Hispanic Media Confronts the
Demon: Gonzales. Black Media Should Learn a Lesson
A Black Agenda Radio commentary by Glen Ford
âThe Latino press resisted the reflexive urge to circle
the wagons around one of their own, and accepted the fact that Alberto Gonzales
is George Bushâs boy.â
Alberto Gonzales resigned as Attorney General of the United
States, this week, a body blow to Latino pride. But the Hispanic press, which
is much more vibrant and active than the Black press, took the occasion in
stride, and with great dignity. As reported by the excellent website, Richard Prince's Journal-isms, the
Latino press resisted the reflexive urge to circle the wagons around one of
their own, and accepted the fact that Alberto Gonzales is George Bushâs boy,
who worked against their interests, and should not be defended.
Contrast that with the usual reaction from whatâs left of
Black media, when an African American politician of dubious repute and no
loyalty to his own people gets attacked by racists. Case in point: former
Memphis congressman Harold Ford, Jr. In the last days of his losing campaign
for the U.S. Senate, the Republican opposition bought ads on statewide
television showing white girls acting like âGirls Gone Wildâ over Harold Ford.
It was a racist attack, certainly. Predictably, Black folks circled the wagons
around the undeserving Harold Ford, Jr. And in doing so, we debased ourselves,
defending a man who never defended us.
âTraitors with a Spanish surname are even more dangerous
than Anglos on a racist mission.â
Harold Ford was the worst Black congressman to ever hold
office. He professed openly that he âlovedâ George Bush. Ford ran around the
country, during Bushâs campaign to kill Social Security, hugging and kissing
Republicans and pledging to bring down the only social safety net that still
exists in the United States. Harold Ford was one of only four Black
congresspersons to vote in favor of Bushâs War Powers, in 2002. He initiated
the rightward tilt that has crippled the Congressional Black Caucus, which can
no longer claim to be the âconscience of the Congress.â Harold Ford, Jr. now is
in a holding pattern as head of the Democratic Leadership Council, the
right-wing bag man for corporate money in the Democratic Party, an organization
that was created for the specific purpose of diminishing Black and union power
in the Democratic Party. In other words, Harold Ford is the enemy.
Alberto Gonzales is the enemy, as well. He was the key
player in the theft of the 2004 election, which required the disenfranchisement
of Hispanic and Black voters in many states. He betrayed his own people â
Latinos â and the American people. He is a criminal â not a source of pride,
but a fountain of shame.
The Latino media were mature enough to understand their
communal interests; that traitors with a Spanish surname are even more
dangerous than Anglos on a racist mission. It appears that Black media are
anchored back in the Jim Crow days, when we marshaled all of our energies to
defend every rascal politician that came up from our ranks. After so many generations,
this has become a reflex reaction â but it is not politically healthy. Barack
Obama calls for 100,000 more U.S. soldiers and Marines â a Black man boosting
the imperial project. Are we supposed to support him? So what if âWhite Girls
Gone Wildâ ads appear, featuring pale and lascivious women wanting to get into
Obamaâs pants. Do we allow racist attacks to dictate our politics? Have we gone
stupid? For Black Agenda Radio, Iâm Glen Ford.
BAR executive editor Glen
Ford can be reached at Glen.Ford@BlackAgendaReport.com.
The world has lost a champion of justice with the passing of Mario Joseph, a Haitian human rights lawyer who spent nearly three decades fighting for victims of state violence, cholera negligence, andâŚ
Monther Abed, the sole survivor of the Israeli attack on paramedics in Rafah, reveals the details of the crime in which 15 humanitarian workers were killed.
For 76 years, Gaza has been has been the defiant heart of Palestinian resistance. Today, as Israelâs genocidal war lays bare the brutal dead end of Zionism, Gazaâs struggle transcends geography,âŚ
Betar U.S., a far-right Zionist organization with ties to violent extremism, is quietly shaping Trump administration policy, compiling lists of pro-Palestine activists for deportation while openlyâŚ
The Dominican far-rightâs violent march on Friusa collapsed in disarray, exposing weakness in the movement as racist mobs failed to overrun a working-class community. However, the threat remains.âŚ
