Charles Ramsey, an American dishwasher, did something that the Cleveland police and the FBI could not do: with the help of Angel Cordero he freed three women (and a girl) who had been missing for ten years, locked away in his neighbour’s house. The police had been called repeatedly about strange doings at the house – even reports of naked women being led like dogs – but did little. The very same police who let Anthony Sowell rape and murder 11 women.
In one week in May 2013 Charles Ramsey went from American hero to Internet buffoon to demonized brute. It was like America could not bear the sight of an ordinary, working-class black man as hero. It had to make fun of how he talks. It had to unearth his police record and splash it across the Internet. He either had to be laughed at or torn down. Brute or buffoon. The culture seems incapable of consuming him in any other form.
It gives lie to the idea that whites would stop being racist if blacks “proved themselves” worthy of their respect.
On Wednesday a buffoon: I saw the interview, the one where the reporter cuts him off when he said:
I knew something was wrong when a little pretty white girl ran into a black man’s arms. Something is wrong here. Dead giveaway!
I did not see anything to laugh at in the interview. Ramsey was just saying what took place. I thought it was a good interview, full of concrete images, like:
I’m eating my McDonald’s; I come outside; I see this girl going nuts.
[My neighbour’s] got some big testicles to pull this off, bro, because we see this dude every day. I mean every day.
I barbecued with this dude! We ate ribs and whatnot, and listened to salsa music!
Then I saw the Internet memes and the Auto-Tune video that went viral. It was like Sweet Brown and Antoine Dodson all over again. Dodson saved his sister from a rapist. Brown escaped with her life from a fire. Both were working-class blacks. Both became a laughingstock on the Internet because of how they talk – even though there was nothing unintelligent or unclear in what they said.
On Thursday a brute: The Smoking Gun website made his police record public: he was in prison for beating his wife. He served his time, he has been clean for the past ten years, why is it necessary to bring this up? Is this what we do to people who save missing women?
Ramsey, to his credit, pointed out how that past has made him a better man:
There was a woman in distress, why turn your back on that? My father would have whooped the hell out of me if he had found out I would coward out. You tough in these bars, and you beat a woman, but you won’t help one out? … I’m the definition of a man.
See also:
Murray? See first sentence.
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20130511.2215
Why discriminate? We are ALL equal. Discern what is right from what is wrong. Know who the true God is from the false gods.
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Maybe it’s because he is not a rented Negro. I had an uneasy feeling in my stomach after the initial interview that he would be attacked.I am sure plenty of non whites help in belittling him. He is a man who did the right thing. He is a Black man who really stepped up. His past be damned. Where are the calls to help this guy get a better job? He certainly has the character for it. The viral video of a bullied white granny on a bus garnered thousands in donations.She retired. How about that black guy who saved someone from being crushed by a NYC subway? Minorities (blacks and browns,yellows) have nothing to prove to the white people. Would he still be a hero had the girls been black and Latino? I wonder. All I heard about was how the white girl was so brave. And yes ,she was. But as we see bravery comes in all colors.
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@ Blog Raju
Thanks.
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When I read about this on certain black websites it made me even angrier, because it seemed as if they were siding with The Smoking Gun by tearing him down for his past.
His story kind of reminds me of the labeling of PFC. Jessica Lynch as a hero/heroine during the Iraqi War, while Specialist Shoshana Johnson was not even considered as one.
Face it, in America a black person will not ever be considered as their idea of a hero regardless of their financial background. They want the fantasy and the hype and Mr. Ramsey isn’t a part of their fantasy.
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He is a wonderful man, period!
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I can’t hate or disrespect this man. He did a wonderful thing.
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He has many supporters, both black and white, if you read the internet comments… especially since he said he “did not want the reward money because he has a job” (and flashed his paycheck in the camera)
People were not happy with the Smoking Gun for writing about his past and they received a lot of backlash for it.
The question of whether white America is laughing ‘at him or with him’ is what the black American blogs keep focusing on — say what you like, but he did say some funny one-liners and from what I’ve read, he’s got positive support.
someone already started a charity for him
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/08/charles-ramsey-reward-money-kidnapping-victims_n_3238287.html
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hmmm….i don’t know–he beats his woman in the past then “saves” a woman later?
Shaky business.
Anyway, why do Black folks keep wanting him to be seen as a “hero” by white folks? It like some constantly want validation from them.
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i wasn’t going to post anything on this one, but i didn’t really get it about ‘no time fo this’ or whatever, but they started spreading more crap about this guy too, i get it now.
my one friend calls those pictures with the words on them ‘image macros’ or memes?
i mean that presentation style serves a purpose but…
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phoebeprunelle:
Its not that black people want him to be seen as a hero by white folks, you are misinterpreting what black folks are outraged about.
We just want white folk to leave us be and not attack our character, when we do something that every human being is capable of doing, being heroic.
This is NEVER the case when it comes to someone black, rising to the occasion to help a fellow human being in distress.
Either 2 things always happen:
1 We are over looked and given very little or no acknowledgement, ( from everyone, not just white people.
2 We are given acknowledgment at first, then all of a sudden, the white media looks for a criminal past, if there is one to be found, just so they can discredit the black hero.
Why do this?, what’s the purpose? It would be in good taste to NOT bring up any criminal past, so the person won’t be looked at in a bad way but this is always the desired outcome for a black man.
You would think, this is what people want out of people with a criminal past, to turn from their ways and become a productive member of American society.
whites always preach criminal rehabilitation but when they see it, they reject it as in the case of Charles Ramsey.
He has broken the law and paid his dept, he is square with the house and was worthy of a clean slate, yet he was denied that by the white media that wanted to smear his name.
I also would like to point out something, “Jacque” said in the above post.
“Would he still be a hero had the girls been black and Latino?”
This is very profound as we as black and brown people on this blog, know about the, “missing white woman syndrome” Had those girls been black or Latino, it would have been a wrap in 2 minutes on your local news station in Cleveland, Ohio, never to see national coverage.
The fact that those 3 females were white, brung national attention and that is to be expected in America and to be perfectly honest, i am so over it as it will never change.
