Your Black News: Ashley Todd: A Counter-Argument to “Post-Racialism”

Ashley Todd: A Counter-Argument to “Post-Racialism”

By: Tolu Olorunda

Staff Writer - YourBlackWorld.com

Perhaps one of the greatest ironies of the 2008 Presidential race is the constant assertion of the notion of a “post-racial” period, while juxtaposed with an endless torrent of refuting occurrences. Last week, Ashley Todd, a Pittsburgh McCain worker, reported a compelling story of being “robbed at an ATM at the corner of Liberty Avenue and Pearl Street in the Bloomfield area around 9 p.m. Wednesday after leaving a Republican phone bank.” To avoid misleading the local police station, Todd was quick to comment that her purported attacker was a “dark-skinned African-American man about 6'4",” who “stole $60 from her and became enraged after seeing a bumper sticker supporting Republican Presidential Candidate John McCain on her car.”

The bizarre story took an unusual twist when Ashley Todd told Pittsburgh police that her “dark-skinned” bandit made sure to carve “a ‘B’ in her cheek,” when he noticed the McCain sticker on her car. From the onset, this mystery was suspicious at best. Nevertheless, John McCain and Sarah Palin swiftly conducted personal phone calls with the victim: Ashley Todd. Even Sen. Obama’s camp would not risk being charged with condoning this reported act of bestiality. In a released statement, the campaign stated: “Our thoughts and prayers are with the young woman for her to make a speedy recovery, and we hope that the person who perpetrated this crime is swiftly apprehended and brought to justice.” Damn. Tawana Brawley must be feeling pretty disgusted at this point.

With the president of College Republicans in Pittsburgh, Patrick Graham, comparing the incident to a “hate crime,” mainstream media exploded with outrage. FOX News, the conservative gangsters, milked the cow for what it was worth. Right-Wing radio shows questioned why the “left-wing” news networks didn’t devote more time of coverage to this gruesome tragedy. Before long, questions concerning the verity of Todd’s statement began creeping out of the woodworks. By the third day, the truth had resurrected itself. It turns out, not surprisingly to most Blacks however, that Ashley Todd had LIED about the whole ordeal. Todd was neither at the ATM – where the fantasy-driven mugging took place – nor was the backwardly-carved “B” a doing of anyone, other than her very hands. One wonders how skilled or devious the mind of a college student has to be, to have concocted such a well-detailed account of robbery and assault.

Ms. Todd borrowing a page from Susan Smith and Charles Stuart’s playbook is all but a shocker to African-Americans who see the value in embracing history. The myth of the “Black beast” is a resounding one in society these days. John Moody, FOX News’s V.P. went as far as suggesting that, “If Ms. Todd's allegations are proven accurate, some voters may revisit their support for Senator [Barack] Obama, not because they are racists ... but because they suddenly feel they do not know enough about the Democratic nominee.”

Moody’s reminder that society still deems the actions of a singular Black man as representative of the whole culture, or better yet, all Black men, is impressively refreshing, in an age replete with cries of “post-racialism.” Worse than Moody’s assessment, is the lingering echo of Jim-Crowism which has found a useful servant in John McCain and Sarah Palin. Ashley Todd’s story was deemed credible from the start – as the widespread falsehood that Black Men have a preoccupation with White Women remains a firm belief in this very day and age. Sen. McCain promptly applied this theory in the “lipstick on a pig” charge against his Democratic opponent, a few weeks ago. Banking on the possibility of White Women blindly accepting the untruth that Barack Obama had “assaulted” Gov. Palin with the political cliché, John McCain was able to build a steady case against the “disrespectful” Obama. The disproportionately white media beltway has been just as culpable in proliferating the slime and slander of bigotry, as the McCain camp’s slime-filled talking-points. It has helped ensure that, most of the time, the only Black men featured on TV screens are jail-bound, dead or misogynists. Slain Hip-Hop Icon, Tupac, understood this reality tremendously. In a song titled, “Blasphemy,” Tupac noted how “the media be crucifying brothers severely.” The severity of mass-media’s assault on Black male integrity is what granted Ms. Todd ample confidence in misleading the country, and fearing no backlash.

