Racial Demagoguery/Hypocrisy Watch Exhibit 101: Chris Matthews and Hardball [View All]

[EffieBlack]

Right after having a fairly reasonable discussion about the need to have a second woman on the Supreme Court, Chris Matthews - fresh off of his "Wah! Wah! White guys don't control the WHOLE PIE anymore!!!" rant duet with Pat Buchanan the day before - announced that tomorrow's show will feature the Frank Ricci, the poor reverse discrimination victim who didn't get a promotion "because he's white."

I have a lot of issues with Chris Matthews, but he had always been pretty good - at least not a demagogue - on race issues. But for some reason, he has turned into Pat Buchanan's twin brother ranting and raving about "reverse discrimination" because the New Haven Fire Department realized that its promotion test was probably flawed.

I urge people to contact Chris Matthews and his producers and DEMAND that, if he is going to insist on giving a platform to this "victim," that he also provide a platform for the black firefighters who have been discriminated against in the city or some other guest who can explain the history of discrimination in the New Haven Fire Department and why these measures are necessary. Or, if that's too much to ask for, at least have a person of color knowledgeable about the issue who can present the other side.

It's bad enough that he had the all-white discussion of the case the other day, leaving poor Joan Walsh to try to balance out the conversation (and she did an admirable job in the face of the breathtakingly obnoxious and self-entitled white boy "we're being picked on" pity party), but his obvious attempt to ramp up bad feelings and divisiveness by bringing Frank Ricci on to complain about his treatment without offering any balance is irresponsible to the nth degree.

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