I don't think 'racist' is the right word for *

[StellaBlue]

I posted this in the Ben Stein thread, but realized it was so long and covered more than one topic, and thought my POV might be useful, so I am posting it on its own.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

I despise *, having worked in the same building as him for 3.5 years while he was governor of our otherwise lovely state. I saw him at least once a week, and saw the who/what/where of his photo ops, saw what legislation he vetoed/signed (that's about all he gets to do as governor of Texas), heard tons of gossip about him.

I have to say, in that whole time, I have NEVER heard anyone say anything other than that he is one of the least racist politicians they have ever met.

I don't think it's fair to label him racist. He's just ignorant - and classist. His 'base' is the elite, as he is proud to state openly in front of rolling cameras. If you are black and in that elite (see members of his cabinet), you're in.

The rest of the American people are OUT, black, white, striped, or polka-dotted.

I think we are really shooting ourselves in the foot with all the calling him 'racist.'

I do think that the response to the aftermath, from people I have heard talking on the street right up to the MSM, would've been quicker and different and less blaming if the victims had been affluent and/or whites, but that is NOT the direct fault of *.

Likewise, we need to remain logical and consistent in our message about global warming and make it clear that we are saying that the hurricane ILLUSTRATES the reality of global warming (warmer waters in Gulf cause stronger storms), but do not think that the 5 years of *'s reign have directly caused this natural disaster. When I am talking about this issue with RWs, I have been saying something to the effect of, 'No one is BLAMING * for the hurricane; but it's been the crappy policy of every adminstration since WW2 to encourage our dependency on oil and the raping of natural resources. * needs to sign up to Kyoto NOW! It's probably already too late.'

Sorry this post is so long. I just think we need to remain reasoned, calm, and back up what we say with CLEAR FACTS to avoid being dismissed by those other Americans who are now just about to teeter off the fragile roof of freeperism and freefall into openmindedness.

[achtung_circus]

1. Classism. nt

[leftofthedial]

49. yep

it's all about him

and if you have enough money or come from a powerful family you are potentially useful to him.

[yellowdogintexas]

2. I think you have a point. He just doesn't know or get

what it is like to be someone other than the privileged class.

This of course does not excuse others who in fact are racist.

[valerief]

3. There are no striped or polka-dotted people

[StellaBlue]

5. Have you been to Austin?

:D


:headbang:

[Roland99]

4. Malevolent Indifference

[bribri16]

6. We've had a lot of Presidents who were "racist" and we survived.

However, "incompetent" is another thing.

[Frances]

7. Do you think Bush would have waited so long

if the people had been white fundamentalists in a very red city?

[theboss]

52. I don't think white fundamentalists would have been facing the same issues

New Orleans is an extremely poor city - pretty much as poor as you can get in the US. If - say - Cincinatti were wiped out by a flood, the same types of people would be suffering. The white fundamentalists would most likely have more resources to protect themselves and would almost certainly have a better safety net.

I just think Bush believes 100 percent in "pulling yourself up by your bootstraps." (Or as the Onion says, eating your bootstraps). And I think the real problem is that he doesn't realize how many people pulled on his bootstraps for him. He thinks that if this happened to him, he would just drive to Kennebunkport until everything cleared up.

At least Nixon and Reagan were once poor. And his father actually worked for a living. W is the embodiment of every "Ivy League legacy" I went to college with.

[U4ikLefty]

8. Are you an African-Amrerican???

bet not

[ultraist]

9. Do you think it's mere coincidence that most left behind to die are Black

Gee, what a big coincidence. Wonder if help would have been sent earlier had most been white.

Bush's policies promote systemic racism, therefore he is a racist.

[StellaBlue]

17. Re: systemic racism

I fully agree with the above posts, and, no I am not black, and I have spent the past week trying to explain to my RW and quasi-RW relatives that they *might not* be so offended by Jesse Jackson et al getting on TV and saying that this was indemic of systemic racism if they were black. I can see how African-Americans would necessarily have a different response than white Americans. I also pointed out to them that just like Bill Clinton or * may not represent their views as members of the 'white race', Jesse Jackson or whoever doesn't represent the entire 'black race'.

Also, NO is mostly black. However, according to the recent Census info I looked at on wikipedia, it is about 67% - and I didn't see 33% non-black in any of the images on MY screen... unless they are on a secret white freeper channel..... ??? So, I think perhaps we should point out to foreigners (and I have seen a lot of this on BBC, etc.) that NOLA isn't, say, 10% black with 99% black refugees, but closer to 70% black with 99% black refugees. So there is clearly room to discuss racism as a factor here. I totally agree!!!

I am, if it matters to you: Anglo/Scottish/Welsh/Irish/French/Cherokee (not sure about %s, but I don't buy into that 'I am 1/32 Iroquoi' shit - many, many Americans are mixed, including many, many, many African Americans - it's unfortunate that we rush to assumptions based on the lightness/darkness/redness of skin).

My only point was that we should be VERY careful about saying 'George Bush is racist' to freepers. It is more nuanced than that. And we know how small their minds are. Especially if they are white/red state/fundies.

I think the people were left behind because * doesn't care about any of us, and the poorer you are the more forgotten you are. Also, I think it seems very odd that all this blame is being heaped on LA and NO officials by the feds... but not on the officials in MS or AL - where the officials are all REPUBLICANS. This is a facet, as well.

My concern is for ALL Americans being left behind by the * regime. And that's 99.9% of us.

[Booster]

10. I think you're right. He really doesn't care what color any of us are.

If we aren't useful to him, he just doesn't care about any of us. I really don't get the feeling he cares about his kids or even his wife all that much. Remember on 9/11, he flew around the country and to Hell with where his family was. What man do you know who wouldn't insist that he be flown to where his wife was if she wasn't in direct fire? He really thinks he's the cat's meow and that's probably why I just can't stand him in all his cuteness; cuteness that only he thinks is cute. Vile man.

[ultraist]

12. Just because he's a classist, doesn't mean he's not also a racist

What is the point in denying that race was a factor here?

[U4ikLefty]

13. Thank you

[Booster]

16. I think his followers are certainly racists and probably him also,

but I don't think that's his only or biggest problem. I think he's a bigot and a racist and a classist - he hit the trifecta again.

[StellaBlue]

18. ...

I was just providing my own, more-direct-than-most-people impression of * and racism.

I was trying to make our arguments better informed and therefore more nuanced and effective.

Just because I am white does not mean I am not allowed to talk about racism. I know more white racists than a lot of people, unfortunately. Especially the 'systemic' kind.

* doesn't REALIZE he's racist.

That's why he should be locked in the Superdome. For a long, long time. So his little mind can wrap itself around all his evildoin'. And support of systemic racism.

How many of the 1890+ dead soldiers in Iraq were poor/minorities?

How many were Andover-educated trust funders?

[noiretextatique]

27. please stop making excuses for him

and i do think you are making an excellent point: he doesn't give a damn about anyone. however, his racist tendencies have surfaced previously and i doubt that he is as unaware of them as you claim. i don't know what's in the man's heart, if he has one, but i do know that he is very aware of using race as a weapon and a tool, as is the rest of the republican party. their southern strategy wasn't an accident caused by ignorance and unawareness: it was and is a deliberate strategy.
and he is very aware of that.

[StellaBlue]

29. yes and no

I was just speaking from my own narrow (but quasi-first-hand) experience.

I don't think he really understands much about what's going on. Except that Mommy and Poppy want him to do this and that; more money is good; he and his Skull & Bones friends are better than everyone else; deaths of people outside his circle don't matter; and Jesus H Christ wants him to be prezdint.

Did you see the debates (rhetorical question)? He's clearly an incompetent, subpar-intelligent moran (sic). Who laughs and smirks when lost for responses... worked when he was five... and still working.

[StellaBlue]

35. Oh, AND

I am the LAST person that would defend him...

My point here is that it is harmful to our cause to accuse him of things he may not actually BE (a personal bigot a la Strom Thurmond - well, no, actually, it turned out he was only a public bigot, didn't it? :-( ).

They are already accusing us, by taking our words out of context, of saying he 'caused the hurricane'. And are ridiculing 'liberals' for being so blatantly ignorant. Which, of course, we are not in reality.

I'm just saying...

[noiretextatique]

51. there is no point in trying to appease them

with obfuscation like... he's not a racist...he just acts and sounds like one. that isn't likely to win over anyone...nothing is, btw. most people who have awakened have done so because the evidence of bush, inc's incompetency is overwhelming, not because some liberal-types are so careful with the words they use.
bush may not be smart, but he is cunning, and his use of race is a part of that cunning.

and just because strom thurmond screwed (over) a black woman doesn't mean he wasn't a racist.

