Marion Barry Rant about Tom Sherwood

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

jsteele wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Marion Barry is a loony old racist embarrassment to Washington DC. They booted Sterling from the NBA. It's high time that the Council censured and removed Barry from office. Lord knows all of Barry's criminal conduct, tax fraud, corrupt conduct and repeated racist rants.

There is a lot more to Barry than this caricature. For better or worse, his history and DC's history are intricately linked. While Barry is certainly worthy of criticism, there is a lot in his life deserving of praise. I think it is important to get beyond a single dimension in how he is viewed.

Oh, please educate us heathen non-progressives on the ways Marion Barry should be praised!

Before we begin class let me first to say that no one is suggesting that Marion Barry is a saint and somehow above reproach, nor is anyone saying that many of his comments and actions are somehow beyond criticism. However, for those who are too young to remember or too indifferent to care, Marion Barry wasn't always a controversial contemptible crackhead...

Your history lesson for today class is about SNCC. The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) was a major force in the civil rights movement in the 1960s. From engaging in sit-ins at discriminatory establishments and organizing voter registration drives all over the South to the 1961 Freedom Rides which were designed to test a 1960 Supreme Court ruling that declared segregation in interstate travel facilities unconstitutional, SNCC had many members - students mind you - who put their lives on the line in the interest of bringing attention to racism and peacefully demonstrating against inequality. The organization also played a leading role in the 1963 March on Washington where Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his famous "I Have a Dream" speech.

In May 1960 Fisk University student Marion Barry was elected SNCC’s ?rst chairman.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

jsteele wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Marion Barry is a loony old racist embarrassment to Washington DC. They booted Sterling from the NBA. It's high time that the Council censured and removed Barry from office. Lord knows all of Barry's criminal conduct, tax fraud, corrupt conduct and repeated racist rants.

There is a lot more to Barry than this caricature. For better or worse, his history and DC's history are intricately linked. While Barry is certainly worthy of criticism, there is a lot in his life deserving of praise. I think it is important to get beyond a single dimension in how he is viewed.

Oh, please educate us heathen non-progressives on the ways Marion Barry should be praised!

Before we begin class let me first to say that no one is suggesting that Marion Barry is a saint and somehow above reproach, nor is anyone saying that many of his comments and actions are somehow beyond criticism. However, for those who are too young to remember or too indifferent to care, Marion Barry wasn't always a controversial contemptible crackhead...

Your history lesson for today class is about SNCC. The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) was a major force in the civil rights movement in the 1960s. From engaging in sit-ins at discriminatory establishments and organizing voter registration drives all over the South to the 1961 Freedom Rides which were designed to test a 1960 Supreme Court ruling that declared segregation in interstate travel facilities unconstitutional, SNCC had many members - students mind you - who put their lives on the line in the interest of bringing attention to racism and peacefully demonstrating against inequality. The organization also played a leading role in the 1963 March on Washington where Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his famous "I Have a Dream" speech.

In May 1960 Fisk University student Marion Barry was elected SNCC’s ?rst chairman.

Marion Barry is not stupid. I read that he has his masters degree in chemistry. But clearly Walter White was not the first chemist to go "breaking bad."

[Anonymous]

- and Donald Sterling once made donations to liberal democrats and was nominated by the NAACP for a civil rights award- so should we look the other way towards his racist comments the way you suggest we ignore Barry's bigotry?

24 years of racist bigotry? Decades of public corruption? Violations of DC hate speech laws within the last few years??

C'mon! How big of a hipocrit are you? Why are you trying so hard to defend someone who has damage our city as much as Barry has??

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

D.C. has laws against saying or writing anything racist.

What in the what now?

Why don't you look at PAGE 2 of this thread:

http://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/15/358336.page#4616841

It states DCs hate speech law that you are apparently unaware of.

Yet another Barry crime - just this week. And again, anyone have the balls to fight racism and bigotry in D.C. ??

I doubt it. Not when it comes to doing the right thing in D.C.

I've seen that page and I think that is a just poorly written webpage. There's no way that the use of racial slurs, by itself, is a hate crime. Probably what they meant to say was that committing a crime and using racial slurs is a hate crime.

Seriously, pp, find us someone who has been arrested, charged, and convicted for only using racial slurs and then I'll believe you. I think what you've found is a bad writer -- not all that surprising in our city government unfortunately.

[Anonymous]

Story in the Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-politics/barry-accuses-local-reporters-of-profiting-from-his-life-story/2014/05/02/b6828302-d20c-11e3-937f-d3026234b51c_story.html

[Anonymous]

jsteele wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

jsteele wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Marion Barry is a loony old racist embarrassment to Washington DC. They booted Sterling from the NBA. It's high time that the Council censured and removed Barry from office. Lord knows all of Barry's criminal conduct, tax fraud, corrupt conduct and repeated racist rants.

There is a lot more to Barry than this caricature. For better or worse, his history and DC's history are intricately linked. While Barry is certainly worthy of criticism, there is a lot in his life deserving of praise. I think it is important to get beyond a single dimension in how he is viewed.

