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| Harry Jackson (top pic) Candace Owens (bottom pic) prove that VP Mike Pence isn't interested in having an actual discussion on race relations. |
After the firestorm following the murder of George Floyd two weeks ago, one would think that that White House would be taking serious steps to talk about racial injustice.
No chance. A true president would lead the country in a serious look at racial inequality. But we were cursed with Donald Trump. His VP, Mike Pence isn't any better. What he did by comparison nearly makes Trump's lack of leadership look inspiring. On Thursday, Pence hosted a roundtable about race relations with black conservatives - ie black Trump supporters - and one person invited justifiably raised eyebrows.
According to the Daily Mail UK - by way of Right Wing Watch:
Right-Wing Watch pointed out the interesting juxtaposition of Owens being present at this roundtable:
According to Right Wing Watch, Owens has been busy not only smearing Floyd since his death, but also making racially negative generalizations about the black community. That sort of commentary is her gimmick. Owens generally attacks the black community, accusing them to be sheep to the Democratic Party or labeling themselves as constant victims. It has been a long successful grift for her. NewsOne ran a report earlier this month, labeling her as a con artist and a fraud. And the report brought "the receipts."
One wonders what could she possibly have contributed to the conversation Pence held. And speaking of Pence, his second effort to engage in a racial discussion proved yet another lie. According to Americans United for the Separation of Church and State:
A few years ago, Right Wing Watch published a report on Jackson which pointed out how he willingly was the "point man" in a strategy the religious right and conservatives used to drive a wedge of disagreement between the black and LGBTQ communities. In addition, the organization GLAAD has pointed out several statements Jackson has made including one accusing LGBTQ people of "recruiting" children and another claiming that marriage equality is part of a "Satanic" plot.
While you shaking your head at Owens's ignorance or Jackson's homophobia, there is another important fact which is pertinent to the conversation. Neither Jackson nor Owens have credibility or influence in the black community. They are not considered leaders in the black community. Out of the two, Owens probably has more name recognition in the black community and very little of it is positive.
But that's not surprising. Neither Jackson nor Owens have any interest in being leaders in the black community. They are more interested in being tokens or props of the black communities when some white conservatives want a photo op or a voice to justify their limited view of race relations.
That's why both entertained Pence's invitations last weekend. And it makes Pence look more calculating than Trump. By his ignoring of the issue, Trump shows he doesn't care. Pence shows that he does care about the issue of race relations, but only as to how he can exploit it.
Hat tip to Right Wing Watch.
According to the Daily Mail UK - by way of Right Wing Watch:
Black conservative activist Candace Owens was included in Vice President Mike Pence's roundtable on race relations Thursday, despite being criticized for calling George Floyd a 'horrible human being.' Pence tweeted out that he had met with some black Americans, explaining that the group had disussed ' how we can move our Nation forward in the wake of the tragic death of George Floyd and the protests and rioting that have ensued.'
Pence did not tag Owens in the picture, but did tag three black conservatives: Heritage Foundation President Kay Cole James, Center for Urban Renewal and Education founder Star Parker and Elroy Sailor, who previously served on the Trump transition team. A DailyMail.com request for comment and more details about the meeting went unreturned.
Right-Wing Watch pointed out the interesting juxtaposition of Owens being present at this roundtable:
As protests erupted across the country in reaction to the police killing of George Floyd, a black man, right-wing activist Candace Owens took to Periscope last Wednesday to smear Floyd and claim that racism “doesn’t exist as a problematic thing in this country.” The following day, Owens appeared on a White House roundtable of black conservatives to discuss race relations with Vice President Mike Pence. By Sunday, she was banned from the crowdfunding platform GoFundMe.
. . .On Sunday, GoFundMe permanently banned Owens after she tried to raise money for an Alabama restaurant owner who called George Floyd a “thug” and Black Lives Matter protesters “idiots” and claimed his comments were inspired by Owens. A statement from GoFundMe said that Owens had violated its term of service for “a repeated pattern of inflammatory statements that spread hate, discrimination, intolerance and falsehoods against the black community at a time of profound national crisis.”
According to Right Wing Watch, Owens has been busy not only smearing Floyd since his death, but also making racially negative generalizations about the black community. That sort of commentary is her gimmick. Owens generally attacks the black community, accusing them to be sheep to the Democratic Party or labeling themselves as constant victims. It has been a long successful grift for her. NewsOne ran a report earlier this month, labeling her as a con artist and a fraud. And the report brought "the receipts."
One wonders what could she possibly have contributed to the conversation Pence held. And speaking of Pence, his second effort to engage in a racial discussion proved yet another lie. According to Americans United for the Separation of Church and State:
On Friday, Vice President Mike Pence attempted to smooth things over by visiting with some black religious and business leaders in the D.C. area. But Pence’s choice to lead the meeting is telling, and it’s an indication that the administration isn’t taking the issue of racial healing seriously. Pence turned to Bishop Harry Jackson Jr., who pastors a large church in Prince George’s County, Md., to facilitate the meeting. While Jackson is black, he’s hardly representative of that community or its current concerns. For the past several years, Jackson has been best known as a shill for the right wing. He often appears at Religious Right gatherings, where his presence sends a comforting, although incorrect, message to crowds of older, white, conservative evangelicals that the black community agrees with them. (Jackson is also a member of Trump’s Evangelical Advisory Board.)
The issue Jackson is most closely identified with isn’t racial reconciliation or police violence – it’s gay bashing. During the battle over marriage equality a few years ago, Jackson was all over the media spewing far-right bromides about how two people of the same gender shouldn’t be able to get married because of what he thinks the Bible says. When Congress debated hate crimes legislation that would impose enhanced criminal penalties on those who physically attacked LGBTQ people, Jackson insisted, incorrectly, that it would penalize speech as well.
A few years ago, Right Wing Watch published a report on Jackson which pointed out how he willingly was the "point man" in a strategy the religious right and conservatives used to drive a wedge of disagreement between the black and LGBTQ communities. In addition, the organization GLAAD has pointed out several statements Jackson has made including one accusing LGBTQ people of "recruiting" children and another claiming that marriage equality is part of a "Satanic" plot.
While you shaking your head at Owens's ignorance or Jackson's homophobia, there is another important fact which is pertinent to the conversation. Neither Jackson nor Owens have credibility or influence in the black community. They are not considered leaders in the black community. Out of the two, Owens probably has more name recognition in the black community and very little of it is positive.
But that's not surprising. Neither Jackson nor Owens have any interest in being leaders in the black community. They are more interested in being tokens or props of the black communities when some white conservatives want a photo op or a voice to justify their limited view of race relations.
That's why both entertained Pence's invitations last weekend. And it makes Pence look more calculating than Trump. By his ignoring of the issue, Trump shows he doesn't care. Pence shows that he does care about the issue of race relations, but only as to how he can exploit it.
Hat tip to Right Wing Watch.
1 comment:
Mind boggling...just as there are STILL LGBTQ people who support this president and totally ignore how he and the VP are antithetical to their lives and interests.
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