I have an issue with the constant, character assassination of black people, whenever we are in the spot light. whites can’t stand to see black people in a positive light.
This reminds me of quvenzhane wallis, when she was nominated for an Oscar, she was called a “cunt” and it was all over the damn media, i can’t tell you which got more media coverage, the fact that she was the youngest person to be ever nominated for an Oscar or the fact that she was called a cunt by some obscure white person on a twitter account.
vonmiwi, posted above about a similar outcome with the two female soldiers,
Shoshana Johnson which is black and Lynch which is white. They were both POW in the iraq war and came back as “heroes”
Lynch got way more media coverage, book and movie deals, very little attention was given to Johnson in the media.
Lynch got 80% disability discharge, opposed to Johnson’s 30% disability discharge.
Yes, Ramsey is very colorful and is just naturally a funny person, without trying to be funny. I can see how some people would laugh at the things he says and how he says them but that’s not the same as laughing at him and being mean spirited.
He looks like he’s has a very hard life, looking at him but that shouldn’t matter, considering what he has done.
Simply put, the white media should be ashamed of themselves for focusing on a man’s short comings and past failures as a reward for helping 3 people, crying out for help.
I can honestly say, that if i ever were to save a white person’s life, ( this is key as saving a black or Latino or Asian’s life is not worthy of news coverage) I would refuse any interviews by the white media. I would not even want any recognition from the public.
God is the only entity, that i am concerned with seeing my good deed, not white people.
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@Sondis
*slow claps*
Finally, someone said it.
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Call me rigid, but it still doesn’t sit well with me that he beat his wife in the past and now comes to woman’s aid just recently.
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Thanks for writing this. You hit the nail on the head — again. I read some pieces on the rescue at various sites and felt the same way.
And yes, Jacque and vonmiwi, the Black blogs are right there with everybody else, belittling him for how he looks, talks, where he works, blah, blah, blah. It’s sickening how so many of us are still so deeply mired in the “Politics of Redemption” that Pascal Roberts explains here:
http://blackagendareport.com/content/peculiar-black-“politics-redemption”
“Charles Ramsey, an American dishwasher, did something that the Cleveland police and the FBI could not do:”
Given the neighborhood and its occupants, I think would not do is more like it, Abagond. Those fundraisers for the state don’t care much about folk in the ‘hood unless, of course, it’s warrant round-up time. {smdh}
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@ Sondis
Isn’t at least one of them Latina?
Anyhow, what it tells me is that most of white American has very little contact with blacks. What little contact they have is from the media, and that consists mostly of stereotyped caricatures.
If you had honest contact with many blacks growing up, you would not react that way.
I did read the Economist article about him — actually apart from a few grammatical errors, his English was actually quite articulate and about as close to Standard English as any white person’s would be. I certainly did not find the police officers any more articulate. But the article did point out that many people (and I think that means white people who have little black contact) would find his speaking style / dialect entertaining (albeit articulate).
@abagond
Fully agree. Those people making him into an internet buffoon are shameless.
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jefe:
“most of white American has very little contact with blacks. What little contact they have is from the media, and that consists mostly of stereotyped caricatures.”
This has nothing to do with the media, assassinating his character by bringing up his criminal past.
“I did read the Economist article about him — actually apart from a few grammatical errors, his English was actually quite articulate and about as close to Standard English as any white person’s would be.”
what does him being articulate or not, have to do with anything? The article in which, abagond wrote, is how he is being, portrayed in the media as a buffoon.
“If you had honest contact with many blacks growing up, you would not react that way.”
React what way? Again, i don’t see what this has to do with what Charles Ramsey has done or what abagon, wrote.
The logical of what you are saying makes no sense, you’re saying that because white people, haven’t grown up around black people, they are unable to relate to a black man, saving 3 people from a kidnapper???
Someone saving 3 people from being held captive for 10 years, should garner sympathy and understanding from anyone from all walks of life and races.
Its so universal, so why is it that white people, ( from your perspective ) isn’t capable of seeing what Charles Ramsey has done and leave it at that, instead of poking around his past and outing him as a criminal, having the common decency to say that it doesn’t matter what he has done in his past and it shouldn’t have been brought up in the first place.
Why does it always come down to we as black people, having to defend a black hero? it shouldn’t always bee about him being articulate, having a criminal past or if white people grew up round black people.
You see how the conversation about black people, being in the spot light for doing something positive, always switches to having to defend our character?
We are always on the defensive and never have the opportunity to relish in our acts of bravery and heroism.
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Demonizing black people has been part of American culture since its inception. This just happens to be the latest case. It’s not really anything new. Ramsey also won’t be the last,that’s for sure.
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The media we all know is a bunch of shit. They wanted to tear the man down because how dare this black man save these white women, from what lookes like, from a white man. God I’m sure will reward him in ways that we cannot see. The media, smh I dont even bother to hear what it says, its just a bunch of crap. I’m happy Mr. Charles Ramsey was there when he was and I’m glad that he had the courage to do an amazing heroic thing.
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White America was worried there for a second, a working class black hero not of their choosing? No, heavens no, look at his past, and how he speaks, see what we can find. Oh he eats fast food and has a long distant criminal record? Ahhh, so he WAS just a n*gger all along, what a relief.
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@Sondis
Great post! You pretty much summed it up! You hit the nail on the head!
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I’ve been done said this before blackmen are the lowest. There’s a pecking order to racism. Here it is for the unlearned,
Blond whites with blue eyes.
Whites brunette or brown.
Whites red
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I’ve said what I thought about this in the open thread. God bless Charles Ramsey. But the mainstream media is a culpable of trying to make this man look like a buffoon. That is what is bothering me about this. Yes, he did a noble thing saving those young women and he should be respected as a hero. But I hate how the media portrays urban African Americans.
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Excellent post.
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@ jefe who said, “most of white American has very little contact with blacks. What little contact they have is from the media, and that consists mostly of stereotyped caricatures.”
White people have used this excuse for DECADES, and it is a FALSE and ILLOGICAL non-defense — in my opinion. There is NO PLACE in America where blacks live or work that white people aren’t present, because white people control everything that happens in america, from the schools, to the government, to the banking, real estate, employment, law enforcement, retail, wholesale, etc. .
