CodePink Apologizes for “Insensitivity” to “Women of Color”

[JackBeck]

Remember when CodePink decided to explain to the first lady of the United States how she should go about dealing with being disrespected? Well apparently when the internet did a collective “WTF is wrong with you?!?!” the heat finally started to get them. Hence:

CodePink:

We would like to apologize for our recent actions that displayed an undeniable insensitivity to persons of color, especially women of color.
As an organization, we strive to speak truth to power and stand for human rights for all. We respect intersectionality and strive to stay aware of the many forms of privilege among our group. We would like to make an unequivocal apology to Michelle Obama, Alicia Keys, and everyone who took offense to messages we posted on Twitter.

By tweeting about how Michelle Obama “should have” responded to Ellen Sturtz’s interruption, we behaved in such a way that reflected a long history of white women dictating how Black women should behave. Our actions were not in keeping with our own values as an organization. While yesterday’s interruption was not a CODEPINK action, it is exemplary of CODEPINK tactics, and the way we responded to it was insensitive and thoughtless.

When the process of petitioning, lobbying and writing letters fails, and when mainstream media ignores the real issues, interruptions of high-profile officials are one tactic to make our voices heard. Because it crosses the line of agreed-upon civility, this tactic is always messy.

Messy is one way of putting it. Disrespectful is another.

But at least CodePink realized their tremendous misstep in attempting to regulate the actions of an accomplished grown woman. Hopefully other spaces who have attempted the same will realize their mistakes as well.

http://thisweekinblackness.com/2013/06/06/codeapology-codepink-apologizes-for-insensitivity-to-women-of-color