Opinion

By Ryan Kosyla
Columnist

During Obama’s speech to Congress about health care, Representative Joe Wilson exclaimed “You lie!” after Obama said health care would not apply to those who are in our country illegally. This is old news.

But in the latest turn of events, former President Jimmy Carter, when asked about Wilson’s remark in a town hall meeting in Atlanta, responded, “I think it’s based on racism.”
But Carter didn’t stop there. He pulled the – gasp – race card. “There is an inherent feeling among many in this country that an African-American should not be president.” For arguments sake, I’m going to ignore Carter’s, shall we say, shortcomings, as president.
But honestly, are we really going back to this again? It’s like we enjoy beating a dead horse. It’s almost as if we’re expecting it. We’re once again jumping on this carnival ride whose only end puts us right back where we started.

Follow up:

Many of Obama’s supporters are claiming his opponents (including many in the American public) are trying to shoot down any type of Obama supported health care plan simply because he is black. Forget opinions. Forget values. Forget logic. Apparently, it’s all about race.
When is this going to stop?

From a historical perspective, it won’t. Civil rights “activists” like Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson have been doing the same thing since the 1970s – when the argument isn’t going your way, claim racism. Are you against illegal immigration? Then you must be racist. Are you against affirmative action? Then you must be racist. Are you against Obama supported health care? Then you must be racist. Instead of trying to ease racial tensions, these men make a living off inflaming public sentiment.

To be fair, I do not deny race is never a factor. It would be silly to say that. I understand the cruelty of slavery was wrong. I know African Americans were treated as second class citizens for much of our history. I realize the plight of inner-city blacks to overcome economic barriers keeping them from success.

But if we want to truly be fair, we must see everyone as equals. We are, aren’t we? Yet, how can we do that if every motivation, opinion, or attitude is seen as racist? How can be value some by devaluing others?

The simple answer is we can’t. Often in the media this sort of backlash is called “reverse racism.” I reject that. There is no such thing as reverse racism. The simple truth is that only racism exists - whether it is white on black, black on white, or whatever other combination you can think of. That is racism, pure and simple.
David Borelli, a black conservative at a major protest rally in Washington, D.C. last Saturday addressed this. “I don’t see race as an issue. It’s all about the policies that are coming out of the current administration,” he said. “I just see this as the race card being used once again to distract the American people from the core issues.”
The Obama administration distanced itself from any sort of these ideas. “The president does not believe that that criticism comes based on the color of his skin,” White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said. Smart move.

Hank Johnson, a black representative from Georgia, even went as far as to claim that if outbursts, such as that by Wilson, are not rebuked, there will be people putting on “white hoods and white uniforms again and riding through the countryside.” Dumb move.

I am not saying race should not be discussed. In fact, I encourage it. It is an important factor in analyzing history, sociology and even anthropology. But there is a difference between talking about race and making blatantly accusatory statements that put us back on the merry-go-round to nowhere.

We’ve come a long way since slavery in the United States was abolished, and further still since the discrimination that led to the Civil Rights Movement of the 20th century. Are there things that need to be accomplished? Absolutely. Have we gotten better? No doubt.
But we need to move forward, not back, on these issues. It will not be those who inflame racial tensions under the banner of modern civil rights who will change our country for the better, although they will certainly take credit for it. It will be you, me, and all other common Americans – the silent majority – who will ultimately decide the direction of race relations in our country.

Doubt those with power. But never doubt your own.