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The Silence of Decent Conservatives

By Carmen D. on Monday, July 13th, 2009, 6:12 am Comments

Once upon a time, not too long ago, smart and well meaning conservative friends would say to me, “We conservatives don’t talk about race.” I always laughed at that, mostly because I have too long a memory. I remember racist rants by conservative icons like Pat Buchanan and William F. Buckley. But I appreciated the “big tent” sentiment they were intending to convey.

Now even my conservative friends cannot deny the depth of rotting racist decay eating away at the heart of their movement. I am hoping I will soon hear them vocally fighting back against their compatriots, making racist attacks unacceptable. I don’t hear it yet.

The Free Republic site is recognized as a legitimate source of conservative opinion. For a social libertarian like me, some of the homophobic, racist, Xenophobic views expressed on the Free Republic site are downright alarming. But you know what? I breeze through to see what’s going on and keep on keeping on. Everyone is entitled the their opinion and I refuse to get bogged down by “Obama deranged” white folks.

But I was angered and horrified to learn that the “Freepers” are now going after President Obama’s 11 year old daughter Malia:

“A typical street whore.” “A bunch of ghetto thugs.” “Ghetto street trash.” “Wonder when she will get her first abortion.”

These are a small selection of some of the racially-charged comments posted to the conservative ‘Free Republic’ blog Thursday, aimed at U.S. President Barack Obama’s 11-year-old daughter Malia after she was photographed wearing a t-shirt with a peace sign on the front.

The thread was accompanied by a photo of Michelle Obama speaking to Malia that featured the caption, “To entertain her daughter, Michelle Obama loves to make monkey sounds.” Source:Conservative Free Republic blog in free speech flap after racial slurs directed at Obama children, Vancouver Sun

Terrible, no? How could any decent patriot condone going after an 11 year old? You saw the uproar when Letterman made an offensive and inappropriate crack about the conservative’s first family. Where is the outrage when fellow conservatives talk like this?

Moderators of the blog left the comments – and commenters – in place until a complaint was lodged by a writer doing research on the conservative movement, almost a full day later.

“Could you imagine what world leaders must be thinking seeing this kind of street trash and that we paid for this kind of street ghetto trash to go over there?” wrote one commenter.

“They make me sick …. The whole family… mammy, pappy, the free loadin’ mammy-in-law, the misguided chillin’, and especially ‘lil cuz… This is not the America I want representin’ my peeps,” wrote another.

Such was the onslaught of derision on the site that the person who originally complained about the slurs, a Kristin N., claims only one comment in the first hundred posted actually criticized the remarks as inappropriate. Source: Vancouver Sun

Is this the America YOU want? If not, then silence is not an option.

Hat Tip to Twitterer: @WindyCityWatch
Follow me on Twitter: @allaboutrace

  • Anonymiss
    Wow this is sickening but I must say I am glad the truth is coming to light and we are seeing the true colors of some of these conservatives. I'm tired of people pretending that people like them don't exist because they do and they are clearly bitter as hell! We get ONE black man in the white house and they go crazy! Shameful!
  • Katherine
    Hi Carmen,

    I am still heavily working and periodically I take peeks here to keep up with what's going on :) I look forward to seeing Nezua's artwork, I've recently learned he is very, very talented since I've logged onto his website, and now follow him on Twiter. I've been following you (AAR) for quite sometime (I am KikiCatt) on Twitter :)

    The Philly pool case was a real shock, and like I've said, that little boy just near broke my heart. It is an outrage! I am so proud that you've been the powerful force behind getting the word out on the web. I hope that your soul hasn't been drained too much - we need you :)
  • Z
    @ Carmen,

    no, I didn't catch that they put it back up. And basically, when I see posts and comments of that nature it pretty much ensures that I won't frequent it. I don't have time for the garbage and they are not my kind of conservatives.

    @ Nquest,

    Have a blessed day.

    This conservative of good conscience is taking the kids fishing - it's too beautiful a day not to.
  • Katherine
    There are no words to describe my disgust at these ugly and hurtful words to describe Malia, and our First Family. It's bad enough to see attacks like these on adults, but onto innocent children makes my blood boil.

    Children are our most precious commodity, and for the mindless, hateful racists, these words only cause pain and long term damage. At this moment I can't help but be reminded of that little boy who wiped away tears as he described his feelings when hearing racist remarks at the swimming pool in Philadelphia.

    Carmen said it best: "These comments offend basic human decency."
  • Hullo Katherine. Nice to *see* you. How is your work project going along?

    Still getting in gear for the next phase of AAR. Nezua has created a beautiful site. It will be different, a lot more going on, but conversation will be central in a way that I hope you and others will be pleased with.

    Still emotionally resting. But doing more writing. The Philly pool case hit me hard and I had a significant role in spreading the word on the web. If you are on twitter, pls follow @allaboutrace.