[meow2u3]

20. He's definitely a classist--there is proof

Even his prof in college commented about his prejudice against the poor. That's documented. But that doesn't stop him from using poor whites as pawns in his deceptive power grabs.

I suspect he's also a racist, but it's harder to prove because it manifests itself in subtle ways, such as the disregard he showed towards the lives of poor blacks.

[Cleita]

11. If you don't want to call * racist, you have to acknowledge that

the cabal that props him up is. The NOLA situation was one of the most racist reactions I have ever seen to a disaster. The white and black people were immediately segregated into possible criminals in a "combat zone" and survivors in other parrishes. I mean it couldn't have been more obvious to me than moves on a checkerboard.

The NG was sent in with orders to kill and found themselves surrounded with desperate survivors instead. Maybe it's Rumsfeld who is at fault for turning this into a racial tragedy, but * is just as guilty because he hasn't purged these people from his administration.

[porphyrian]

14. Racism and classism are inextricably entertwined in the South.

You can't separate the two because the Good Ol' Boy Network is alive and well, quietly maintaining pre-Civil Rights Movement values and practices. While there are poor of all colors in the South, you can assume that any minority you meet is Middle Class or lower and usually be correct. While individuals in the system that perpetuate this truth may not be particularly racist, the system itself is. Thus, by maintaining the system, so is racism maintained. As a "Southern" politician, Bush is both a classist and a racist.

[mitchum]

21. Very well said

you speak the truth

[porphyrian]

28. Thank you. Further, as Kanye West said, and I paraphrase,...

...the media has been portraying Blacks as looters, but Whites as rummaging for supplies. If, as we know, the corporate media is largely controlled by the political influence of this administration, it is not much of a stretch to call any member of this administration, particularly those involved in propaganda and image control, racist. Again, while individuals may not be particularly racist, the policies and actions of the administration are racist, as well as classist.

[StellaBlue]

31. I agree

But acting as if (and saying things to the effect of) * is some kind of Jim Crow bigot... that's not necessarily true, it's confusing the issue (systemic racism), and it distracts from and confuses our main argument ABOUT the systemic racism.

I think we should repeat, over and over and over and over THE SYSTEM IS RACIST - THE SYSTEM IS CLASSIST - THE SYSTEM IS MISOGYNIST.

Only we have to say that in smaller words for our syllabically-challenged RW brethren. :/

[porphyrian]

42. Would you say that someone who knows this about the system...

...and who propagates it intentionally is a racist? True, it isn't the same as wearing a sheet and lynching a Black man for being Black, but it's not entirely different, either. How many days did he delay his response to the hurricanes which hit South Florida? One argument might be that, because it is his brother's state, no time was wasted in getting help to Florida(political). Another might be that South Florida, while having a significant Black population, also has a considerable number of rich Whites and Batista Cubans (classist). Still another might be that the areas hit by Katrina are mostly the homes of poor Black folk, and not only did he not care about them, he intentionally sealed their fate by taking federal money away from the Army Corps of Engineers, sending nearly half of those states' National Guard to Iraq and refusing to be bothered with them for over five days in spite of reports of the mounting death toll. Would he have done the same in Texas? Is deliberately causing the death of hundreds if not thousands of Black people not, at least in part, racist?

[StellaBlue]

43. I would argue

ne did do the same in Texas... various legislative incidents both supported and vetoed...... one example off the top of my head is denying CHIPS coverage to literally thousands of poor Texan children. Most of whom happened to be Spanish-speaking Hispanic people living in squalor, desperately, in the colonias on the border.

:(

[porphyrian]

44. Is that classism or racism? Or both?

Or is it just narcissistic indifference? I guess my point is that it's virtually impossible to separate the systemic -isms from the personal when the perpetrator is a controlling operator of the system.

[Fight_n_back]

15. Racist is as racist does

It doesn't matter how the little one personally feels about blacks. What matters is that his policies disprportionately affect blacks, it is obvious and he continues those policies.

There is a difference between bigotry and racism. He is probably not a "bigot" in that he doesn't harbor ill will against any individual black he may know but he is most certainly a "racist" because his policies support and expand institutional racism.

[StellaBlue]

19. Well said.

But will RWers who we are trying to reason with know the difference?

I don't think they do, that's why I made my original post.

