Progressive angst and President Obama: Its not him, its you

[madamesilverspurs]

--snip--

Obama acts entirely within the tradition of mainstream African American political strategy and tactics. The epitome of that tradition was the non-violence of the Civil Rights Movement, but goes back much further in time. It recognizes the inequality of power between whites and blacks. Number one: maintain your dignity. Number two: call your adversaries to the highest principles they hold. Number three: Seize the moral high ground and Number four: Win by winning over your adversaries, by revealing the contradiction between their own ideals and their actions. It is one way that a oppressed people struggle.

Obama has taken a seat at the negotiating table and said “There is no reason why we cannot work out solutions to our problems by acting like responsible adults. That is what people expect us to do and that is why we have entered into public service.” That is the moral high ground.

Honestly, I have been reminded more than once in the last few months of those brave college students sitting in at a Woolworth’s lunch counter, back in the day. Obama sits at that table, like they did at the counter. Boehner and McConnell and Cantor clown around, mugging for the camera, competing to ritually humiliate Obama, to dump ketchup on his head.

... read the entire piece
http://weeseeyou.com/2011/08/12/progressive-angst-and-president-obama-its-not-him-its-you/


-

[hifiguy]

1. Elements two and four are absolutely useless when

dealing with fanatics whose only "principle" is the service of their wealthy masters regardless of the cost to everyone else.

[a simple pattern]

5. Especially when

you share that "principle" yourself.

[hifiguy]

10. Touche. nt

[Name removed]

2. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Bluerthanblue]

4. MLK used passivity and behaved respectfully

in his opposition to those he opposed. Would you have labeled him an "Uncle Tom"?- many people were outraged at him because of his refusal to talk with hatred, and advocate violence.

I find your refrence to "Uncle Tom Syndrome" to be offensive and disgusting.

:thumbsdown:

[villager]

6. MLK broke laws, spoke out publicly, and spent time in jail for his beliefs

n/t

[Bluerthanblue]

16. and he did all that while maintaining

a level of dignity, respect, and while acknowledging the humanity, and legitimacy of the individuals whose ideology he opposed and struggled against.

MLK is of my 'idols' and has been since I was a child. He was a man of rare character and deep conviction- I'm well aware of his actions, words, and positions.

The poster I replied to suggested that treating others with respect, and being willing to listen to their perspective could signify that you were suffering from "Uncle Tom Syndrome"- I find that absurd. Just because someone is able to do or behave in a way we may not be able to doesn't mean that they are denying their 'true feelings'. Sure MLK knew anger, frustration and outrage- he admitted that he did- but the suggestion that controlling that human emotion, and responding with great self control is "Uncle Tom Syndrome" is %*@)%*@)!! wrong. imo.

[villager]

22. yes, but you keep insisting on dropping the "took risks" part

n/t

[Bluerthanblue]

33. if you don't think that

Pres.Obama hasn't exposed himself and his family to 'risk'- something that will not end even after his political career is over, you need to think again.
"Report: Unprecedented Number Of Death Threats Against Obama -- And Secret Service Overwhelmed
Jillian Rayfield | October 19, 2009"

http://tpmlivewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/2009/10/new-report-find-secret-service-overwhelmed-by-increased-threats.php


"Crime
Insanity: Man Sends Obama Death Threat Through White House Web Site
Posted on August 5, 2011"
http://www.theblaze.com/stories/whats-the-worst-way-to-send-an-obama-death-threat-just-ask-this-guy/


http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/10/06/mccain-does-nothing-as-cr_n_132366.html
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/1259196/racist_atrocites_soar_as_?cat=9
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/1099713/palin_supporting_racism_hate_speech.html?cat=75

[villager]

35. So you are seriously equating Obama with MLK then?

Seriously?

[Bluerthanblue]

39. in that he has given up

what could have been an "easy" life for one of public service- then yes.

He could have done very well for himself after graduating, but he chose a life of service rather than personal gain.

You may not like what he's doing, but to deny that he's sacrificed in the process- that his children and spouse aren't sacrificing is foolishness.