The racist attitudes of whites toward blacks exist everywhere, from the smallest hick town to the biggest cities — in fact, all over the planet wherever non-white people exist. The white media certainly has plenty of contact with blacks.
Bottom line, RACISM is a mainstay within the white collective mentality
Researchers have found that from the age of four, white children clearly exhibit a dislike for black and non-white people and believe we are inferior or “bad” as one little white boy said.
So this TENDENCY is inherent and intrinsic in white culture, and frankly, I think it’s time to stop pretending there isn’t something genetic or instinctive going on (wrong) within the European mindset.
White people are the ones who CREATED and PERPETUATE those stereotypes, and I suspect most white people KNOW these stereotypes aren’t true (or maybe they don’t)
but choose to believe whatever makes them feel “superior” or better about themselves as white people. A sad statement, indeed.
White people ALSO know what they say about black people when no black people are in the room and as one white female college professor once said, “we are always talking bad about black people and it’s assumed that everyone present is in agreement.”
Whether white people live next door to blacks or not, or are having sex with them or not (and there’s a TON of that going on) or work next to a black person or not, white people even as young as sixteen know more about racism than the average black (victim)
so please, your folks will have to become more creative in their denial than to say ad infinitum,
“most white americans have very little contact…”
Most whites certainly know enough about blacks to know they dislike us and they know blacks are not white and that it is acceptable to mistreat us
Which means they know all they need to know about black people.
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Thank you, Kushite Prince. I also agree with what you said about the history of American culture that demonizes, black people.
Trojan Pam:
Very well said indeed, you went deep on us. ^_^
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Inregards to the whole comedic aspect; what about Kai the axe wielding hitch hiker?
Internet did the same thing to him and he was white.
Also; just wasn’t 2 of the kidnap victims of latino/mestiqo heritage IE non-white?
And the kidnapper as well is a non-white individual.
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Charles Murray or Charles Ramsey?
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@ sondis
Thank you (and Kushite Prince and others) for soldiering on the battlefield of racism and racist speak.
I wasn’t surprised that within a few days the white media changed the story to make it appear that Charles Ramsey wasn’t a hero. In fact, as soon as I saw his dark-skinned face on my TV screen, I knew it wasn’t going to fly
In this age of demonizing and scapegoating blacks, “black heroes” NEED NOT APPLY.
Black heroes (except those of the celluloid kind in Hollywood films) CONTRADICTS the overriding and racist message that blacks are inferior (aka not human) and have few or no redeeming qualities.
If you look at the recent rash of movies over the last five to ten years, especially after the first election of President Obama, you could see the RISE in black scapegoating and the demonization and manufactured defectiveness of black people
all of which is designed to turn the rage, helplessness, and increasing self-loathing of the white collective in black people’s direction.
To effectively SCAPEGOAT blacks, you have to DEMONIZE blacks and make it appear that blacks (via Obama’s election) are responsible for the suffering of white people which means the white people in power cannot allow blacks to be portrayed as Victims OR Heroes.
Just like in the Boston bombing, all you say after day one were WHITE VICTIMS. I distinctly remember that on the first day, someone with a cellphone camera capturing a dark skinned black female lying on the ground under some debris. I haven’t seen her face or heard about her since.
Black “Victims” (except those being victimized by other black people) CONTRADICTS the overriding and racist message that black people are VICTIMIZERS, not VICTIMS
Come to think of it, when’s the last time you saw the white media talk about a black male or black female soldier dying in Iraq? Watching the media’s coverage of Iraq veterans you would think NO black people are fighting or dying in Iraq. Because blacks can’t be DEMONS and HEROES at the same time.
At least one thing is crystal clear to me
There is NO WAY black people will EVER prove to white people that we are as human and deserving as white people.
We should, therefore, spend ALL OUR TIME proving to EACH OTHER that all black people are — by nature — worthwhile and valuable people so our children will feel valuable and worthwhile
And now that the overwhelming EVIDENCE is in, and the PRESSURE is OFF us to prove something that can’t be proven (no matter how hard the Charles Ramseys of the world try)
Maybe, its time to relax and STOP TRYING to convince white people of ANYTHING
period.
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@ sondis
agree with your earlier post, including your refusal to be interviewed by the white media. They cannot be trusted.
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@ abagond
I’m reblogging this timely post on my site — racismws.com
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Amen @ Pam ^_^
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[…] https://abagond.wordpress.com/2013/05/11/charles-ramsey/ […]
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@ sondis
It is disturbing to me when black people — who have been STEREOTYPED themselves because they’re black — choose to focus on the past of this poor black male (as though they are above suspicion by white people)
His heroism isn’t about him being a great or a perfect human being, or whether he did everything right OR anything wrong in his life
it’s about the HEROIC ACT he performed that saved three people
Mr. Ramsey is a poor black male who makes an HONORABLE, HONEST living as a dishwasher instead of begging or stealing or getting three hots and a cot in prison.
Would he be a better, more heroic man to some of us if he’d appeared before the TV cameras in a smoking jacket speaking perfectly accented English while puffing on a pipe after just knocking a door door and possibly saving the lives of three young women?
I suspect he might.
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I saw this process coming a mile away when I first heard about it. The news media and internet clowns love to turn working-class black people who did good deeds into heroes, then clowns and then pathetic. This society loves to laugh and condemn black people for entertainment even when they are being serious. SMH.
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Yeah brothawolf, you knew the deal. We as black people, can’t be victims or be Heroes. Hell, even if they can’t find any dirt on us, they make something up!
Remember the central Park five? even after the real rapist came out and admitted that he rapped the central park jogger, then the boys were freed, eventually cleared and charged dropped.
There were still people in the media that would not acknowledge that those 5 boys, didn’t commit the crime and never received any sort of apology by the prosecutors and Mayor crotch!
They still haven’t got a settlement after over 20 years from the state of new york for their, wrongful prosecution.
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This guy is a real life hero which is too much for some white americans. He is not willsmith, he is a real guy with a real life with real stuff behind him, some one who does not fit in to todays sanitised hero mould. And the worst of all, he made the cops and FBI look like jerks they had been in this case.