And, sad to say, every single administration in the history of the United States has been systemically racist. And classist. And misogynist. Some slightly more or less than others.

[Fight_n_back]

22. I slightly disagree

2 points

1) Its hard to say that Truman was racist since he took huge risks in starting desegregation or LBJ who KNEW he was committing political suicide with his Civil Rights legislation

2) Everyone is a racist it is how you deal with it that is the issue. One must also be judged in context of the time. The Founding Fathers were on the bleeding edge just because they didn't believe that the King was given the throne by god. Lincoln didn't like black Americans but was morally compelled to be aginst treating them differently because of race. Jeb Bush married an immigrant from Columbia but that wouldn't stop him from using immigration as an election ploy.

[StellaBlue]

26. Again, I agree

Yet the people we (on this board and like-minded others) generally look to for inspiration are those that were able to TRANSCEND 'their time'. For this reason I cannot really get *too* inspired by Thomas Jefferson. Anyone that wouldn't recognize my rights or those of my friends I cannot idolize.

And everyone has their faults (thus we shouldn't 'idolize' anyone, really), but some really stand out as speaking the truth. Such as Sojourner Truth (no coincidence pre-planned, there haha). And others.

I'm sure, with all the accumulated knowledge on this board, though, that any person I could put on a list of 'transcendents', such as a personal favorite of mine (sticking with my cheap puns), Thoreau, could be shot down as a racist, classist, misogynist, or some other ist. But some people are willing to forego wealth and popularity in order to be true brothers and sisters to their fellow human beings, and those are the ones whose words is may be useful to medidate on.

From what I've read, LBJ was at least as racist as *, too. :/ And he was certainly corrupt. But, yes, he did some things that many others wouldn't have done. Good karma for him to offset the bad, I suppose.

[Fight_n_back]

30. I like to be agreed with, thanks

Im more concerned with the everyday, hardwired, deeply ingrained racism that affects us all to such a huge extent but remains hard to quantify.

Here is an example: Why did FEMA think that it was so dangerous at the Convention Center? Because white people are afraid of black people. Mike Brown doesn't know that he feels that way its just so deep in him (and most whites) that he never considered it. He couldn't, in all good conscience, send his white people into a crowd of black people because "they are dangerous". Its why so many people have guns in this country, because blacks may come and try to get your stuff any minute. It is the main mover in our politics but is never talked about.

[StellaBlue]

33. I can agree with that, too

:)

haha.

Most people I know are afraid of black people. Most of them would admit it (to whites, even ones they don't know too well). They have guns. They think blacks are more likely to break in their homes, steal their stuff, be violent.

But they think that because they think blacks have a chip on their shoulder. Which may be because blacks KNOW that so many whites (especially here in the South) ARE systemically racist. It's not that they have a 'chip on their shoulder', but that they are rightfully suspicious of these people who have so often shown their contempt, from slavery right down to today. That's why I was telling my freeper relatives that maybe THEY would feel differently about the talk of 'racism' in the evacuation/sheltering/etc if THEY themselves were African-American.

If I was black, I would probably be suspicious of self-segregated, gun-toting, Bible-quoting white people (especially Southerners), until they proved themselves otherwise.

Just like I assume most self-segregated (with their fraternities and country clubs and 'lodges'), gun-toting, Bible-quoting white men are probably not too excited about the rights that I, as a woman, insist upon. They think I, too, am being uppity.

Sorry to get off topic. This was about racism against African-Americans, which deserves to be discussed both among us 'progressives' and in the MSM.

[Just Me]

23. HELLO!!!! IT'S ALL ABOUT MONEY!!! MONEY MONEY MONEY.

They are VERY OLD FASHIONED, Roman-like,...enslaving ANYONE AND EVERYONE that they can impose their will.

Jesus abhorred and defied these people,...the very same people. I am no longer a "Christian" primarily because the vision of Jesus has been defied and exploited,...a perpetual crucifixation of that vision,...and I CHOOSE to oppose such exploitation of both Jesus and our people.

[Lars39]

24. Not buying it.

There's been enough public statements by him that leaves no doubt that he is a racist. He's just hidden it well, which is another sociopathic trait.

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

25. Classistic-racio syndicalism.

Eta: The syndicalism here is the union of thieves.