What has Barry done that is deserving of praise? And far from a "single dimension" his sorry record of criminal and ethical misconduct stretches across decades. The infamous crack arrest was the tip of the iceberg, but then he did everything from bring a prostitute into a jail, get stopped by the police for drugs in his car, repeatedly fail to pay his federal taxes (even after having been given the benefit of a plea agreement to avoid more jail time), arrange city contracts for a girlfriend, get involved in altercations with girlfirends in DC and other cities in which the police got involved, racially slur Asians, Philippinos, whites, you name it. All the while, what has he done, other than mismanaging the city and bloating its bureaucracy while mayor, which required a federal board to seize control? What major legislation has he passed on the council? What has he really done to improve life in his ward? What did he do for the city, other than turn DC into the butt of jokes and grow a political culture of cronyism and corruption that sadly continues to this day?

I do agree with you that Barry's history and DC's history are inextricably linked -- just not at all in a good way.

Everything you cite occurred in the last 24 years of the life of a 78 year old man. Do you have any idea what happened during the first 54?

At least take the time to read his Wikipedia page.

Also, I assume you have no understanding of the absolute racist situation faced by DC's black residents prior to home rule. Those were the circumstances in which Barry rose to power. Certainly not an easy achievement.

Barry's Vista hotel arrest for crack may have been the most notable moment, but to suggest that before then he was a great public servant is misplaced. I remember what DC was like when he was mayor. Garbage was not picked up. There was a violent crime epidemic. The police department was often hopeless. Even public schools in Ward 3 were not great, and everything DC owned was poorly maintained. Tax refunds never arrived, or sometimes taxpayers got bills for the same amounts as their refunds. DC had I think 7 snowplows, not all of which were in working order. (After one blizzard when Barry was on the West Coast partying, he was asked what his plans were for clean-up and he said "spring.") It took months to get a building permit and most contractors refused to do work in DC. The DC government employed 35,000-40,000 workers (they could never get an accurate count), yet city services were of poor quality. DC finances were in shambles, And of course the people who were dis-served the most were the very poor.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

D.C. has laws against saying or writing anything racist.

What in the what now?

Why don't you look at PAGE 2 of this thread:

http://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/15/358336.page#4616841

It states DCs hate speech law that you are apparently unaware of.

Yet another Barry crime - just this week. And again, anyone have the balls to fight racism and bigotry in D.C. ??

I doubt it. Not when it comes to doing the right thing in D.C.

I've seen that page and I think that is a just poorly written webpage. There's no way that the use of racial slurs, by itself, is a hate crime. Probably what they meant to say was that committing a crime and using racial slurs is a hate crime.

Seriously, pp, find us someone who has been arrested, charged, and convicted for only using racial slurs and then I'll believe you. I think what you've found is a bad writer -- not all that surprising in our city government unfortunately.

A statute that criminalized racial slurs without some other illegal action most likely would be unconstitutional.

[Anonymous]

On a lighter note, there was the classic Jay Leno joke from the time:

'Marion Barry shouldn't be mayor of the District of Columbia. He should be mayor of a district in Colombia."

[Anonymous]

jsteele wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

jsteele wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Marion Barry is a loony old racist embarrassment to Washington DC. They booted Sterling from the NBA. It's high time that the Council censured and removed Barry from office. Lord knows all of Barry's criminal conduct, tax fraud, corrupt conduct and repeated racist rants.

There is a lot more to Barry than this caricature. For better or worse, his history and DC's history are intricately linked. While Barry is certainly worthy of criticism, there is a lot in his life deserving of praise. I think it is important to get beyond a single dimension in how he is viewed.

What has Barry done that is deserving of praise? And far from a "single dimension" his sorry record of criminal and ethical misconduct stretches across decades. The infamous crack arrest was the tip of the iceberg, but then he did everything from bring a prostitute into a jail, get stopped by the police for drugs in his car, repeatedly fail to pay his federal taxes (even after having been given the benefit of a plea agreement to avoid more jail time), arrange city contracts for a girlfriend, get involved in altercations with girlfirends in DC and other cities in which the police got involved, racially slur Asians, Philippinos, whites, you name it. All the while, what has he done, other than mismanaging the city and bloating its bureaucracy while mayor, which required a federal board to seize control? What major legislation has he passed on the council? What has he really done to improve life in his ward? What did he do for the city, other than turn DC into the butt of jokes and grow a political culture of cronyism and corruption that sadly continues to this day?

I do agree with you that Barry's history and DC's history are inextricably linked -- just not at all in a good way.

Everything you cite occurred in the last 24 years of the life of a 78 year old man. Do you have any idea what happened during the first 54?

At least take the time to read his Wikipedia page.

Also, I assume you have no understanding of the absolute racist situation faced by DC's black residents prior to home rule. Those were the circumstances in which Barry rose to power. Certainly not an easy achievement.

J Steele is so RATIONALE!!! I wish you much success J Steele.

[jsteele]

Anonymous wrote:- and Donald Sterling once made donations to liberal democrats and was nominated by the NAACP for a civil rights award- so should we look the other way towards his racist comments the way you suggest we ignore Barry's bigotry?

24 years of racist bigotry? Decades of public corruption? Violations of DC hate speech laws within the last few years??

C'mon! How big of a hipocrit are you? Why are you trying so hard to defend someone who has damage our city as much as Barry has??

Apparently we have a new tradition in which we compare anyone we don't like to Donald Sterling. I actually shouldn't say "we", because this is not my tradition. