No wonder black America feels no justice
How complicit the MSM are in this entire episode of Ashley Todd faking a beating, mutilation and sexual assault by a black man claiming to be an Obama supporter.
The MSM has dropped this story as yesterday's news and no longer relevant. But it is emblimatic of the underlying problems in our society.
Ashley Todd has now just created a sense of doubt in minds of those now hearing of future ACTUAL beatings and muggings by a black man or anyone else for that matter.
Todd played to the lowest denominator in us all. Playing the defensely young white woman attacked brutally by a big black man. She represents what is wrong with the right as they become more & more desperate and what is right with Obama has we lead toward what Colin Powell has called a transformational presidency.
If this story turned out to be true, guarenteed that it would the major story on Geraldo, CNN, Fox, Drudge, Nancy Grace, etc. But because it was a defenseless white woman who LIED to try to take down a black man, it is forgotten.
I was surprised that the story didn't rise to the level of importance it should.
October 26, 2008 1:52 PM | Reply | Permalink
It was not deemed "important" because the media has traveled down that road time and time again, being "fooled" by accusations made by "regular" people... you know, "hardworking Americans," the "patriotic" Americans from the "patriotic" parts of "real" America... and sometimes even from those liberal bastions like Boston, MA.
They remember the mistakes they made believing stories like that of Charles Stuart, of Boston, who murdered his pregnant wife, gave himself a minor wound as part of the phony story. All of Boston was searching for the "black man" who killed a heavily pregnant defenseless, attractive white woman. When Stuart's claims were debunked, he killed himself by jumping off the Tobin Bridge.
Or poor Susan Smith in South Carolina who was "carjacked" by a "black man" as she drove her two young boys out of town. For days the nation was scared out of its wits, and law enforcement searched for Susan's missing car while she (memorably tearfully) and her ex-husband pleaded for the safe return of their babies. They cried on every morning show for days. Black men all over the state were stopped and investigated Until... the sheriff of Susan's town acted upon the instinct that told him Susam's story didn't hold a lot of water. Seems Susan was having an affair with the manager of the grocery store where she worked and he didn't want to raise some other man's children. Susan, taking matters into her own hands, decided that drowning her babies, strapped in their carseats in the back seat of her car was the best way to keep her lover. So she backed the car down the boat ramp, left the car in gear, and watched it roll backwards into the town lake. She's serving life in prison.
"The Black Man Did It" defense is not new, is at the heart of generations of lynchings, jailings, and state ordered executions.
It was easy for the media to believe Ashley's tale while overlooking some of the details that should have raised questions right away.
October 26, 2008 7:05 PM | Reply | Permalink
For what it's worth, Boston is hardly a liberal bastion when it comes to race relations -- no matter what FNC tells you. Anyone wanting to dispute that statement need only watch old busing footing in Boston from the 70's. Boston is also one of the most ethnically segregated cities in the country. That changed somewhat in the late 90's when real estate values went through the roof, but there is a reason why Stuart's story was deemed plausible.
October 26, 2008 7:45 PM | Reply | Permalink
The reason the Stuart story was BELIEVED is because of RACISM, which was kept alive and well and inflamed by Reagan's "Welfare Queen" demagoguery.
We do have Welfare Queens in this country, but most look like Cindy McFake and Sarah "Sarah is for Sarah" Palin.
The North East is generally "ethnically" segregated by country-I-came-from groupings, but I doubt that is different elsewhere; this country is made up of "enclaves" which make an issue of difference -- their supremacism over all others -- while refusing to "assimilate". (I also note that anti-immigration groups always focus on "illegals" who aren't white; there're never outrages about illegal immigrants from Ireland, Italy, or other "white" countries, though there are plenty of those in -- only as example -- the Boston area.)
It's an ironic history: Massachusetts-Bay's highest court held slavery to be unconstitutional severeal years after adopting its constitution in 1780. And yet Massachusetts has a contrary history of racism. Much of that history has to do with ethnic rivalries who, themselves targeted on first arrival, turned and targeted the next to arrive. And it wasn't only in Boston that "No Italians Need Apply" was trasnformed into "No Jews Need Apply," etc.
October 27, 2008 4:24 AM | Reply | Permalink
All of Boston was searching for the "black man" who killed a heavily pregnant defenseless, attractive white woman.
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NOT true: "All" of Boston was divided into those who believed Stuart, and those who opposed and protested the police abuses against the black community -- black males -- while it was happening.
We white folk aren't ALL all-or-none over-generalizers.
October 27, 2008 4:15 AM | Reply | Permalink
Preach, sister, preach! Jade, where have you been? I miss your biting commentary!
October 27, 2008 10:10 AM | Reply | Permalink
This happens in other ways too. How many murdered 6 year old black girls had the investigative power and money Jon Benet Ramsey's death unleashed?
October 26, 2008 7:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
When in doubt it is always an option to "Blame a Brother."
Just think--if Ashley Todd had carved an "O" on her face instead and stuck to her b.s. story, this hoax might have played out a bit longer.
October 26, 2008 7:56 PM | Reply | Permalink
None, zero. In the entire history of this country.
This is so dreary, so predictable, so banal.
But better days are coming.
October 26, 2008 7:59 PM | Reply | Permalink
I could not agree with you more mk. I have searched and searched in vain for mention of this story in the NY Times and my local paper and there is not a word of it anywhere. And while I think Ashley Todd is a very sad, confused young woman, the McCain director of communications who spread this story is race-baiting opportunist who should be exposed to all of the country. Thanks for a great post.
October 26, 2008 8:48 PM | Reply | Permalink
Ah, but we can't expose these racist hoaxes for what they are . . . after all, "who knows," there may be one in the future that's TRUE, and we don't want to altogether destroy the possibility of it being believed!
And doncha just wonder about this one . . . after all, the PA police who held the press conference about it were black . . . .
And there are still stupids accusing the Obama-Biden campaign for keeping McPalin's problems with the $150,000 clothing binge alive. And accusing the media of "liberal bias" because it isn't reporting on Obama's "$1,000.00 tailored suits".
October 27, 2008 4:30 AM | Reply | Permalink
Well said.
October 26, 2008 9:38 PM | Reply | Permalink
I agree that the role of the McCain campaign should have been a big story -- her accusations may be so familiar there is hardly news value. Their being picked up and blasted about by a major political candidate and "major" news channel is new - and news! I don't watch FOX - does anyone know what their "retraction" amounted to?
Interesting note on recent Larry King when the guest was D.L. Hughley and other comedians. If Obama is elected to the most powerful position in the US, it will inevitably change the way "being black" is treated in humor. A tiny, minor thing ..... but it's whem those little, tiny things get shifted that real social change is solidified. When and where I grew up (deep South), Mounds chocolate candy - the old kind that was a single "mound" of chocolate - were referred to, without thinking, as "n****r toes" That's just what they were called - by small children, at church socials, whereever - the same way another candy was, and still is, called "turtles." It's the almost unconscious, even non-malicious things that reinforce "otherness" or "inferiority" that take root in young children and pass those attitudes on. A subtle shift in humor may be a small thing, but those small things add up.
October 26, 2008 10:08 PM | Reply | Permalink
Many don't know the origins of Eeny Meeny Miny Moe...
An excellent (if somewhat heavy handed) introduction to this topic in general -- that is really eye-opening -- is the mockumentary:
C.S.A. The Confederate States of America.
October 27, 2008 1:00 AM | Reply | Permalink
Lord! I'd forgotten that one! (or maybe it's repressed). I remember shocking and irritating my playmates when, very early on, I insisted on saying "catch a tiger by the toe." Don't know why one side of my family was more sensitized or whatever than most other Southerners of the time - but they just were and, as a child, it was ridiculously easy for me (and my cousins on that side) to see and *feel* the unfairness and cruelty in some of those things. Can't believe I forgot/repressed that -- it really put me in for a good bit of taunting from my friends.
October 27, 2008 8:47 AM | Reply | Permalink
As soon as I heard te story, I knew se was lying. te red flag? She said he was black? The second? The B on her face was backwards.
October 27, 2008 12:18 AM | Reply | Permalink
Yup, the damage was allowed to be done. But no reparations have been "paid." And we all know that some voters hang onto this kind of info (and never learn that the original story was false!).
October 27, 2008 12:49 AM | Reply | Permalink
And we all know that some voters hang onto this kind of info (and never learn that the original story was false!).
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Or know it but seek ways around that fact.
It's the Obama camp keeping the $150,000 Palin clothing allowance story alive -- even though it isn't. The "liberal media" isn't asking about Obama's "$1,000 tailored suits" -- key word being "tailored," it being spelled for the context, "excessive" and "black" -- even though he paid $1,500 for a total 5 suits, no mention of "tailored".