Following news that Ashley Todd had fabricated the story and told a bold-face lie, the corporate-owned media hurried to provide some alibi in protection their integrity, and that of Ms. Todd. Insistently calling Todd’s law-bound statements a “hoax,” the mainstream press furthermore played the role of P.R. manager for Ashley, by propagating the myth that Ms. Todd has a history of “mental problems” – hence, unworthy of scrutiny, prosecution and incarceration. Radio host and activist, Mark Thompson, put it best: “Her mental problem is Racism.” In the wake of such criminal double standard, certain questions of concern must be raised to protect the sanctity of our democratic values: If Ms. Todd were a Black Woman, would the same media – with a history of torturing the integrity of Black Women – defend the lying, self-proclaimed victim – at will? Or, if Ms. Todd were a Black Woman, with a white attacker, would the same media outlets been as swiftly responsive in taking up her cause? History suggests otherwise; the present deepens the doubt; and the future is, at best, bleak.

Originally Appeared On Black Commentator

Your Black World: Sister, Can You Spare Some Class: Black Women in the Media

Sister, Can You Spare Some Class: Black Women in the Media
By: Tolu Olorunda
Staff Writer - YourBlackWorld.com

Who can argue with prophetic leader and political prisoner, Mumia Abu Jamal’s assessment that “Black women are the most disfavored of all the nation’s women?” Only a fool would. Black Women, historically, have had to endure the horror of living in a world that screams hatred from its four corners. Like piercing swords drilling a hole into one’s soul, many Black Women are subjected daily to inhumane attacks from the left, right, front, and back angles of society. White Men, whose historical role as the original Slave master still persists, hold steadfast control of the wheels of society and therefore decide in which direction wealth, prestige and honor are steered.

With a 2004 Government report documenting $30,134 as the median income for Black households, one is certain which course the national financial vehicle has traveled. Black men, once devoted protectors of Black Women, now function as “Slave-master surrogates,” in interaction with their sisters. Black Women also have a hard time with confronting the reality that “White feminists,” who recruited them in the 70s for the epic “Gender War,” never abhorred any desire to join hands in the fight for liberation from the shackles of White Male Supremacy. In addition to coming to grips with the rampant racism exhibited in many White feminist organizations, financially-disempowered Black Women also face the firey scorn of well-to-do Black Women who hypocritically blame them for the criminal conditions in whinh they exist. With such precedent, I ask again, who can argue with prophetic leader and political prisoner, Mumia Abu Jamal’s assessment that “Black women are the most disfavored of all the nation’s women?”

The controversies of Tawana Brawley and Anita Hill are explicit examples of the White Supremacist media’s hatred of Black Women. To hide this malevolence, one or two Black news anchors are employed (disproportionately meteorologists), but underneath, the evidence is as overt as Fox News’ bias. In the world of Mass Media, the role of Black Women has traditionally been dual-natured: “The stereotypical, angry black bitch” or “the regurgitating, self-hating, conservative mouth piece” – a la Amy Holmes & Tara Setmayer. Any other attribute is vetoed or outlawed. Fox News reporter, Cal Thomas, bore witness – though unknowingly – to this reality earlier this year. Thomas was quick to point out that Black Women of sophistication are a rare commodity on Television screens because of the White male supremacy culture that revels in the demonization and objectification of Black Women. Cal Thomas, a man of low intelligence, made a blunder, however, in confusing passion for anger:

“Look at the image of African American Women who are on television. Politically, you have Maxine Waters of California, liberal Democrat. She’s always angry every time she gets on television. Cynthia McKinney, the former Congresswoman from Georgia, was another angry black woman. And who are the black women you see on the local news at night in cities all over the country. They’re usually angry about something. They’ve had a son who has been shot in a drive-by shooting. They are angry at Bush. So you don’t really have a profile of non-angry black women.