Was it 'his choice'? yes- just as it was MLK's choice to dedicate his life to civil rights- and the betterment of mankind. This isn't a contest about "who is greater". :shrug:

How many here who are so quick to criticize and condemn our Democratic reps, are willing to put our own lives where our big mouths are? Some, sure- but not many.

[villager]

42. well, let's see, he's been a U.S. Senator and now a President, whereas King

....stuck with heading non-profits, constantly risked arrests, and was organizing a poor people's march on Washington when he was "coincidentally" killed.

Obama, while successful, hasn't been nearly the risk-taker.

And we are, collectively, the worse for it.

[polmaven]

17. Are you suggesting

that the President of the United States should break laws, be impeached, removed from office and spend time in jail? Now THAT would do a lot of good. :sarcasm:

[Vincardog]

23. The President of the United States should decide what bedrock principals he will NOT compromise and

Tell us what they are

[villager]

43. I'm suggesting he should quit siding with those who have already broken laws

...which have brought the country to its present precipice.

And yes, I am suggesting Presidents -- good ones, visionary ones - take risks.

[Number23]

57. He also had rocks and dogs put on him

And NOT ONCE did he EVER throw a rock back. He was the very definition of the phrase "passive resistance" (in public) which is truly anything but.

[Vincardog]

9. MLK would not have been half as successful without the BLACK PANTHERS. Be offended if you want

I am tired of all the "liberal elite" holding up MLK and Gandhi as if they were solely and totally responsible for all progress in their times. When you refuse to consider all forms of resistance you are unilateral disarming. I do not want to meekly join you in the slaughter line

[Bluerthanblue]

18. "liberal elite"-

is that your version of "Professional Left"?

You may not want to join in what you see as the slaughter line, but until you do, you condemn us all to the continual spiral of violence begetting more violence begetting more violence.

There is a fate worse than death- that is the fate of becoming what you despise.

The refusal to use violence to further a cause doesn't mean doing nothing. It means not being willing to give up what matters most, just so you can say "I won".

[jaxx]

31. I agree with you.

[Bluerthanblue]

41. thanks-

sometimes I don't recognize this place.

:(

[Romulox]

13. I think we owe the President the respect to assume he is in charge of his own policies

IMO, it is...not flattering...to assume the President isn't putting in place PRECISELY the policies he believes in.

[dionysus]

29. todays talking point is to call Obama Uncle Tom. pathetic guys.

really pathetic.

[Bluerthanblue]

34. beyond pathetic-

:shrug:

[Number23]

58. And to be perfectly real here, NO white person has any business calling a black person

an Uncle Tom.

That phrase has no business coming out of the mouths/fingers of white people. That is not a phrase that any white person has any claim to use.

[villager]

3. The piece is seriously equating Obama's administration with the risk-taking of Martin Luther King?

:shrug:

[EFerrari]

28. It conflates a rhetorical structure with actual leadership.

Someone's knowledge of history is about half an inch deep.

[banned from Kos]

54. Both MLK's and the President's opponents desire the same as an end

while the President is signing actual legislation. In a choice of practical results vs martyrdom - I take the former.

[EFerrari]

64. First, the comparison is silly on its face. Second, you pose a false dilemma. n/t

[BOG PERSON]

7. this is some of the most cynical kind of race-card-pulling i have seen

jesus christ

[FLAprogressive]

44. +1

[Horse with no Name]

50. It's been elevated to an art form

because there is NOTHING else. Sigh.

[JVS]

8. The tactics used to represent a minority in a democratic system are not appropriate when you came...

to office in a 53% vs 45% election and your party holds both house and senate.

[alsame]

11. No, it's him. nt

[Romulox]

12. Ummm, what about all the WARS? re: "he non-violence of the Civil Rights Movement"

:hi:

[FLAprogressive]

46. Checkmate.

[shellgame26]

14. K&R

[Number23]

71. lol I'm trying to figure out which DUer was "Weisenheimer" on that thread

He posted the same tired mess that we see every day on DU in response to this article. And he was handed his ass by about 10 different posters who came at him with nothing but the facts. It was absolutely beautiful. :)

[shellgame26]

79. not surprising

sorry I missed that

[Morning Dew]

15. The idea of President Obama acting within that tradition is uplifting

if he wants to make his re-election a generational struggle...