[morgan2]

32. Completely agree

He's a classist and a politician. If it was a group that supported him, whether it was poor christians or rich businessman he would have been working to help them. Because it was poor people, from a city, it didn't hit him as something that needed to be done. His "bold" actions in office have all been in support of his backers, without someone kicking him in the ass to do something it wont get done.

[angee_is_mad]

34. Actions are racist

and insensitive. Blacks are totally insignificant to him, unless he can use them to fulfill some sick vendetta. ie, Ignoring the civil rights leaders, CBC, and the NAACP, but propping up the a select few black ministers to parade around. He makes me SICK!

Also, most racists today don't believe they're racists. They are the ones who most commonly say, "Some of my best friends are Black," to excuse their racist actions, but would disown their own child if he/she married a black person (unless they were rich of course).

[ignatius 2]

36. I agree,,if you aren't one of the haves and have mores, then you

basically are nothing to this psychopath. He has illusions of grandeur,hence,King George suits him.

[StellaBlue]

37. I changed my mind

http://www.commondreams.org/views/020900-101.htm

Published on Wednesday, February 9, 2000 in the Boston Globe
At Bob Jones U., A Disturbing Lesson About The Real George W.
by Derrick Jackson

Last week, in a graduation ceremony mysteriously underplayed by the white press, George W. Bush earned his master's degree from the Ronald Reagan Institute of Race Policy and Management.


Reagan established the institute in 1980 by kicking off his presidential campaign at the Neshoba County Fair in Philadelphia, Miss. The Neshoba County Fair for decades had been the legendary gathering spot of segregationists and near the site of the grisly murders of three civil rights workers.


Reagan took the microphone and, to the roar of thousands of white fairgoers, said, ''I believe in states' rights.'' Anyone who knows Southern race policy knows that saying ''states' rights'' is like waving a Confederate flag, telling racists they can do whatever they want to black folks.


Reagan was never hounded by the press as to how he could make such a statement and expect to be elected as president. Reagan's handlers slyly scheduled a speech two days later before the Urban League. At the Urban League speech, Reagan said:


''For too many people, conservative has come to mean antipoor, antiblack, and antidisadvantaged. Perhaps some of you question whether a conservative really feels sympathy and compassion for the victims of social and economic misfortune and of racial discrimination.... If you think of me as the caricatured conservative, then I ask you to listen carefully and maybe you'll be surprised by our broad areas of agreement.''


History shows that the real Reagan was the one who spoke at the Neshoba County Fair and not the one at the Urban League. His presidency quickly became the most antipoor, antiblack, and antidisadvantaged in the latter half of the 20th century.


Now, 20 years later, here comes George W. Bush. Stung by his defeat in the New Hampshire primary, Bush needed a trump card in the South Carolina Republican primary. This was a problem, since he and John McCain are running neck-and-redneck on issues dear to racists. Both have chickened out on saying it is time to stop flying the Confederate flag over the state capitol.


Bush may have found his ace. He kicked off his homestretch drive in South Carolina by speaking at Bob Jones University. Bob Jones represents one of Reagan's early signs of being antiblack. Reagan fought to revoke the Internal Revenue Service's authority to deny charitable tax exemptions to the school. The denial was over the school's ban on interracial dating.


The Supreme Court, in an 8-1 decision, rebuked Reagan, saying schools that practice racial segregation can indeed be denied tax exemptions. Reagan would later appoint the lone dissenter, William Rehnquist, to chief justice.


Bob Jones University still bans interracial dating. George W.'s brother Jeb, the Florida governor who is married to a Latina, could not have graduated. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, who has a white wife and who was appointed by George W.'s father, could not have graduated.


Bob Jones also practices homophobia. Two years ago, when a gay, 60-year-old alum asked if he could come back to visit the school, the dean of students wrote back, ''With grief we must tell you that as long as you are living as a homosexual, you, of course, would not be welcome on the campus and would be arrested for trespassing if you did. We take no delight in that action. Our greatest delight would be in your return to the Lord.''


George W. took delight in validating this perverted version of Christianity, telling 6,000 students, almost all white, ''I look forward to publicly defending our conservative philosophy.'' He said he would seek ''compassionate results.'' But compassion could not have been foremost on Bush's mind, since it was only after the speech that he criticized the school's racial policies, not during it and not directly to the students.


His compassion is irrelevant when out of all the colleges in South Carolina, he chose the most racist and homophobic, a venue more discriminatory on paper than even the Neshoba County Fair. Speaking of papers, Bush's appearance was so outrageous newspaper and television reporters should hound him as to how he deserves the White House when he panders to such base thinking.