I respect this guy tremendously. Reminds me of another black guy I knew back in the early 90’s when I was in USA. He almost caught a local serial rapist during one night when that rapist attacked a white woman coming home from her job (she was a nurse). I woke up to that screaming too but did not even get my pants on when it was all over. Steven had dashed out from his apartment, rushed to the scene and fought off the rapist who got away barely. The only reason he got away was the broken glass outside our building. Steven was barefooted but still gave a chase.
There were two white guys in that whole building who gave him the aknowledgment he deserved. Me, a foreigner, and our janitor, who knew our local hero well. That white woman did not even thanked, not that Steven needed any thanks. He was that kind of guy. She actually moved out with her husband shortly afterwards. I guess things are pretty much the same twenty years later.
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@ sondis
regarding the “Central Park Wilding” I remember reading something about their white female accuser and to my knowledge she has NEVER apologized.
I didn’t know those young men never got a settlement! How is that possible?
I suspect it might be because by exposing what happened in the prosecution of those black boys
that this would ALSO expose the stinking, rotting mess of the racist CRIMINAL INJUSTICE system in the state of New York (and all over this nation) that convicts and incarcerates hundreds of thousands of black males and females on flimsy or nonexistent evidence and forced confessions.
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All i’m saying is this–We (as in Black people) do not need white people’s validation on whether or not Charles Ramsey is a hero. We do not need them to acknowledge our goodness.
We (for those who do in fact see Charles Ramsey as a hero) can just celebrate him in our own way.
I don’t see Charles Ramsey as a “hero”. When you give any person of any color that title you may in fact be setting yourself up for disappointment and placing that person you are labeling a hero on a pedestal–which is unfair to everyone involved. I see Charles Ramsey as one human being who did the right thing at that moment. However, me deifying him to a position he himself says he isn’t is just unrealistic and futile.
@Sondis, Trojan Pam and Kushite Prince,
believe me Brothers and Sister i hear everything you are saying about “whiteness” and the problems in this world it truly causes–but with this issues of “heroism”–i think it is really subjective.
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The media is crazy,i saw a vid of one news saying the bar was set low if he is a hero. A lot people focus on when he said I knew something was wrong when a pretty little white girl ran into a black mans arms.He is right . Also a Puerto rican man is claiming he saved the girls not mr ramsey,but I don’t believe it.Mr ramsey is a hero and he turned down the reward money.Some people just don’t want to give this man credit for being a hero and have to make fun of him or not mention his name.
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TrojanPam: I watched the documentary about 2 weeks ago on my jail broken, apple tv. It aired on PBS on April 16th 2013. Here is the link to the documentary:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2380247/
The women that was raped, the central park jogger. She never accused the boys of rape, she couldn’t remember anything that night, the beating was too severe, effected her memory.
The prosecution ran away with it and they are the ones, responsible for their false convictions.
They never apologized for wrongfully accusing the central park 5, you should watch the documentary, its very informative.
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@ sondis
Thanks for the clarification and the link. I’ll check it out
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We live in time when the elites want the power of the common man to stand discredited. Okay to be a goodhearted oaf, of course. But to know that suddenly and out of nowhere a moment has come where how you act will be the test of who you are, and to be unapologetic, even quietly and humbly so, about saying that you knew that to be so was just too much for the smart alecks in the mainstream media to handle.
I don’t want to make lite of his domestic violence history, but that is still a horse of a different color. We don’t know what happened behind the closed doors of his own home. Though he should not have responded to them violently, there may have been aggravations and provocations that we do not know about.
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Ramsey clearly states in his original interview that he watched as another man / neighbor was already running towards the house where the woman was screaming for help. Angel Mercado (who does not speak any English), according to reports, is that man. Cordero lives in a house across the street from the one where the women were being held.
Charles Ramsey has said himself that he was home and eating a Big Mac when he heard someone screaming. He then put the hamburger down so he could go have a look-see as to what’s going on. It is at this point that he sees someone running towards the source of the screams. (This is my interpretation, anyway, of what I’ve heard of Ramsey’s choppy / fragmented initial interview.)
It is entirely conceivable, as the man Ramsey saw running had a headstart on Ramsey himself, that the other man probably got to the girl first. Recall also that Ramsey mentions a “we” several times in his description of freeing the girl.
Mercado claims in an interview conducted Spanish that he got there first, that he was the one who kicked in the bottom of the screen door, and that the girl came running out just as Ramsey and others finally made to the scene. This description is not at all unbelievable as it should not have to take two (or more) healthy men to kick in a screen door, and it should not have to take more than a few seconds for one man to do it.
Certainly it’s not unusual for bystanders to events to casually take credit for the events or aspects of them, even when all they did was to watch or cheer from the sidelines. I’m not saying that this is the case with Charles Ramsey, but there is evidence that it might be — some of which came from his own mouth.
(Fair is Fair.)
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Yes. I was just about to respond to comments on the Central Park Jogger case. It was the police involved in it who coerced that group of children into making false confessions that they had raped and beaten her to the point that she was found hours after the attack near death, and with her skull fractured and one eyeball out of its socket. It turned to be a man named Matias Reyes, 17 years old at the time of the attack, who admitted years later that he alone was responsible.
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I wasn’t trying to excuse the behavior of anyone. Sorry if it came off that way.
There is no excuse for that particular behavior by the media.
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The person who allegedly rescued the woman is named “Angel Cordero”. I have no idea why I referred to him as “Angel Mercado”.
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I try @ Legion… ^_^
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And the case of Anthony Sowell and his house of horrors. Nobody cared about those black women missing in the same city Cleveland Ohio. The police don’t care about poor black people in any city. The cops failed in this account of Amanda Berry and in the case of the missing black women because the were poor women with drug addiction.
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I found Antoine Dodson and Sweet Brown hilarious. This guy less so, but I see how people can find him funny. He is very charismatic.
You can be a hero and funny at the same time.