I think we go to the polls in November 2012.

[Karmadillo]

19. Interesting comments at the site. I hadn't realized that white progressives were

such a problem.

[madfloridian]

24. Apparently we are.

Some want to turn it into something racist instead of dealing with the anger of teachers and seniors.

[FLAprogressive]

45. "You Hate Him 'Cause He's Black" is the only reactionary defense they have now.

It's pathetic.

[Horse with no Name]

51. It shut down A LOT of discussion of the candidate during the primaries

and now, here we are again, but instead of our questions just being concerns, they are now facts.
Expect it to get worse. A LOT worse. And more race baiting than you can shake a stick at because they can't back us down with facts.

[FLAprogressive]

52. I've noticed an uptick in it....sometimes it's thrown in on the side and other times it's front and

center like in this article.

It seems like they're not working with a full deck here, and their only cards left are race cards.

[Number23]

59. So calling white progressives out is the epitome of all evil

but suggesting that black people "aren't working with a full deck" is perfectly reasonable. Right?

[scarletwoman]

63. The article in the OP was written by a self-proclaimed "white progressive".

The remark: "It seems like they're not working with a full deck here, and their only cards left are race cards." is in reference to the tactics used by Obama apologists like the (white) author, not to black people.

[Number23]

65. The "they" in question was ambiguous and still is. Which is why my question

was directed to the person who said it.

Edit: WEE See you is a black online publication and most of the comments are from black readers. Perhaps the person who said people commenting there "were not playing with a full deck" was unaware of that.

[FLAprogressive]

77. Honestly, I didn't even bother to check to see what type of publication it was and who commented....

Because I wasn't going to waste my time with such ridiculous propaganda and screed.

[FLAprogressive]

76. I think my point has been proven. Apologists have exhausted their other cards and only have the race

card to pull. And it's lame.

[FLAprogressive]

75. No, I'm not referring to blacks at all....I'm referring to people who will go to any length to

defend Obama.

But thank you for proving my point.

[Number23]

80. And the article refers to those who will go to any length to criticize him

But I guess some of us aren't interested in a bit of self-reflection, no matter how painful (and needed) it may be.

[Renew Deal]

72. Who decides if they're "progressives?"

[madfloridian]

20. What Obama is doing to teachers and seniors has nothing to do with race.

And it wrong to say it is about it.

[LWolf]

30. Thank you. nt

[Safetykitten]

21. You are comparing Obama to the Woolworths protestors? Oh my...

[Karmadillo]

49. He was in Five Guys a couple of years ago.

nt

[madfloridian]

25. That article you linked to is divisive racially.

It is trying to divide us by race instead of addressing the real issues involved.

[haikugal]

26. The Civil Rights Movement Succeeded Because

they demanded change...you have to fight for it. Obama is passive/aggressive.

[loyalsister]

37. The civil rights movement was not accomplished by one person

The real action came from the grassroots. Martin Luther King provided leadership by advocating a philosophy and strategy. The people who used it made it happen.
Not to mention the fact that there were white people (ie. the enemy) who supported it.

Real change comes from the bottom up.

[EFerrari]

27. Delusional. And Independents are not "flocking" to Obama.

[myrna minx]

47. I love how it's not wildly unpopular policy decisions that's the problem it's the voters

themselves who are the problem. The people who are personally hurting from the disastrous policies and decisions are to blame - especially when we speak up. It's surreal. More baffling GOTV strategy.

[girl gone mad]

61. It's a strategy that betrays the true contempt Beltway Democrats have..

for the people they supposedly represent.

They're on top of the world. Why won't the rest of us just fuck off and die already?

[loyalsister]

32. Practical strategies

Maintaining dignity was an important element during the freedom rides, the students made sure that they were well dressed and behaved with basic dignity and manners. They would say what needed to be said looking like they could be sitting in a formal business meeting.

