Americans are more rooted in American experience than other Americans, or more rooted in American experience than the African experience? Or does it really matter?
Perhaps more importantly, will this become a “gotcha” moment? The quote could imply, at least without proper context, something similar to Sotomayor’s “wise Latina” comment. It could be the calm before the storm – it hasn’t even been a week since the interview first aired. So far it has been picked up only in the context of a discussion on the African American experience.
Whether the line becomes a conduit for a larger discussion on race in this country, or a talking point for the Obama detractors remains to be seen.
The interview is below, with the key passage starting around the 6:45 mark:
—–
• Follow Steve Krakauer on Twitter
10 comments
[...] What’s more disturbing? That our President believes one group of people are fundamentally more American than others or that a so-called journalist like Cooper could hear such a thing without even attempting to follow up? Read more about this here. [...]
[...] other races because “they don’t have a recent immigrant experience to draw on.” (via Mediaite) That’s part of the African American experience. You are, in some ways, connected to this distant [...]
mantis says: So did Mr. Obama mean that African Americans are more rooted in American experience than other Americans, or more rooted in American experience than the African experience?
Obviously, he meant that African-Americans are more rooted in the American experience than African immigrants to America, as they “don’t have a recent immigrant experience to draw on.” One would think a reporter would know how to consider context, or at least read all the way to the end of the sentence.
Whether the line becomes a conduit for a larger discussion on race in this country, or a talking point for the Obama detractors remains to be seen.
Well, it likely would have become neither, as it was a perfectly banal comment. However, you’re possibly deliberate misreading will of course provide plenty of fodder for the reality-challenged right wing. Good work!
[...] lame is this supposed “gotcha” that I’m tempted to accuse Mediaite, which debuted a few weeks ago, of drumming it up in bad faith to create buzz. The [...]
libra blue says: The problem I had wih this comment by Obama is that he has lumped all African Americans into one group and everyone else into another. Of course some African Americans will be more “rooted in the American experience” than people of other cultures, but not every non-African person came over on Ellis Island.
Except for the first question about the stimulus package, Anderson did not challenge Obama on a single topic, this was not an interview in the true sense, it was just another way for CNN to give Obama a platform to say whatever he wanted without opposition.
Also, when is Anderson going to acknowledge that Obama is not African American, but multiracial? I wonder if Obama intends to educate his children on their white heritage as he did their black heritage.
[...] His words: That’s part of the African American experience. You are, in some ways, connected to this distant land, but on the other end, you’re about as American as it gets in some ways. African Americans are more fundamentally rooted in the American experience because they don’t have a recent immigrant experience to draw on. It’s that unique African American culture that has existed in North America for hundreds of years long before we actually founded the nation. [...]
Schiele85 says: I think it’s clear that he’s referring to African Americans being more fundamentally rooted in the American experience, over an African experience. As a Ghanaian with African-American friends, I have had this conversation a few times, and for most of my friends, their American identities / background IS, and will always be the primary experience that they draw on.
[...] lame is this supposed “gotcha” that I’m tempted to accuse Mediaite, which debuted a few weeks ago, of drumming it up in bad faith to create buzz. [...] Read the rest [...]
[...] almost have to admire Steve Krakauer’s ability to turn this CNN interview with President Obama into a “possible wise Latina moment.” [...]
[...] a recent CNN interview, after getting his ballsack polished he had this to say about his people… That’s part of the African American experience. You are, in some ways, connected to this [...]
Job hunting?
Use our proprietary jobs tool to access the largest pool of jobs aggregated from around the country.
Bill O’Reilly Defends Fox News News VP Who Gave His Tea Party Opinion
Bill O'Reilly spent several segments last night discussing the tea party movement and attempting to defend Fox News VP of News and Washington managing editor Bill Sammon for his blanket statement about the mainstream media's 'hatred' of the partying. It included a contentious interview with Politico executive editor Jim VandeHei, a talk with Brit Hume (who previously held Sammon's job) and a "Talking Points" opening (including some 'original reporting').
Keith Olbermann, Jon Stewart Fail to Eviscerate Sarah Palin
Hyperbole must be over. How else does one explain the extremely disappointing bits that Jon Stewart and Keith Olbermann did on Sarah Palin last night? Handed (thank you, I'm here all week) 3 days of Palin material that rivaled anything George W. Bush ever gave them, Olbermann could barely manage a molecule of spittle, let alone a lather, and Stewart deployed his seldom-used Nerf™ jokes.
More TV headlines:
»Colbert: ‘Sarah Palin is a F***king Retard’ »7
»Enraged, Rachel Maddow Explains ‘Racist History’ Tea Party Is Embracing »15
»Superbowl MVP Drew Brees on Letterman (with Baby Brees Backstage!)
»Welcome, @CraigyFerg! Craig Ferguson Joins Twitter »2
»Jay Leno Explains The Letterman Promo: “A Good Joke Is A Good Joke” »6
© 2010 Mediaite, LLC | About Us | Advertise | Newsletter | Privacy | User Agreement | Disclaimer | Power Grid FAQ | Contact | Archives | 
RSS
