Obama says 'white resistance and resentment' stopped him from pushing for reparations

[civilwarbuff]

Obama says 'white resistance and resentment' stopped him from pushing for reparations
"So if you ask me theoretically: 'Are reparations justified?' The answer is yes," he said. "There's not much question that the wealth of this country, the power of this country was built in significant part — not exclusively, maybe not even the majority of it — but a large portion of it was built on the backs of slaves."

But, he said, pushing for that type of economic support for Black Americans, including descendants of slaves, during his presidency likely would have been unsuccessful.

"What I saw during my presidency was the the politics of white resistance and resentment, the talk of welfare queens and the talk of the undeserving poor and the backlash against affirmative action," Obama said on the podcast. "All that made the prospect of actually proposing any kind of coherent, meaningful reparations program struck me as, politically, not only a non-starter but potentially counter-productive."

Sooooooo.......Comments/Thoughts

 

[dqhall]

Obama says 'white resistance and resentment' stopped him from pushing for reparations
"So if you ask me theoretically: 'Are reparations justified?' The answer is yes," he said. "There's not much question that the wealth of this country, the power of this country was built in significant part — not exclusively, maybe not even the majority of it — but a large portion of it was built on the backs of slaves."

But, he said, pushing for that type of economic support for Black Americans, including descendants of slaves, during his presidency likely would have been unsuccessful.

"What I saw during my presidency was the the politics of white resistance and resentment, the talk of welfare queens and the talk of the undeserving poor and the backlash against affirmative action," Obama said on the podcast. "All that made the prospect of actually proposing any kind of coherent, meaningful reparations program struck me as, politically, not only a non-starter but potentially counter-productive."

Sooooooo.......Comments/Thoughts

Obama told us he had not been a Muslim before his first presidential election. During anti-American Muslim riots in Pakistan they chanted, “Death to America. Death to Obama.” After this Obama said he was a Muslim before. The Democrats lost the White House in the next election.

 

[civilwarbuff]

Very short article but interesting....
That crime is usually blamed entirely on the European outsiders who inflicted slavery on African victims. But new research by some African scholars supports a different view - - that Africans should share the blame for slavery.

"It was the Africans themselves who were enslaving their fellow Africans, sending them to the coast to be shipped outside," says researcher Akosua Perbi of the University of Ghana. (88K AIFF sound file or 88K WAV sound)

Based on her studies, Perbi says that European slave traders, almost without exception, did not themselves capture slaves. They bought them from other Africans, usually kings or chiefs or wealthy merchants.

The question is, why did Africans sell their own people?
CNN - Evidence of Africans' part in slavery - Oct. 20, 1995

 

[PloverWing]

I think Obama is correct on both points: that damage was done in the last 400 years of American history that needs to be repaired, if we can; and that if he had pushed for reparations during his presidency, the backlash would have prevented any useful action from being taken.

 

[iluvatar5150]

Obama says 'white resistance and resentment' stopped him from pushing for reparations
"So if you ask me theoretically: 'Are reparations justified?' The answer is yes," he said. "There's not much question that the wealth of this country, the power of this country was built in significant part — not exclusively, maybe not even the majority of it — but a large portion of it was built on the backs of slaves."

But, he said, pushing for that type of economic support for Black Americans, including descendants of slaves, during his presidency likely would have been unsuccessful.

"What I saw during my presidency was the the politics of white resistance and resentment, the talk of welfare queens and the talk of the undeserving poor and the backlash against affirmative action," Obama said on the podcast. "All that made the prospect of actually proposing any kind of coherent, meaningful reparations program struck me as, politically, not only a non-starter but potentially counter-productive."

Sooooooo.......Comments/Thoughts

He's right. They're justified, but they'll face a lot of resistance and backlash.

IMO, from a purely practical perspective, we're better off targeting poverty in a way that's mostly, if not entirely, colorblind. Executed well (which is not a safe assumption), that should close a good portion of the racial wealth gap while also correcting other issues.