I see some of the same in Obama. No matter what the republicans do he is unflappable and above the fray. He took an oath to uphold laws and he is showing more respect for the rule of law than the previous administration.
Anger and confrontation coming from a president would not help our cause. I firmly believe that republicans would love to be able to capitalize on an "angry black man" stereotype. He refuses to give it to them, and I think it probably really pisses them off.
Many of their constituents are people who are being challenged to admit to being retroactively wrong. Obama is neither an angry black nor is he a figure head for a white VP acting as president. Every time they have to admit he is doing the job of president with a level of competence that surprises them it shakes them up. Republicans know that creating a situation where the president is seen as a failure will soothe some of their constituents by confirming their beliefs.

I refuse to contribute to that strategy.

"Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that." - MLK

[TheKentuckian]

36. The President (particularly one with largest margin since LBJ) is not an oppressed kid

at the Woolworth's lunch counter and behaving like such is detrimental.

The man at the head of the table doesn't have to beg and plead for a seat, nor is he required to be passive or pretend monster have better angels to appeal to.

If this is Obama's mindset then he has no business in office and that comes from a man no a bit less black than he is.

[yarn_chick]

67. +1 I couldn't agree more.

And that's from a woman no less black than he is.

[Creideiki]

38. I'm confused. Are you arguing that progressives should stay home in 2012?

Seems to me that most independents stayed home in 2010 and look where that landed us. Now you want the progressives to stay home, too?

So are you advocating that a Democratic Presidential nominee should be made to lose an election because we're not supposed to support him in that election?

If not, your logic, well...I still do teach logical fallacies to teenagers and I'd like to use the piece you brought up.

[grahamhgreen]

40. No, it's his policy positions, duh. It's not about personalities, that's a distraction.

[Name removed]

48. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[readmoreoften]

53. An absolute insult to the civil rights movement.

Disgusting read.

[Bluebear]

55. Grand. "you didn't get a pony" with a racial twist.

[scarletwoman]

56. I hope everyone noticed that this piece, scolding "white progressives", is written by a

self-identified "white progressive", not an African American.

The predominately white progressive intelligentsia don’t see Obama clearly because of our racial blind spot. We don’t see the role of race in how he seems to understand himself and how other(s) perceive him.

First of all, we think that he understands himself as one of us. A progressive activist, heir to the radical and New Left movements most of us were raised in.

<snip>

If we progressives were not blinded by our own assumption that our history is the only history, we might see how Obama may be seeing his situation.

<snip>

If white progressives understood much about the politics of the African American struggle in the United States, we would see Obama in the context of that struggle and understand him better. (my bolds)

So, we've got a white guy scolding fellow "white progressives" about not understanding "the African American struggle in the United States." Somehow, Tom (the author) has managed to achieve a degree of enlightenment heretofore beyond the grasp of the rest of us.

Not only that, he imagines himself able to see straight into Obama's head: "We don’t see the role of race in how he seems to understand himself and how other(s) perceive him." And: "I think that he understands himself (and certainly his real base understands him) as the first African American President."

Really? Based on what evidence? (And who exactly is this "real base" Tom is referring to?)

Frankly, as someone who was a teenager during the the years of the Civil Rights movement, I seriously question the idea that Obama sees himself at all in the context of "the African American struggle."

Why would he? It's not part of his family heritage. He was born in 1961, he was six years old when his mother moved with him to Indonesia in 1967, and ten years old when he moved back to Hawaii to live with his white grandparents. When and how would he have been touched by Civil Rights movement, a movement fought by the descendents of slaves, which he is not?

He is a beneficiary of that struggle, certainly, but he himself was not raised in the midst of it. He can borrow from that tradition -- being polite to the opposition, for example -- same as anyone else. But he's not OF that tradition, he was not formed by it.

What bugs me most about this article is that it attributes to Obama's skin color a whole host of assumptions about his inner makeup. Isn't that racist?

sw

[Number23]

62. I am more than a decade younger than President Obama

As a black woman, I consider myself VERY MUCH a part of the African American struggle in this country. Your comments that the president "doesn't seen himself in the context of the AA struggle" are absurd and frankly, beyond stupid.

The black struggle in this country is not even close to being over. The fact that you think that this nation's first black president is somehow removed from the black struggle is nothing short of astounding.

[scarletwoman]

66. Of course you are "part of the African American struggle in this country." It's part of your own

history and most likely your ancestors' history.

"The black struggle in this country is not even close to being over."

