This is a big deal? Sure shouldn't be (Cynthia Tucker's Take On McKinney)

[cali]

There is a lot of bad news in black America.

After a decade of rising affluence, poverty (among blacks and whites) is on the upswing. Marriage is out of fashion, but diabetes, hypertension and heart failure are not. We die sooner than whites. And black men remain disproportionately shut out of the mainstream — unemployed, on drugs, in prison.

So if black activists and political leaders are looking for matters crying out for redress or reform or fairness, I could give them a list. Cynthia McKinney's complaints would not be on it.

If you're going to call a press conference and muster such prominent supporters as Harry Belafonte and Danny Glover, you ought to be sure the issue is important enough to command national attention. You should save that sort of clarion call for the most serious matters — renewing the Voting Rights Act or raising the minimum wage so that more black men can support their children. The precious spotlight of national news coverage should not be wasted on a spoiled and demanding congresswoman who thinks she's the Soul Queen of Capitol Hill.

Nor should the Abrams tank of political warfare — the charge of "racism" — be rolled out to fight every minor battle. Racism is a shadow of its former self, but it lives yet. You see it in the high rates of harsh discipline meted out to black boys in public schools. You can also see it in the disproportionate numbers of black men sent to prison for crimes they didn't commit.

<snip>

http://www.ajc.com/opinion/content/opinion/tucker/index.html

[400Years]

1. Interesting to see that all the McKinney bashers are in bed w/ Tom Delay

[cali]

2. Huh?

What are you talking about? I don't see how you can jump to the conclusion that Cynthia Tucker is in bed with Delay.

[400Years]

5. I'm talking about those right here who keep posting accusations

just like TD.

[cali]

7. Hop off that high horse of yours

and stop smearing people. You're doing precisely what you say you abhor. Posting an editorial by a respected black female journalist that happens not to agree with what you believe doesn't make anyone like Tom Delay. Stop being a board nanny.

[400Years]

10. that's funny I was defending you just a couple of days ago

[cali]

11. You weren't defending me here

you were attacking me. It's difficult to interpret your rather terse comments as anything else.

[paul_fromatlanta]

3. You must not know who Cynthia Tucker is

She is not in any way shape or form in bed with Tom delay.

But she is from Atlanta and seen how Cynthia Mckinney treats people. Just because you like her politics doesn't mean she is not capable of slugging somebody for no good reason.

[peaches2003]

4. HUH?

Cynthia Tucker is a black female from Atlanta- same as Cynthia McKinney. Tucker happens to be the editorial writer for the Atlanta Journal and is anything but RW or in bed with Tom DeLay or any Repugs. What are you talking about?

[Missy M]

6. I agree with Cynthia Tucker. The McKinney incident....

is so blown out of proportion and I'm afraid it was blown out of proportion by McKinney.

[peaches2003]

8. Inappropriate

I love the way she is now saying the security guard touched her "inappropriately". Everyone knows that expression is used to intimate a sexual advance. Does anyone think this policeman touched her breasts???

McKinney is making an absolute fool of herself and also is slapping every person of color, who has legitimately suffered from a true racist incident, right in the face with this lame litany of excuses to blame what SHE did on someone else.

The people of Atlanta and Georgia are getting sick of her being such an embarrassment. (And I hate Tom DeLay so don't pull that crap.)

[400Years]

9. Well, since you were there and saw it all go down

can you tell us more?

[CatWoman]

12. ...

http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=06/04/04/1419259

[TheCentepedeShoes]

13. What, IMHO, Cynthia Tucker

is saying is that McKinney needs to keep her eye on the ball. These are serious, dangerous times. The issues facing this country are much bigger than one person's ego. Stay sharp.