Very short article but interesting....
That crime is usually blamed entirely on the European outsiders who inflicted slavery on African victims. But new research by some African scholars supports a different view - - that Africans should share the blame for slavery.

"It was the Africans themselves who were enslaving their fellow Africans, sending them to the coast to be shipped outside," says researcher Akosua Perbi of the University of Ghana. (88K AIFF sound file or 88K WAV sound)

Based on her studies, Perbi says that European slave traders, almost without exception, did not themselves capture slaves. They bought them from other Africans, usually kings or chiefs or wealthy merchants.

The question is, why did Africans sell their own people?
CNN - Evidence of Africans' part in slavery - Oct. 20, 1995

The link isn't working for me, but idk why it's so interesting now. The date that's popping up in the link is from 25 years ago. At the time, Africans didn't see themselves as monolithically "black" - they were members of a variety of different tribes and nations often at war with each other.

 

[Albion]

Sooooooo.......Comments/Thoughts

That excuse from Obama doesn't have the ring of truth, does it?

 

[SummerMadness]

Very short article but interesting....
That crime is usually blamed entirely on the European outsiders who inflicted slavery on African victims. But new research by some African scholars supports a different view - - that Africans should share the blame for slavery.

"It was the Africans themselves who were enslaving their fellow Africans, sending them to the coast to be shipped outside," says researcher Akosua Perbi of the University of Ghana. (88K AIFF sound file or 88K WAV sound)

Based on her studies, Perbi says that European slave traders, almost without exception, did not themselves capture slaves. They bought them from other Africans, usually kings or chiefs or wealthy merchants.

The question is, why did Africans sell their own people?
CNN - Evidence of Africans' part in slavery - Oct. 20, 1995

This is an entirely racist premise. When Europeans fought, imprisoned and enslaved each other, it was not described as "selling their own people," but with Africans, it is described that way. Much like Europe, Africa is a continent of many nations. In the past, those nations that fought, imprisoned and enslaved their rivals. The leaders of some African nations sold members of an opposing nation to European slave traders; the racial views of Europeans is irrelevant to the selling of people into the slave trade by African nations.

American chattel slavery was built on racism, but the Africans that sold rival nations into the European slave trade had nothing to do with race. In their eyes, it would be no different from a Brit selling a Spaniard to another country. Those that keep bringing this up do nothing more than create a distraction from the racism of the institution of slavery and the campaign of discrimination and terrorism that followed after its abolition. Formerly enslaved people and their descendants have been the victims of a racial caste system. How they became a part of that system via the slave trade is not relevant to addressing the dismantling of the racial caste system.

 

[iluvatar5150]

That excuse from Obama doesn't have the ring of truth, does it?

Not only does it have the ring of truth, I've made identical arguments on this forum in the past.

 

[civilwarbuff]

That excuse from Obama doesn't have the ring of truth, does it?

Not far from where I was thinking.....sounded kinda lame......

 

[grasping the after wind]

Reparation's for what and to who exactly?

 

[civilwarbuff]

This is an entirely racist premise. When Europeans fought, imprisoned and enslaved each other, it was not described as "selling their own people," but with Africans, it is described that way.

So she should have said they were 'selling other people' and that would have made it so much better? Does it matter WHO a slave is sold to?......they are still a slave.

American chattel slavery was built on racism, but the Africans that sold rival nations into the European slave trade had nothing to do with race. In their eyes, it would be no different from a Brit selling a Spaniard to another country.

So that is supposed to make slavery so much better in Africa?.....hmmmm, wonder if the slaves would regard it that way.
This might enlighten you some......
Arab slave trade - Wikipedia

 

[Sophrosyne]

In reality they would alienate too many voters if they "gave" black people massive amounts of money for their votes disguising it as "reparations" and made everyone else pay for it.

 

[civilwarbuff]

In their eyes, it would be no different from a Brit selling a Spaniard to another country.