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It is the mainstream media that distorts and edits things. That create what they want the world to see. Unfortunately for black people the media will always create and distort said black person’s image. The media can’t be trust to even tell the truth about news coverage when a non white person is involved in the story. I remember the coverage of POW female soldiers Shoshanna Johnson and Jessica Lynch the way that was covered. More attention was paid to white and blonde Jessica Lynch than to the dark skinned Shoshanna Johnson. If I am not mistaken. Lynch got more compensation than Johnson from that ordeal.
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Legion:
You really should watch the full documentary, clips here and there, won’t give you the whole picture.
http://video.pbs.org/video/2364990501
I watched it on my jail broken apple TV. Check the listing on the link i posted to see, when it will air again.
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Wow, these interviewers are trying to make every excuse in the book. Its not working…Ken burns, crushed them both and wasn’t having any of it.
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http://new.livestream.com/nytimes/centralparkfive
This isn’t the actual movie this has insight about the film and the boys, now men. and the makers and directors of the documentary.
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@ Mary,
The funny thing about the Jessica Lynch’s story is that Jessica even admitted she was not a hero. She said she never fired a shot. She stated herself that she just fell to her knees and began to pray AND NEVER FIRED A SHOT. Shoshanna on the other hand, actually went down fighting.
Jessica Lynch got a movie made about her, a million dollar book deal and $700 dollars a month. Shoshanna only gets $500 dollars a month in disability and a book deal that initially fell through, but was later released in 2010 by another publisher. I seriously doubt she got a million dollars.
The guy that tipped the military off about Lynch’s whereabouts scored refugee status for himself and his entire family and was moved to the U.S. That’s how important Jessica was to the U.S. She was held for 9 days while Shoshanna was held captive for 22 days.
One thing I can say for Jessica is that she admitted it was all a lie. She admitted in the media, and before Congress, that she was erroneously portrayed as a “female Rambo from Virginia” and was showered with medals based on this false image created by the military and the American media.
I said all of that to say this: the media didn’t care who Jessica Lynch really was. They made her into what they wanted her to be because they knew White America would eat it up. They would be able to relate better to Mrs. Lynch as a hero than Shoshanna, so Shoshanna was relegated to a foot note during the media coverage and her TRUE heroics went under reported in favor of a more “relatable hero” BLONDE HAIRED, BLUE EYED JESSICA LYNCH.
You see in White America’s mind people like Shoshanna Johnson or Charles Ramsey can’t be heroes so they either have to ignore them (Shoshanna) or tear them down (Charles Ramsey)
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Jadapoo1:
The fact that Jessica Lunch, proclaimed that all that was said about her actions were false, means absolutely nothing, being she didn’t turn down a book, movie or media deals.
How can you say, i never did any of that but sign a book deal, that says you did?
The book was about, everything the media, says she did. So Jessica Lynch, if what she said was true is two faced and a liar.
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When I heard him say to give the reward to the victims, that he’s an American and a Christian, I thought, “Wow! What a great guy.” None of the ridiculous criticism could change my mind about that. It would be great to have him as a neighbor and friend. I wish I could meet him and shake his hand.
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[…] Charles Ramsey, an American dishwasher, did something that the Cleveland police and the FBI could not do: with the help of Angel Cordero he freed three women (and a girl) who had been missing for ten years […]
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Another alarming aspect of the topic is how the Cleveland police have thoroughly denied that any neighbors have made calls to them asking them to check out that house when it seems like a dozen or more neighbors indicate that they have contacted the police, and a few have eyewitness accounts that they have seen police coming around to take a look and just leave.
The Cleveland police have called them all liars.
Just because there is no record of a report does not mean that neighborhood residents did not contact the police. I suspect that there is a cover-up.
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@ Jefe
And some people act puzzled or even offended when they hear about people having little to no trust in law enforcement. They’re not there to protect everybody and that’s the sad reality of it.
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As a black woman it really does make me uncomfortable that people say his past and what he most likely did to a black woman and black children just “doesn’t matter” because he saved lives.The lives of a white and Hispanic girl.
I can get that he helped saved lives and deserves to be recognized for doing so.but when people start saying “so what” to his abuse and neglect of possibly a black woman and black children,I do take issue with those people.I can’t help but think about the quality of life his past victims have today.Or the hardships they likely have today due to his past actions.
I also think he should have kept the reward money to pay his child support.
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Hie ex-wife (you know…the one that he beat) even came out and supported him, and said that it was in the past. So why are people even mentioning this, as if people can’t change/grow?
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This is nothing new, making a mockery of poor black people on the local news. It’s the new spin of making autotunes, avatars, jpegs of their catch phrases that has brought the dehumanizing to a new level. I have stop watching the local news a long time ago and make a conscious effort to filter what I watch and my household. What I’ve told my kiddos about this story is that a Black man/men did a courageous thing one that local police couldn’t do, and not to judge a book by it’s cover. End of story, PERIOD.
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I agree with you Trojan Pam. You make a lot of sense.
Especially this: “Bottom line, RACISM is a mainstay within the white collective mentality…So this TENDENCY is inherent and intrinsic in white culture, and frankly, I think it’s time to stop pretending there isn’t something genetic or instinctive going on (wrong) within the European mindset.”
I am slowly starting to genuinely believe that racism/Whites belief of White superiority is genetic. 😦 😦
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Why are we still surprised – it’s all you can expect………….I give up with them.
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Truth P.:
“As a black woman it really does make me uncomfortable that people say his past and what he most likely did to a black woman and black children just “doesn’t matter” because he saved lives.The lives of a white and Hispanic girl.”
You’re misinterpreting the statement and reaching way to far for something that just isn’t there.
You’re making the statement about his ex-wife and children, which has nothing to do with the statement. People are saying he shouldn’t be judged for what he has done in his past.
“people say his past and what he most likely did to a black woman and black children just “doesn’t matter” because he saved lives.” You’re taking that statement, totally out of context.
People are not condoning his criminal past by making this statement, they are simply saying, everyone can learn from their mistakes and can change as a result of their past deeds, that is what the statement, “it doesn’t matter” conveys.
When people around the country and on this blog say, “it doesn’t matter” regarding his criminal past, they are not referring to his ex-wife and children.
They do matter but they aren’t what people are referring too.
He could have robbed a bank, served his time in prison and released.
