Don Lemon… Domestic Terrorism and Revisionist History

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A few weeks ago, CNN Host Don Lemmon inflamed the nation when he said, “The biggest threat in this country is White men.”  Well, he didn’t inflame the nation, mainly just Conservative White men, including President Trump.

Side note, writing President Trump still shocks me. It’s like early in the New Year when you haven’t gotten used to writing January yet. 

Anyway. 

The same people Don Lemmon inflamed with his comment are literally the same people who often say don’t talk about race, don’t talk about slavery, so no surprise there. The comment was NOT a comment against White men, it was against the White men who have been the chief architects for most of the recent domestic terror in this nation. While so many people dwelled on his comment, I think it’s important to note that White men have largely been responsible for the gross atrocities in our nation… specifically the genocide and damn near decimation of Native Americans, and the Transatlantic Slave Trade. As much as some people might not want to hear it or dispute it… that’s history. 

The surprise for me is the repeated attempts to push revisionist history and narratives that are completely false. Notions such as “the Civil War was over states rights,” or that slavery does not have deep roots in the minds of extremists. Extremists that have used their boisterous ways and power to influence others. In fact, not only have they minimized the wrongs of this nation, in many cases, they’ve attempted to suggest that said wrongs never occurred.

The storyline is simple… White Conservative/Republican men refuse to acknowledge that the lion share of mass shootings and serial killings in this country are carried out by hate groups and civil militias comprised of White men, or as some media outlets truthfully refer to them, White Supremacists. (Fact.) 

Revisionist history… really bad revisionist history… so bad, it reminds me of an episode on Martin in which Martin and Gina tell very different stories of how they first met. Each told their version of the story with extreme bias. The real truth of how they first met had to be told by a neutral party to avoid bias and blatant lies. It’s a very funny episode because it’s TV… not real life minimized to talking points by the extreme right regarding issues of humanity in this nation. 

It’s Deeper Than “I like Mike!”

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Last week, LeBron James opened his I Promise School in his hometown Akron, Ohio. The $8 million public school focuses on at-risk youth and their families. The kids get free uniforms, free bicycles and helmets, free breakfast, lunch, AND snacks… their families get food pantries, their parents get GED and job placement services, and if or when the kids graduate, they get to attend the University of Akron for free. That’s a dream come true for 240 kids and their families, and a hell of a good deed for a man who could easily be worried about his transition to LA or his multiple business ventures. Instead, he decided to give back in the most significant way possible.

Regardless of your political views, where you’re from or where you work, it’s hard not to feel good about such a story that will have a positive impact on hundreds of kids and their families from day 1. Right?

Wrong… Trump couldn’t help himself. LeBron did an exclusive interview with CNN’s Don Lemon about the school shortly after it opened. In the interview LeBron was candid about how he believed Trump has successfully used sports to divide us. In typical Trump fashion, he attacked LeBron and Don Lemon on twitter.

And if that wasn’t petty enough, he added “I like Mike!”, which on the surface just looks like a jab in the on-going and never-ending debate of who’s better, MJ or LeBron.

But when you dig a little deeper and read between the lines, you should recognize the legitimate criticism Jordan has received over the years for his apolitical positions and lack of support and charity for communities of color. Considering many of the kids in these communities have struggled, fought, and in some cases died wearing his Air Jordan sneakers, you quickly realize Donald Trump liking Mike over LeBron has nothing to do with their game on the court. One could easily insinuate that he prefers the rich, quiet, passive Black athlete who’s happy with his money and status, like Jordan, instead of the rich, vocal, and extremely active Black athlete who is intent on pushing the conversation and having an impact on his community, like LeBron.

You got all that from “I like Mike!”? Yes, we did. But you be the judge.

Don Lemon being the dumbest man on TV and LeBron not being smart are just the latest dog whistle tweets and remarks in a long history of Trump attacking the intellect of Black people. More and more Republicans are starting to push back on Trump and his rhetoric… they push back on Russia and his odd obsession with Putin, they push back on his trade policies… but never on race, never when he takes an uncalled for shot at a person of color.

Will any prominent Republican’s denounce his tweets on LeBron? Probably not. In a country where minorities will soon be the majority, Republican’s might want to think about to trying to appeal to all American’s. Letting sexist, racist, xenophobic comments and remarks go unchecked, even if it is from the leader of the free world, will catch up to their party sooner than later.