    More soon. Peace.
  • Nquest
    And, if I may, given Carmen's rather clear and unambiguous even-handedness (i.e. her readily acknowledging things offensive or wrong without respect to ideology/ethnicity -- see her comments on the Ricci case), I have a problem with the way Z came into this conversation as if Carmen's view on Free Republic was not to be trusted. In full disclosure, I guess I wouldn't have a problem with Z fact-checking or questioning Carmen if Z didn't approach the thread, confusing the issue, yet arguing as if he had a firm grasp of the issue and if there wasn't a long history of ideas/sentiments like "Whites try to dictate to people of color what their/our reality is" and the idea that POC are exaggerate or are (inappropriately) biased when it comes to reporting information about race/racism.

    This is basically the automatic assumption at work, in the minds/rhetoric of Senate conservatives/Republicans, in Judge Sotomayor's confirmation hearing.
  • Ahoy Nquest! Thank you for your kind support. Ah yes, patience. Well, I would say that all of us who engage regularly at All About Race have an unusually deep reservoir of patience. I think many, many people are retreating into communities that simply parrot back what they are already saying. You know that it's different here. Thanks to readers like you!

    It's funny. I am always learning new things. I put up a piece that I think is completely unambiguous - People should speak out against racist comments - and it triggers folks. Other times I write something and am braced for an avalanche and...crickets or it's roundly praised. So I just keep on talking, step away when I need to gather my better angels, and then have at it again. We are all in this together. Peace.
  • Nquest
    Aside from all the obfuscation on the actual issue regarding the comments on Free Republic, I don't understand why Z, who centers his 'conservative' identity/views around his religious views, insist on offering a "conservative response" when, in the opening statement Carmen identified Movement, political (not religious, per se) conservatives.

    So, Z's chosen statement -- The only ‘movement’ I claim as ‘my’ movement is the Christian movement -- should be enough to inform him that the does not require a response from him because the type of conservatives and the type of conservative movement almost directly/explicitly referred to is most clearly not the movement he claims.

    And to top it off... Z's obfuscations only served to justify/affirm Carmen's thesis regarding the Silence of Decent Conservatives.

    I give you credit, Carmen. You have the patience of Job (is that how the saying goes?). Me, I have no patience/tolerance for circle jerks and the like.
  • Z
    @Carmen,
    The post was removed, that speaks pretty loudly. What should the other 'conservatives' do with those individuals making such comments, beyond removing them from the site?

    You stated "My entire point is that conservatives of good conscience are not speaking up and out loud about the racism that is erupting in circles of other who call themselves conservatives." Which conservatives are not 'indicted' then. They are guilty of erupting racism, or they are guilty of not doing enough. If there is a third option, I'm not seeing it.

    That's what I wasn't following. Rather than focus on the post and the commenters shameless and hateful ignorance - it turns the focus on conservatives. I think the first comment was getting at it in stating there is probably a 'liberal' or two out there who thinks the same. Uly then followed commenting on conservatives (no subset) apparently not being about family values.

    I can do some internal evaluation but sometimes our posts say much more than we realize or intended.

    Carmen, I have values that most would consider conservative. I am not familiar with the young republican postcards, etc. The only 'movement' I claim as 'my' movement is the Christian movement. That movement very often overlaps with Republican platform but they are not synonymous. Unfortunately, I am often forced to choose between politicians that pay lip service to my 'values' and those who work openly against them.

    So why do I, as a conservative of good conscience, comment here and not go head to head with ignorant commenters on the free republic? Here we usually have a decent conversation even if we may still not agree at the end. There - I follow the old adage "don't argue with a fool or others won't be able to tell you apart". Those who make such 'shameful' and offensive comments appear to me to be fools so...

    I'm not here to criticize, just to give a 'conservative' response.

    Respectfully
  • @Z Maybe you didn't see this in the article:

    "Moderators of the blog left the comments - and commenters - in place until a complaint was lodged by a writer doing research on the conservative movement, almost a full day later.
    Such was the onslaught of derision on the site that the person who originally complained about the slurs, who goes by the nickname 'CatM', claimed on the left-wing DailyKos.com website that only one comment in the first hundred posted actually criticized the remarks as inappropriate.

    That is consistent with what I have seen many times. Further the post and thread was put back up until the Vancouver Sun article began to get attention and only then was it taken down for good. I would expect an onslaught of comments after the first offensive one drumming out the racist kid attacks. That is what I would hope for at least.

    Obviously, if you have never read or heard of the site, I could not expect you to step into a thread that you didn't know existed. That'd be pretty loopy, right? The hundreds of thousands of self-identified conservatives who do visit the site could do well enough. And if you are telling me you never see racist comments on the conservative sites you frequent, okay. I can't stay on 'Hot Air' for more than a few minutes before one pops up; and they are rarely refuted.(Although I give props to 'Little Green Footballs', he shuts them down every time - and gets criticized for it.)

    I am surprised you aren't familiar with what's going on with the Young Republicans. I will post about it sometime.

    I appreciate that you come here to have conversations. Me, too. We will not stand as one nation if we cannot navigate civil discourse. Peace.
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