People would have said the same about that crime,”it doesn’t matter that he robbed a bank”, he saved 3 people and he should be judged based on that and that alone.
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” I also watched his Jazz Documentary”
Peanut !!!!!!
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No problem brother. You always have great insight on these subjects. Yeah Ms Pam doesn’t hold back!lol She always keeps it 100% real. Her posts are nit for the weak at heart.lol
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Well my fb feed was filled with positive pics and tributes to the man. I think you are singling out some selective idiots. I say it shows it take regular people to be heros in this country. We can’t rely only on police.
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You all must be reading different articles that I am reading…because all the internet comments I am seeing are calling him a “hero” and he is getting nothing but love and support from the average people. (he’s got T-shirts and 2 funds in his name) Ramsey’s not feeling any pain right now — he’s making the most of his 15 minutes and proceeding to get a little something by touring the country and staying humble.
so not sure how “approval/ disapproval” by white America got into this whole episode because it’s the media that was making an issue out of his past and making fun of him, (and comedians like Mike Epps)
and the media got plenty of backlash from Everyone because most people recognized that they were trying to tear the man down. The media is also putting out all the business of the white girl Michelle, telling all her dirt — because that’s what the media does best — build people up and then tear them down.
…the viral videos were to be expected because there was no Way people weren’t going to go in and not laugh at this man.
the undercurrents may be racial but class also plays a Big factor — the media in America (and everyone else) likes to make fun of poor and uneducated people, especially if they speak “country” like Honey Boo Boo
and “Pookie” Ramsey fits right into that stereotype… so did Sweet Brown and Antoine Dodson. Black people need to stop acting like they don’t laugh when comedians, like Dave Chappelle, portray “hood rat” characters.
Mike Epps and his “not so funny” video
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@ Linda,
I agree that there is some positive coverage AS well as negative media coverage
and I may have posted a response prematurely but I was reacting to a lifetime of this kind of coverage, where the white media deliberately makes black people look like fools
for example, whenever something happened in a black area the white reporters would search out the most unkempt and incoherent black male or female they could find and interview them
and this is a constant pattern
I must disagree that they do that to all poor people, including white people, because I have seen no evidence of the white media seeking to make white people look ignorant.
That doesn’t mean NO clips of so-called ignorant white people don’t occasionally squeak by the news room cutting floor but when’s the last time you heard about a poor white unarmed white male (or female) being shot over 75 times by the police?
there is no way that whites– regardless of class or income or education– are treated as badly as black people–regardless of class, income or education
just ask Harvard Professor Gates (arrested in his own home) or President Obama who is treated and talked about worse publicly than any president (or person) in recent history.
their “class” (education, title, income) still ranks them BELOW a white person, which proves (to me) that America may have different “classes” but it is ESSENTIALLY a CASTE SYSTEM
where the skin color you were BORN WITH determines how you will be treated, regardless of what you have or have accomplished
but I do apologize to all for jumping on my usual racism bandwagon before fully researching the story (as to who is the “biggest” or other hero) before I posted on this excellent blog
It’s just that KNEE JERK reaction that happens when your cousin is always stealing from you and something comes up missing and she was the last one you saw in your room
it’s easy to believe — TRUE TO HER PROVEN NATURE — that she probably had something to do with it.
And that is how I approach the white media (and white society in general) which has shown me over and over and over a million times ITS TRUE NATURE
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not sure if it’s balance but if black America wants to get excited about something, then the controversy with Lil’ Wayne / Emmitt Till and Mountain Dew Goat commercial that Tyler, the Creator made, needs to be up front and center because that’s internalized racism rearing it’s ugly head and working from within.
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@ Mary Burrell,
I remember the case of Anthony Sowell those murdered black females and I suspect that callous, lack of regard for non-white life attitude on the part of law enforcement is probably largely responsible for why those three young women were not found sooner.
——
@ Kushite Prince
Likewise!
—–
@ Ellis
While some find fault with Dr. Frances C. Welsing’s theory on the motivations of white minority to practice racism against the non-white majority on the planet,
she is the only one who has made a reasonably scientific assumption (in my opinion) rather than IGNORING the history of white aggression that exists to say that SOMETHING is going on in the minds of white people collectively toward non-white people
It cannot be an accident or a coincidence that the same behaviors play out WHEREVER whites come into contact with non-whites.
——
@ Truth P
I hear where you’re coming from, and it’s true, there is little to NO concern about the violence against or the welfare of black females and our children
I did not intend to minimize whatever wrongs Mr. Ramsey had committed against them but I think the only reason the subject came up was not out of concern for that black female but was done to once again, demonize ALL black people
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@Trojam Pam
Well said. White AmeriKKKa will always see a Black person as an N word no matter what they have accomplished in life. Blacks, Latinos, Asians and Native Americans along with Arab Muslims are looked down in White AmeriKKKa as being inferior and it will always be that way unless institutionalized racism and White supremacy is demolished and Whites apologize to Blacks and minorities for the wrongdoings they have done to them.
@Linda
True and I was disappointed to hear that self hating ugly coon, Lil Wayne disrespect Emmitt Till’s family like that. How dare he compare Emmitt Till’s murder to sleeping with a woman. How dare he? It just shows that people feel that Emmitt Til died in vain. No, he didn’t die in vain. If Emmitt Till hadn’t died for Blacks to be free and have a better life, then this self hating man wouldn’t even have a Rap career right now.
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I agree with much of what has already been said, but in fairness, I should reiterate that the reactions have not ALL been negative either.
http://www.clevescene.com/scene-and-heard/archives/2013/05/08/the-internet-is-now-raising-money-for-charles-ramsey
http://humorousfunnyjokes.com/charles-ramsey-national-hero/
http://holysoulshermitage.files.wordpress.com/2013/05/charles-ramsey.jpg?w=500&h=272
http://www.onenewspage.com/video/20130507/1244698/RAW-911-CALL-Charles-Ramsey-rescued-Cleveland-woman.htm
In any case, my hat’s off to Mr. Ramsey.
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Another clarification about Angel Cordero is needed.
