By Dana Afana
Novi, MI
Racism is an awful thing to look at. It’s a pandemic that will never be cured. Everyone is racist in their own way. Not one person can say they never are or will be discriminatory. Often times, people do not like to show their racism to prove they are wonderful, but deep down there’s a thought in their mind or heart that will prove they are prejudiced against certain things.
Shirley Sherrod, an African American employee of the United States Department of Agriculture was recently forced by the White House to resign due to racial dispute with a white farmer, Roger Spooner, that occurred in 1986. Excerpts from an NAACP conference were posted on July 19, 2010 by a conservative blogger named Andrew Breitbart. It was said that the farmer was in need of help and Sherrod did not have the willpower to fully help him because as she stated that “so many black people lost their farm lands,” she felt that this white farmer should realize how blacks suffered years back by not offering the “full force of what [she] could do.” However, she then changed her stance from the issue claiming it was not about race, but rather on the matter of how fortunate the farmer is.
Had she discriminated against Roger Spooner he would not have received any help in finding a lawyer and the two would not have had a good friendship for a few years. Spooner stated that if it weren’t for Sherrod’s help, his family would not be where they are today. He was also unsure of what brought up this racist controversy; he believes that the media is attempting to “stir up some trouble,” and some people could agree with him. Sherrod stated that she felt she was being harassed in a way when government authorities demanded her resignation. The Obama Administration offered Sherrod another job with the Department of Agriculture but she is unsure if she will accept the offer.
Novi, MI
Racism is an awful thing to look at. It’s a pandemic that will never be cured. Everyone is racist in their own way. Not one person can say they never are or will be discriminatory. Often times, people do not like to show their racism to prove they are wonderful, but deep down there’s a thought in their mind or heart that will prove they are prejudiced against certain things.
Shirley Sherrod, an African American employee of the United States Department of Agriculture was recently forced by the White House to resign due to racial dispute with a white farmer, Roger Spooner, that occurred in 1986. Excerpts from an NAACP conference were posted on July 19, 2010 by a conservative blogger named Andrew Breitbart. It was said that the farmer was in need of help and Sherrod did not have the willpower to fully help him because as she stated that “so many black people lost their farm lands,” she felt that this white farmer should realize how blacks suffered years back by not offering the “full force of what [she] could do.” However, she then changed her stance from the issue claiming it was not about race, but rather on the matter of how fortunate the farmer is.
Had she discriminated against Roger Spooner he would not have received any help in finding a lawyer and the two would not have had a good friendship for a few years. Spooner stated that if it weren’t for Sherrod’s help, his family would not be where they are today. He was also unsure of what brought up this racist controversy; he believes that the media is attempting to “stir up some trouble,” and some people could agree with him. Sherrod stated that she felt she was being harassed in a way when government authorities demanded her resignation. The Obama Administration offered Sherrod another job with the Department of Agriculture but she is unsure if she will accept the offer.
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