While many editorials have dutifully questioned the appearance, subsequent news coverage has made little mention of Bob Jones and certainly not enough to suggest this was a deep, permanent stain. Like Reagan and the Urban League, Bush is smart enough to sprinkle just enough pepper in his white sauce, such as photo-ops with black children, to keep the hounds at bay.


Reagan told the Urban League he was not a caricatured conservative. In the end, he became the caricature of modern racism. Today we have Bush, who coined the term ''compassionate conservatism.'' By going to Bob Jones, Bush showed that he will be so compassionate to conservatives he will be every bit as antipoor, antiblack, and antidisadvantaged as Reagan was.


Having earned his masters in Reagan race policy, by speaking at Bob Jones University George W. Bush is well on his way to his PhD: philosopher of demagoguery.


Derrick Z. Jackson is a Globe columnist.

[norml]

38. He likes black people, if they worship him, more so if they're rich.

It's just those poor black people who don't worship him that he doesn't like.

[Generic Other]

39. I am reminded of the Okies treatment during the Depression

In "The Grapes of Wrath," they are betrayed by their own banks, then mistreated by California authorities and local farmers when they are forced to migrate.

Victims are blamed and penalized for economic conditions they have little or no control over. Add the element of race and you get Roseasharon nursing her dying child in the Superdome.

[StellaBlue]

40. And

Again, ACCEPT MY APOLOGIES

Like all racists, the reason he is racist is I-G-N-O-R-A-N-C-E.

(snip)
Washington (Der Spiegel) – It was Condoleezza Rice, national security advisor, who helped her boss out of the embarassing situation. During a conversation between the presidents of the U.S. and Brazil, George W. Bush, 55, and Fernando Henrique Cardoso, 71, Bush bewildered his colleague with the question, “Do you have blacks, too?”

Rice, 47, noticing how astonished the Brazilian was, saved the day by telling Bush, “Mr. President, Brazil probably has more blacks than the USA. Some say it’s the country with the most blacks outside Africa.” Later, Brazilian President Cardoso said, regarding Latin America, Bush was still in his “learning phase.”
(/snip)

[StellaBlue]

41. Or how 'bout this one

http://www.counterbias.com/news001.html



How is it possible that his ignorance continually amazes me?!

[OneBlueSky]

45. I must disagree, and here's why . . .

imagine if all the faces we've been seeing on tv for the past week were white . . . even poor and white . . . you can bet next month's rent that the response would have been much, much different . . .

[applegrove]

46. They despise anyone who cannot "make their lot better". They despise

anyone who gets in the way. They despise anyone who does not make them money by consuming. They simply are the worst kind of narcissists.

[StellaBlue]

47. George W Bush:

#1 Product of Social Promotion

[applegrove]

48. Yup. And he only likes people who can make him richer or more

powerful. Or people who will buy his lies. Anyone who doesn't buy the right of Bush, Big Oil, or the corporate monsters who want to destroy institutions that get in their way - is an enemy who must be 1) controlled into buying their craps 2) if that fails - destroyed & silenced.

[porphyrian]

50. Are people just uncomfortable with the label "racist?"

Is the problem maybe just semantic? Here's the definition:

rac·ism n.
1. The belief that race accounts for differences in human character or ability and that a particular race is superior to others.
2. Discrimination or prejudice based on race.

The use of the word is accurate if EITHER of those definitions apply, just as with the word "revolution," which can mean a number of different things. I'm guessing that most people who are against the use of the word envision the first definition rather than the second, and that others feel it's appropriatly used if any of the definitions apply. I recently had the same trouble with using the word "traitor," which definitely applies to bush and the other members of this administration.

[noiretextatique]

53. i think you're hit the nail on the head

funny how this notion of "being careful" about using that word seems to crop up all the time. it doesn't seem to happen (the admonishment to "be careful") with other words.

[izzybeans]

54. Class and race intersect at all points

Just as long as your a rich African American you can come play golf at the club.
You can still be a racist if you have that "well your not one of them kind" attitude. This is part of his ignorance IMHO.

[nini]

55. It's BOTH racism and classism

I have no doubt if it was a poor white area the response wouldn't have been as slow. But the poor whites wouldn't have received help as fast as more affluent areas either.