Rodney King in New Orleans
By Mike Whitney
09/05/05 "ICH" -- -- Racism in America doesn't dress up in a cowl and flowing white robes anymore. Instead, it dons an immaculate blue suit and tie and conceals itself behind the lofty language of democracy, freedom and human dignity; but, its racism all the same.
We've seen an explosion of racism in America since George Bush took office. It started out after 9-11 and was aimed exclusively at Muslims; a vulnerable group with a paltry voice in government. The administration took full advantage of their political weakness by tossing whomever they chose in prison without due process and without concern for their personal health or safety. Many, of course, were brutalized and traumatized by a system that still boldly touted human rights from the presidential podium.
It was all lies.
New Orleans adds a new chapter to the Bush digest of calculated bigotry. While the wealthy white families were able to beat a hasty retreat out of doomed city, the poor and black were left to sink in the toxic stew unleashed by America's greatest natural disaster.
No one who saw the televised footage of the Convention center and the Superdome had any misgivings about what they were seeing. America's long-lost companion, racial-hatred, had stuck its ugly head up into the camera lens and was pouring out onto living rooms across the land.
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