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For Once I Give The Media Credit. I Have Seen Mister Ramsey On The TODAY Show, Good Morning America, And An In Depth Interview With Anderson Cooper. And NOT ONCE Did His Race Or Even Appearance Come Up. The Only Time It Did Is When He Brought It Up. I Actually Applaud Them All. For Not Making It An Issue. And Except For Smoking Gun. A Web Site That’s Very Nature Is To Cause Controversy. The Fact Mister Ramsey Is Black Is Only An Issue With All Of You, And Most Of America. So Stop Trying To Blame The Media. For Once They Got It Right. So Is The Problem Truly The Media Or The Mindset Of Americans In General???
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Also. I’m Glad He Was The Black Person Who Noticed Her. Because If The Person That Noticed Her Was One Of Many Of You. I Truly Would Hate To Think What Might Have Happened. Because Judging By Your Comments You Would Have Left That “Pretty Little White Girl” (As Mister Ramsey Referred To Her) There To Remain Captive… It All Came Down To What Was The Right Thing To Do. And That’s What He Did… (Oh And I’m Mixed European And African American) (And I Believe Being Mixed Gives Me A Perspective Many Of You Lack). Also Racism Is Not A Global Problem. It Is A Problem That Is Primarily American.
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“DaMutt,
Also Racism Is Not A Global Problem. It Is A Problem That Is Primarily American”
Linda says,
From a non-American, mixed-race person who has travelled and lived in different countries around the world, I have to say: “you must be smoking some real good s’it if you truly believe that!”
America may have its own nasty version of insidious, ingrained racism against black Americans
but lets not get crazy and acquit anyone else outside of America — in some countries, racism may not be geared towards black people but EVERY country has their favorite ethnic/racial group that they love to hate.
and in some countries, especially in Europe, racism wears a different face — it’s called “Nationalism” — which is alive and well today.
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h-m-m-h
Racism is an American problem but it certainly is not uniquely American. I have seen obvious indications of it in every single country & region I have ever been to on 5 continents.
A glaring example is race-based nationality laws. In this regard, the USA is less racist than many countries.
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What do you mean with race-based nationality laws?
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Absolutly, Linda and Jefe, racism in Brazil is huge
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[…] Read the original: Charles Ramsey | Abagond […]
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I’m Glad My Comment Got Some Of The Replies It Did. And I See People Didn’t Pick Up On The Word Primarily. I’m An Army Brat That Was Raised Partially In Europe. My Mother Was Born And Raised German And Came To The States When She Was 23. I Have A Brother That Was Born And Raised And Still Lives In Germany. Many Of You Making Comments Have Never Even Been To Other Counties. And Those Of You That Have… Have “Visited” Not Been Immersed In That Countries Culture… Also “Nationalism” As One Of You Put It. Is Not Racism. It A Bias Or General Dislike/Hatred Of Foreigner. In All My Years That I Was Living In Germany I Encountered Racism From Germans Maybe Once. Most Countries That Dislike Us (Americans As A Whole) Do Not Base It On Race. It’s Based On The Fact That We As Americans Come Off As Arrogant And Cocky… (But That’s A Topic For Another Post). Nationalism Is Not Racism.
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It Still Amazes Me How People Think Racism Is Some Kind Of Global Phenomenon. When “Discrimination” In Other Countries Tends To Be Based On Class, Religion, Or Other Factors NOT Race…. “Knowledge Is Power”.
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My brotha Roland Martin, weighs in on this subject of should Charles Ramsey, should be called a hero, despite of his past.
You guys subscribe to Roland Martin’s channel. He talks about issues that effect the black community.
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@ ALL
Beware of any posters (especially those who benefit from ‘white privilege’) who try to DECEIVE the GLOBAL Non-White Victims of Racism/White Supremacy by pretending that racism is not happening outside America
Which is absolutely ABSURD.
If you doubt that racism/white supremacy exists all over the planet just ask the non-white people in Iraq and Syria and Libya and Afghanistan and Pakistan and Palestine if racism/white supremacy is REAL
These same posters (who BENEFIT from white privileges) KNOW (and expect) that no matter where they go, from America to Canada to New Zealand to Australia to Japan to Iraq to Libya to Vietnam to Thailand to South Africa to the U.K. to France to Russia etc, etc
That THEY and all white people are treated better than non-white people AND
they KNOW that non-white people are being oppressed and victimized and robbed and raped and murdered by other white people by the global system of racism/white supremacy
The FACT that they would (try to) confuse the issue and deceive the Victims who are trying to FIND clarity and SOLUTIONS to the biggest problem on the planet — Racism/White Supremacy —
who have already been GREATLY traumatized beyond human endurance
Is all the EVIDENCE we need that people who benefit from Racism/White Supremacy have NO REMORSE and NO INTENTION of stopping
and ANYONE who tries to DECEIVE non-white people about this system is practicing racism by that very act
because Racism/White Supremacy is largely a MIND GAME
where you must CONVINCE your Victims that their GROSS MISTREATMENT is a figment of their imaginations
Follow the LOGIC
NOT the LIARS
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I agree Trojan Pam, People from all over the globe, that have white skin can come to America and benefit from white privilege and white supremacy.
Black and brown people from all over the globe, come to America and are treated the very same as black and brown people, that were born in America.
Discriminated against, because the color of their skin, doesn’t matter where they were born or what accent they have.
I pay these people you speak of, no mind.
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@ sondis
I agree and I would add that this happens no matter where you go in most of the world — not just America
white people are almost always treated better than non-white people all over the world due to the GLOBAL system of Racism/White Supremacy
because so many non-white formerly SOVEREIGN nations have been undermined, colonized or militarily and economically conquered (like Japan)
and the game plan today is to
RE-COLONIZE the non-white nations that won their freedom decades ago and turn the clock back to the good ole days of European colonization
There’s a book, “Confessions of an Economic Hitman” by Robert Perkins that fully explains how so-called “Third World” nations were given huge loans by white and european banks to build infrastructures
BUT instead of the money going to help educate the people and build housing and infrastructures and manufacturing
that loan money was funneled BACK to white and european firms (like Bechtel and Main) that never did or finished the work of building those infrastructures
because they NEVER had any intentions of allowing OR helping those Third World nations become independent and “equal”
These poor, non-white nations are on the hook for huge loans they cannot pay back (by design)
and are forced to give up their natural resources and UN votes to american and european “interests” (aka white people)
and the same “interests” would overturn those non-white governments and assassinate their leaders who DARED resist the oppression of their people
If that is NOT GLOBAL Racism/White Supremacy I don’t know what the heck you would call it.