With corporate America’s grip on Commercial Hip-Hop Culture tightening by the hour, the commodification of Black female bodies takes on a whole new context. It is no coincidence that Queen Latifah, who once embodied the symbolism of a Black goddess, is today, nothing but a sad spectacle to behold. The once-upon-a-time pro-Black militant-minded and feminist Queen Latifah has become a washed up Hollywood product, with an appetite for destruction. If Viacom and other big-name corporations within the Hip-Hop beltway were to exist unimpeded, Trina, Lil’ Kim and Remy Ma would represent the holy trinity of female artistry in Hip-Hop. But such inference would be problematic because, for every Trina, there once was a Nefertiti; for every Lil’ Kim, there once was a Moni Love; and for every Remy Ma, there once was a Lauryn Hill. Unfortunately, a self-respecting, knowledgeable and highly-educated female artist like Lauryn Hill is deemed radioactive in an industry built around the exploitation of diffident young Black Women.

Many younger Blacks are familiar with “Tip Drill,” and the horror of Hip-Hop music videos. In this particular video, the rapper Nelly is featured swiping a credit card down the gluteus maximus of a Video Vixen. As expected, this despicable act – deemed entertainment – was beyond the pale for certain Black female activists who perceived it as the last straw in their accommodation of misogyny in Hip-Hop. In 2004, Nelly was scheduled to visit the Black female College, Spelman, for a bone marrow drive. Unbeknownst to Nelly, a few Spelman students didn’t quite consider his music to be that “entertaining,” and had drafted a plan to see how much of a man he truly was. “The Spelman sisters,” as they’ve come to be known, challenged Nelly to a forum to address the issue of Black female Exploitation in Hip-Hop videos – particularly with regard to his video, “Tip Drill.” As one might imagine, Nelly swiftly turned down the offer, appearing to be more concerned with his image than the dire issue of bone-marrow transplants. The way the Spelman sisters figured, a bone-marrow drive is equally as essential as a healthy soul. The Spelman sisters sought to question the conscience and motive of a man who would openly denigrate the legacy of Black Women, but claim concern to the sector of their organism that guarantees blood circulation – hence, life.

The morally decrepit performance of artists like Nelly has granted ample leverage to White-controlled media channels such as Vh1 to promote shows that defile the integrity of Black Women. Vh1, a subsidiary of Viacom, has done more damage to the self-worth and decency of Black Women than any other channel in recent history. Vh1 has skillfully structured its programming in such a way that an untrained eye watching it might be misled into believing that Black Women are naturally promiscuous and adulterous. Some might even fall victim to the lie that the availability of young Black Women on Vh1 reality shows is ample proof of culpability or willingness, but such inference would suggest that if those same Black Women were paid the exact share of incentives to appear on a morally upright and spiritually nurturing show, they would decline instantaneously. By this measure, it’s presumably evident that White male executives of big media are easily satisfied with a Black female constituency whose preoccupation with self-deprecation runs afoul of the legacies of Fannie Lou Hamer, Harriet Tubman, Barbara Jordan, Rosa Parks, and Callie House.

It is no surprise that the same media which revels in the destruction of Black female identity seeks to fulfill the same with today’s most important Black female: Michelle Obama. More disturbing is the reality that Michelle, like prominent Black public figures before her, lacks the confidence – there’s certainly the willingness – to, quite simply, be herself and refuse the Obama camp’s incessant attempts at recreating her into a “submissive, all-American first lady.” One thing is for certain, however: Black folks of consciousness have their work cut out for them. For Change is not an empty rhetorical stunt, but rather a fortified, systematic dismantling of a historical structure – especially one which has oppressed, repressed, depressed and suppressed the hopes of a mighty race.

Reposted From Black Commentator