If that $150,000 didn't include tailoring, Palin got ripped off in yet another direction.
October 27, 2008 5:58 AM | Reply | Permalink
I'm Rec this one.
Have you any of you heard about this story: http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/orange/orl-disney-shuttle-bus-hostage-102508,0,621013.story ? You probably haven't as I only found one news article of it from Google news. I can't determine the legitimacy of this story, it seems made up. I only heard one report of this on TV, which was the original source I heard it from: Fox News, they reported it on Fox & Friends Sunday, and when the woman host mentioned the description of the attacker they said he was a Black male, the host sort of chuckled in wonderment when describingthe assailant as though I don't think she was even believing the story.
Don't you think that a real bus hijacking would have made national headline news if it was real. you wouldn't need to have to search hard to find The story and the sources seem very suspect especially after the false cry wolf story of Ashley Todd. What are they pushing down there in local Florida news channel? Segway that foiled GOP interview setup they tried to get Joe Biden in from that local WFTV station. I honestly think the GOP is up to no good down there.
October 27, 2008 6:45 AM | Reply | Permalink
She's a mentally unstable 20 year old who is being charged for falsely reporting a crime. Figuratively burning her at the stake isn't going to change anything or help get Obama get elected.
But pointing out the wingnut media's and the McCain campaign's complicity in pushing this false story will.
October 27, 2008 8:34 AM | Reply | Permalink
For the life of me, I don't understand how the $150,000 clothing story can be a big deal (it's not), but McCain's people pushing the racist hoax story for political gain isn't.
It is a big deal; it means that his campaign is willing to ignite a racial powder keg if it helps him politically. Am I really one of the few who is outraged by this?
October 27, 2008 8:51 AM | Reply | Permalink
On this topic -- about the other side so to speak - if you missed this, you missed this post by Ta-Nehisi Coates, you missed something special:
http://ta-nehisicoates.theatlantic.com/archives/2008/10/i_hope_this_is_in_good_taste.php
October 27, 2008 8:59 AM | Reply | Permalink
And yet here's an attack that sounds like it really happened, and was definitely politically motivated, and must have been terrifying for the (what sounds like Asian) victim.
http://archives.chicagotribune.com/2008/oct/20/news/chi-ap-wi-campaignattack
Now the Obama's campaign's value set doesn't include pushing this kind of thing, but it sounds on the surface like a white on brown, politically motivated hate crime that should have gotten a lot more attention than it did.
October 27, 2008 9:38 AM | Reply | Permalink
The last bit of news on this story before it disappeared was this quote about Ashley: "She was upset with the media for blowing this into a political firestorm." It was mocked on the blogs, but that was the end of it. Ashley didn't like the political firestorm she created, and the media called it off.
October 27, 2008 11:08 AM | Reply | Permalink
Not to minimize what the McCain camp did by recklessly jumping on this potentially powder keg story, but I think I see a bit of method in their madness.
It occurred to me when both McCain and Palin were ALL OVER the (supposed) story of Obama writing his inaugural address already. On it's face that was highly unlikely and I'm sure they knew it, but by acting quickly they could push the story 'in good faith' until it got debunked ..... and who knows how many of the voters who heard and believed it will miss out on seeing the retraction??
Same thing with Ashley Todd -- clearly a sketchy story (I'll refrain from using 'on its face') but by acting quickly, before there is time for it to be debunked, they can get the story out there .... and who knows how many people will hear the story but somehow miss the follow-up?
And those are the voters they are going for: the ones that will simply accept whatever they hear from their candidate, never double check, and may not be paying enough attention to realize it's been proven wrong.
I think this has been going on all along -- example: the quick jumping on Obama's canceling the visit to the hospital in Germany. That was fairly quickly debunked, but one of my co-workers brought it up as a proven fact weeks later. I explained that he had visited the wounded vets in Iraq w/ no fanfare or problem but when the gov't refused to let a retired General (who had every right to visit the hospital) because they were seeing that visit as "political," Obama rightly shied away from the publicity if he had gone. They hadn't heard anything questioning the story until I spoke up and then were able to say -- well, that sounds like an excuse made up after the fact.....
So the bottom line strategy with all these quick, knee-jerk reactions, crediting ANY thing or any interpretation of a statement that could be negative, is perhaps not so much desperation as a very cynical way to manipulate the voters. Cynical and in some years successful ...... but I think, I hope not THIS year!
October 27, 2008 12:26 PM | Reply | Permalink