And while I'm being all political...

[layla]

This guy makes some damn good points about white privilege. Regardless of how I feel about the McCain-Palin and Obama-Biden tickets, and how the media's been treating Sarah Palin (and about Tim Wise as well *cough*) ... if you flip it around and postulate a black candidate with Palin's particular set of qualifications and disadvantages (unwed teenage daughter, shaky collegiate history, gun-toting future son-in-law, strongly religious and belongs to a politically-charged church), and consider how such a candidate would be viewed by the American mainstream -- makes kind of a contrast, doesn't it?

Comments

[parisntripfan.livejournal.com]

The double standard regarding the pregnancy of Palin's daughter drives me right up a wall. I do agree that it should be a private matter, but if one of Obama's daughters was 17 and pregnant it would not seen many on the right as "a private matter" but as more proof of Obama (and maybe by extention any black person's) fitness to lead this country.

Colbert King - one of the Deputy Editors for the Washington Post wrote soon after announcement concern Palin's daughter about some of the responses he had received after a column concerning the effects that teen pregnancy can and do have on a large city and that the community needs to do it's part to keep teenagers from becoming parents before they are ready.

He posted some of the replies he got from that column - and while there were likely some that were supportive of the young women who find themselves suddenly "knocked up" - others were anything but.

http://tinyurl.com/5pp9vv

ETA: Just to be clear - I am not suggesting that Palin's daughter is "fair game" or that she should be subjected to the sort of comments sent to King in response to his column. More that girls King was talking about were given the same sort of support and understanding that people are willing to give to the young Miss Palin...

[ndgmtlcd.livejournal.com]

I hadn't thought of that contrast at all. Yet, every week I have proof of that deep racism and the monster sized double standard. I read Jerry Pournelle's blog every week and thus I see traces of these things without really grasping their size, most of the time.

[laylalawlor.livejournal.com]

Oh, no no, I could see the point you were making and I totally agree! I wish that it were always left as a private decision between a woman, her partner and her family. I hope they do leave Palin's daughter alone. But the double standard is horrible, and thank you very much for the link; I haven't clicked on it (I'm sort of afraid to) but I can imagine the sort of things that people would have to say.

[laylalawlor.livejournal.com]

A few of those points had occurred to me (particularly with the unwed daughter) but seeing it all laid out like that makes me shudder. And it's not that I think Palin deserves media scrutiny on any of these points, necessarily -- but the double standard is huge and scary.

[vogelein.livejournal.com]

Just out of curiosity, how has the media been treating Tim Wise? I thought the essay was excellent, so I assume you mean they're fawning all over him as the white guy who can finally speak clearly about racism, regardless of how many people of color have done so with equal clarity.

[laylalawlor.livejournal.com]

Oops, no, my wording is unclear; I meant how *I* feel about Tim Wise, which is ... conflicted. Basically he's a white guy who makes a living off other people's oppression, as their self-appointed advocate. I'm very uncomfortable with that, and I think of his essays as, basically, a secondary source on racism and oppression, not a primary source. He makes some good points, though.