Of course not, it's well-evident that it isn't. And I didn't say that it was over.

"The fact that you think that this nation's first black president is somehow removed from the black struggle is nothing short of astounding."

Then show me some actual evidence that he concerns himself about the black struggle. African Americans have been falling further and further behind economically while DC politicians, Obama included, argue over how much of the safety net to shred while they protect the banks and Wall Street.

sw

[Number23]

68. "Then show me some actual evidence that he concerns himself about the black struggle."

Spend some time reading any black blog or anything written by black thinkers and you'll get your answer.

The very idea that with all of the articles written by black academics, journalists, writers and intellectuals you need to be "shown something" is mind-blowing. Get out of GD where the only articles posted here by blacks are from the 5 or 6 black academics/thinkers/flavors of the week who are angry at this president and the 8837 articles from blacks who support him and his policies are ignored.

Educate yourself. Here, I'll even get you started as I've had to have this conversation with more than one person on this web site. http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=433&topic_id=586998&mesg_id=589196

[scarletwoman]

73. Thank you for linking to your other post from January.

I did try to follow the links in your January post, but I was only able to get to this one: http://www.race-talk.org/?p=3679

"The Root" links froze my computer (which is ancient and failing), and the 3rd link to the Louisiana Weekly got a "page not found".

You're correct, I don't read much outside of DU -- mostly due to time constraints, but also due to the aforementioned decrepitude of my computer. I just can't open many sites without getting errors and crashes.

Anyway, here's an excerpt from that 4th link:

...it’s clear President Obama has laid the groundwork for an extraordinary growth in economic and social opportunity for millions of African Americans. The facts are there for anyone to see. So far, the president has invested or proposed:

• $5 billion for home weatherization, targeting energy efficiency and jobs to low-income communities
  
• $250 million for Choice Neighborhoods, so people can live in a community connected to true opportunity
  
• $400 million to open new supermarkets and farmers markets in underserved communities
  
• $600 million for summer youth jobs
  
• $210 million for Promise Neighborhoods, to spread the powerful message of the Harlem Children’s Zone
  
• $8.1 billion for nutrition support programs–a $400 million boost from last year
  
• $9.4 billion to help preserve more than 1 million rental units nationwide
  
• $4 billion for Race to the Top education grants
  
• $10.2 billion for early childhood education
  
• $144 million for prisoner re-entry programs
  
• $4 billion for Community Development Block Grants–plus another $150 million in competitive grants to spark economic development innovation
  
• $4 billion in job-training programs for youth, displaced workers and the unemployed
  
• An 11 percent funding increase in the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division

Now, since this is a list of "invested or proposed" programs, it's hard to tell which ones are currently underway and which ones are "proposed". (I know "Race to the Top" is happening, but I've never seen that as being particularly targeted to the black community since the applications are submitted by states.)

Most of the items on that list are laudable (I'm not fond of RTT), and they are generally in the mold of classic liberalism -- meaning, they could just as easily been proposed by any decent liberal politician, white or black. Are they evidence of Obama being rooted in "the black struggle"? I just don't see that.

Here's what another black writer had to say more recently, on July 26:

http://voices.kansascity.com/entries/great-recession-hammers-blacks-hispanics-minority-communities-still-waiting-relief/

Lewis Diuguid

It should come as no surprise that African Americans and Hispanics were hit harder than whites were by the Great Recession.

That was the finding of a Pew Research Center analysis, showing the “lopsided wealth ratios are the largest since the government began publishing such data a quarter century ago and roughly twice the size of the ratios that had prevailed between the three groups for the two decades prior to the Great Recession that ended in 2009.”

A typical black household had $5,677 in wealth in 2009 compared with a typical Hispanic household of $6,325 and a typical white household of $113,149, according to the analysis based on 2009 government data. In addition, 35 percent of black households and 31 percent of Hispanic households had zero or negative net worth in 2009 compared with 15 percent of white households. In 2005 before the recession, the comparable data was 29 percent for blacks, 23 percent for Hispanics and 11 percent for whites.