Very interesting book, I would highly recommend it
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Trojan Pam:
I’ll search my online resources to get this book you speak off…thanks for the suggestion. ^_^
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@ sondis
(I hope this is permitted and if it is not I’ll understand if Abagond deletes my post)
If you Google
Counter-Racism Boot Camp
There’s a course on racism/white supremacy for beginners and a refresher for those who are familiar with it
hopefully, it will be constructive for those who take part in it
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Thanks Trojan Pam, I’ll take a look at it.
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Regarding Charles Ramsey, having a job and taking pride in having a pay check to show that he is, gainfully employed.
There is a bit of news, i i wish to share with my black and brown, brothas and sistas.
http://www.naacpldf.org/news/clothing-chain-wet-seal-settles-lawsuit-charging-it-firing-african-american-employees
I became aware of this last year as i saw a clip of the situation on my ipad 2 via CNN app.
African-American woman was fired, when a regional manager came to the store and saw that she was black.
This outcome is very good news for those black managers and employees that were terrorized by the wet seal stores.
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We need more of this type of outcome for every single company in America, because they all do this sort of thing, against Black people.
They just haven’t been caught yet!
When you read the list of things that the company will do, going forward on how they treat,hire and promote, African Americans, it makes you wish, that every company should do this, regardless of being sued!
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@Sondis; I remember this case. It was so crazy but I believe that a company like Wet Seal would pull a stunt like this. If my memory serves me right I believe they said she wasn’t good image for their company. Well good if justice was served because that was truly a racist action against that sister. Wet Seal needs to be made to pay for their wrong doing.
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Well, for what it’s worth, John Derbyshire, canned from National Review for authoring “The Talk: Nonblack Version” and speaker at the recent American Renaissance conference, rightly recognizes Charles Ramsey’s quick action as heroic. (He also expresses solidarity as a former dishwasher.)
takimag.com/radioderb/the_natural_talent_of_chuck_ramsey_and_other_bits_john_derbyshire
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mary burrell:
You’re correct, they did mention that she was not good for their, “image”.
This is probably the biggest settlement for African-Americans in the workplace in a long time.
We need to see more of this but these white people are very crafty with their discrimination, practices.
They are experts at covering it up, which isn’t surprising, being white people have been, discriminating against black people in the workplace, ever since we were allowed to work, along side them.
I feel like going to a wet seal store, apply for a job, just to see if they are on point with their new, “hiring practices of minorities”.
OK, I’ll be honest with you, Mary Burrell. I would like to rub it in a little as well. ^_^
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“Da.Mutt,
It Still Amazes Me How People Think Racism Is Some Kind Of Global Phenomenon. When “Discrimination” In Other Countries Tends To Be Based On Class, Religion, Or Other Factors NOT Race…. “Knowledge Is Power”.
Linda says,
and reading is fundamental…. I stated that “racism wears a different face in Europe and it’s called Nationalism” — I didn’t say it was the same exact thing.
Yes, for sure, in Europe and other countries (like my own), class and religion are more important than race, and that people care more about Nationality than race. and I do believe Americans are more racist than Europeans and that in Europe, black people are seen and treated as individuals and not as “group spokesperson”
but Europeans are not colour-blind; and many hold biases against dark-skinned people, even against southern Europeans….some have their own historical ‘n’ggers’ — like the Gypsies and are more accepting of black people.
but a lot of Europeans operate off of stereotypes… such as some hotels in Germany were called out because they would give black females tourists or students a hard-time because the desk clerks thought they were “prostitutes”… those stereotypes didn’t come out of thin air.
Hatred based on Nationality also masks hatred based on skin colour /race, what do you think the white British mean when they say “Britian for British people”…. they don’t consider black/brown Caribbeans or Africans to be British…that’s what part of the struggle is about in Europe, we are thought of as perpetual foreigners who won’t go home.
and by trying to downplay Europe’s colour or race-based prejudices, you are giving countries like Spain, Italy, or Russia a pass they don’t deserve — ask the African immigrants living there.
anyone who has watched European football, has seen how the fans treat the non-white players because no matter how you slice it, the “dark” player is not “one of them” — Samuel Eto learned that while playing for Barcelona.
and just to clear up any assumptions on your part, some people on this board are European and/or currently live in Europe or other countries… so you aren’t dropping any “new” knowledge on any of us…if anything, you’re just bringing back a topic that’s already been discussed.
and being an Army brat, I’m sure you are aware that the US soldiers and their families based in Germany and other countries are Notorious for NOT learning the host countries language and culture, especially since everything they want, is right on the base.
Anyway, don’t want to derail this topic any further
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Not Guilty. I’m giving White folks a pass on this one.
The reason he was treated as a buffoon is quite obvious. A disheveled man with half his teeth missing will be ridiculed regardless of what heroic deed was performed. Most people I saw making fun of him were Black. That’s, of course, my personal experience and I’ve certainly made no national poll to see which race made more fun of him, but I saw a lot of Negroes with a lot of jokes. WORLD STAR!
Second, the demonization of Mr. Ramsey started with his wife and of course, the American media eats stuff like that up for dinner. It doesn’t matter if you are Black, White or otherwise. Sensationalism is the bread and butter of today’s AMERICAN media. If you are a New Yorker, just pick up the Daily News and see what a rag it’s become.
Furthermore, anyone can see Mr. Ramsey loves to ham it up for the camera. Part of the blame of his treatment is due to his own buffoonish antics.
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what if Charles Ramsey had gone to work that day.
what if he had gone to Mac Donald’s and hour later or an hour earlier
what if he went to run some errands
what if he felt he should mind his own business
THEN WHAT
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I agree that was fucked up
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[…] Charles Ramsey […]
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[…] the black male, Charles Ramsey, who helped free three women (and a girl) who had been missing for ten years, locked away in his […]
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