African Americans: If You Fear for the Presidents Life, Welcome to Our World

[sheshe2]

In the aftermath of the shooting in Virginia yesterday, Bernie Marcus, co-founder of Home Depot, appeared on the Fox Business Network and said that he is “so worried about the life of the President of the United States.”

I can hear African Americans all over this country tell Marcus in response, “Welcome to our world.” From the day Barack Obama won the Iowa caucus in 2008, they worried about the life of the man who would become our country’s first African American president. It was such a prevalent feeling that the television show Blackish featured it in a powerful episode in response to police shootings.

That fear wasn’t limited to African Americans. A lot of white people felt it too as, over the course of eight years we heard, for the first time in modern history, talk of “second amendment remedies” and watched tea partiers regularly show up at rallies with a Confederate flag in one hand and a gun in the other.


But we can’t leave it there. This is not one of those things that lends itself to false equivalence. Barack Obama constantly spoke of the need for us to show more empathy, expand our moral imagination and listen to each other. He also walked his talk. While Obama regularly pointed to differences he had with Republicans over policies, he never maligned, belittled or threatened the opposition personally. In other words, the fear about whether or not he would survive his presidency was based primarily on the fact that he was a Black man facing a racist insurgency.


Trump is the one who encouraged violence at his campaign rallies, talked about how he could shoot someone on the street and his supporters wouldn’t abandon him and said this about his opponent, “If she gets to pick her judges, nothing you can do, folks. Although the Second Amendment people — maybe there is, I don’t know.”

Read More: http://washingtonmonthly.com/2017/06/15/african-americans-if-you-fear-for-the-presidents-life-welcome-to-our-world/

Watch the video...heartbreaking. I felt the fear as well.

[virtualobserver]

1. I will forever fear for his life, and for his family.

I hope that they have the very best of the secret service.

[malaise]

2. K & R

for truth

Off to the greatest page

[sheshe2]

3. Ya know, malaise.

The day he was inaugurated, I was yelling at the TV for him to get back in the car.

[malaise]

4. He was fearless

Mingled with the American people across the country -it was beautiful to watch.

[sheshe2]

5. I know he was...yet I still feared for him.

[Tanuki]

6. "May his days be few....

Let his children be fatherless, and his wife a widow....."
Yes, Republicans were openly saying this sort of thing about President Obama for 8 years.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.washingtonpost.com/amphtml/news/post-politics/wp/2016/06/10/georgia-senator-prays-for-obama-to-suffer/

..."Sen. David Perdue (R-Ga.) spoke at Faith & Freedom Coalition's conference on June 10, and invoked Psalm 109:8, saying "Let his days be few, and let another take his office." (C-SPAN)
Sen. David Perdue (R-Ga.), one of very few Republicans who has consistently defended Donald Trump's nomination, drew swift condemnation from Senate Democrats after asking voters to pray for President Obama to suffer on the way out of the White House.
......

The problem is in the rest of the Psalm, which is aimed at "the wicked and the deceitful." The verses right after 109:8 delineate a series of curses:

Let his children be fatherless, and his wife a widow.
Let his children be continually vagabonds, and beg: let them seek their bread also out of their desolate places.
Let the extortioner catch all that he hath; and let the strangers spoil his labour.
Let there be none to extend mercy unto him: neither let there be any to favor his fatherless children.
After Perdue's comments circulated on social media, the office of Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) condemned them.

“If Republicans are still wondering why Donald Trump is their nominee, look no further than today’s Faith and Freedom conference where a sitting Republican Senator left the impression he was praying for the death of President Obama and then the Republican Leader followed him on stage and did not condemn him," said Reid's communications director Kristen Orthman.".....(more)

[brer cat]

7. Probably most of us felt it

but if he did, it certainly never showed. trump would cower and hide; President Obama would walk out and face it.

[Gothmog]

8. Powerful clip

I like Blackish and this is a very powerful clip. I am not African American but I also feared that President Obama would be taken away from us

[sheshe2]

9. I am white too and I felt it, yet never voiced it then.

To afraid I would jinx it.

Yes, it was very powerful, Gothmog.

Thank you.

[Gothmog]

10. I really like Blackish

There are some great messages.

I was worried all during the Obama presidency about a nut case taking him out. I am still worried.

[Quayblue]

11. Word.

Last edited Thu Jun 15, 2017, 08:47 PM - Edit history (2)

Interesting how Bow and Dre have switched since the show started.

My kids are well aware of politics at 10 years old. We have been having these deep discussions through the years. And sometimes it hurts to know their innocence is lost so early. But what I've noticed as they get older, is they are looking within themselves to be part of the solutions.

My entire family is deeply hurt right now. But we keep it fuckin moving. We take care of each other, we love each other, we forgive each other, we take care of the unfortunate and we keep going.

[sheshe2]

12. Hey, Quay.

Children like yours are an important part of our future. Yes, aware to young in this life, yet what else can you do? A sad necessity in these time.

To you and yours... stay safe.

[Quayblue]

14. Thanks sheshe

My biggest motivation to reach 100 years young is to experience what they will do.

I know they will make us proud.

You stay safe too!

😘😘😘

[Solly Mack]

13. K&R