The only problem with that is he would be selling the Spaniard simply because he was a Spaniard or captured in war. It was the same in Africa......they were no better and no worse.

 

[grasping the after wind]

The only problem with that is he would be selling the Spaniard simply because he was a Spaniard or captured in war. It was the same in Africa......they were no better and no worse.

Anyone that sells another into slavery is functioning on the same level as a racist. Seeing another human being as an inferior sub human . Does it make it less heinous if the criterion used to determine that is tribal rather than racial?

 

[Sophrosyne]

I don't quite think that selling another into slavery is racist but rather inhumane and demeaning. I see selling others into slavery as class warfare in a sense as those who put others down (elite, slavers) are elevated higher in society by the money they receive and power from those who buy slaves from them. We see what I consider milder versions of "slavery" in that we tax peoples wages and give them to others who don't earn them. If someone is taxed 10% and 10% of that money is given to people who don't earn it them 1% of their time they are a slave to that effort as they have no choice but to work or starve and cannot stop those who take their time (enslave them) for that money. It is mainly because people were essentially "taxed" 100% that they are called slaves but in reality with the corruption in government the same elite exists that latch on to government money and get their cut. Those corrupt politicians are essentially in a sense... slavers as they "steal" the labor of others to enrich themselves.

 

[SummerMadness]

So she should have said they were 'selling other people' and that would have made it so much better? Does it matter WHO a slave is sold to?......they are still a slave.

You are the one posting language cast slavery as "selling their own people." This is done to somehow lessen the racism of American chattel slavery, as if the racial caste system created in the United States is not related to racism.

So that is supposed to make slavery so much better in Africa?.....hmmmm, wonder if the slaves would regard it that way.
This might enlighten you some......
Arab slave trade - Wikipedia

What does the Arab slave trade have to do with the abolition of American chattel slavery, the century of terrorism that followed and the racial caste system that continues to affect American life? You're not even a page into your own thread and you're attempting to change the subject.

 

[SummerMadness]

Anyone that sells another into slavery is functioning on the same level as a racist. Seeing another human being as an inferior sub human . Does it make it less heinous if the criterion used to determine that is tribal rather than racial?

Where was it argued that slavery based on race is worse than other forms of slavery. The point here is that African participation in the slave trade was not "selling their own people," a popular refrain when people try to distract from the important issue when it comes to the American institution of slavery: the racial caste system it created and its continuance well after its abolition. Discussions about dismantling the caste system is unrelated to distractions about whether other nations or countries participated in the slave trade in the past.

 

[civilwarbuff]

You are the one posting language cast slavery as "selling their own people."

This is from the left's CNN....you should be OK with it.....

What does the Arab slave trade have to do with the abolition of American chattel slavery, the century of terrorism that followed and the racial caste system that continues to affect American life? You're not even a page into your own thread and you're attempting to change the subject.

Slavery is slavery no matter where it occurs (and it still occurs in Arab and African countries even today). It seems if slavery is your 'bugaboo' you would be far more concerned for people you might be able to help than for those that are long since dead. Your anger is far better directed at those who perpetrate slavery today and let God deal with those out of your reach. Something to consider........

 

[Clare73]

Sooooooo.......Comments/Thoughts

I'm still stuck at trying to find the justice in
those who never experienced slavery seeking reparation from those who never practiced slavery.

 

[SummerMadness]

This is from the left's CNN....you should be OK with it.....

Why are you bringing up CNN?

Slavery is slavery no matter where it occurs (and it still occurs in Arab and African countries even today). It seems if slavery is your 'bugaboo' you would be far more concerned for people you might be able to help than for those that are long since dead. Your anger is far better directed at those who perpetrate slavery today and let God deal with those out of your reach. Something to consider........

When the topic is the affects of American slavery on African Americans, then you focus on American slavery and the century of apartheid that followed after, not every form of slavery in the world. Why not actually stay on-topic of your own thread instead of trying to change the subject? American chattel slavery and its effects are the topic at hand, not slavery in general.