“Plummeting house values were the principal cause of the recent erosion in household wealth among all groups with Hispanics hit hardest by the meltdown in the housing market,” the report said. Blacks and Hispanics had a greater amount of their overall wealth tied up in their homes compared with whites. African Americans and Latinos also were disproportionately affected by the subprime mortgage meltdown, home foreclosures and the rise in unemployment.

The recession was a massive storm, a man-made financial Katrina, that tore through black and brown America. But there has been no presidential aid or even official Air Force One visit bringing relief to these communities nationwide. Blacks and Hispanics have mostly been left on their own, stranded on rooftops and in high water with no help in sight. (my bold)

That is the real tragedy in the Pew Research report.

The thing is, I don't expect blacks to have any more of a monolithic group opinion than whites.

sw

(edited for html error)

[Number23]

81. When the president creates policies that benefit the poor, the discriminated

the homeless, then he automatically creates policies that benefit blacks. Just as these policies benefit EVERYONE. EVERYONE is hurting right now. And one thing America has made obvious time and time again, is that if AMERICA is hurting, BLACK AMERICA is in excruciating pain. This didn't begin with Obama.

The points Lewis D are making are fine. No one black disputes this. And little of what he has written will be news to many black people.

From your link, income disparities, disparities in health care, job discrimination etc. etc. etc. are issues that blacks have fought and dealt with in this country for almost 400 years. And as many articles have proven, the president IS dealing with them and has offered solutions. But this type of thinking is not appreciated here, where people would much rather read a few negative articles from a few blacks, only some of whom have legitimate grievances, than read the countless articles of REASONABLE criticism towards this president from a black perspective which takes into account all that he has achieved and all that he is up against.

Comedian Steve Harvey (who is black) makes that point even more recently than your posted article. That the issues blacks are facing have been in place long before this man ever took office. http://www.v103.com/pages/sh.html?article=8939870 He supports the president, along with almost 90% of blacks. That should mean something to those who so desperately claim to care about us.

It's a shame you weren't able to access more of those links.

[Number23]

69. Btw, did you know that DU has a black forum?

We discuss lots of issues there. It might benefit you and a few others here in GD to spend some time there reading. Listening. And learning.

Here are a few pieces that I found that you might find interesting:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=258x10897
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=258x10214
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=258x10895
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=258x9752
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=258x11085

Some of them are specific, some of them are general.

[scarletwoman]

78. I was aware of it but haven't visited.

I agree that "it might benefit you and a few others here in GD to spend some time there reading. Listening. And learning."

I learned a great deal from my American Indian neighbors and friends about listening. :)

sw

[Number23]

60. Well, we'll file this in the "stuff I don't want to read because it may be too true" DU file

Along with Obama's liberal and liberal Dem support poll numbers; "Teh List!one!" aka Obama's list of accomplishments so far in office; Dennis Kucinich's lack of legislative achievements; Bernie Sanders' losing numbers in a hypothetical primary challenge to Obama in Vermont (his home state). Among democrats; and the number of Democrats who want Obama primaried (which is about a third of the number of Dems who wanted Clinton primaried at this point in his first term)

It's very, very interesting to me that people who scream the loudest that the president's supporters are cheerleaders and "bots" are the ones who turn their backs the fastest and most decisively on ANYTHING that contradicts their preconceived and often wrong ideas. It's "propaganda" when poll after poll shows Obama's support from liberals in the 70s and among liberal Dems in the 80s; it's "race baiting" when black Democrats and clued-in white Democrats decry the ridiculous language from too many "liberals" that disapprove of EVERYTHING THIS MAN DOES with language that sounds disgustingly similar to the things that comes from conservatives.

Madame, thanks for posting. The more the light shines on this type of behavior, the more I'm thinking it's a good thing. The few who don't already know what we're dealing with here soon will.

[Enrique]

70. theyre not pouring ketchup on Obamas head

theyre pouring ketchup on our heads, and Obama is golfing with them and telling us, i take the speaker at his word.

theres people out there kicking on Boehners door, and its not Obama. Obama is meeting with CEOs asking how much more he can give them.

[Jakes Progress]

74. This has to be from someone who wasn't really there

for the civil rights struggle.

To compare a president's feelings being hurt to the suffering and beatings and deaths of civil rights workers in the fifties and sixties is just nasty.

You should apologize.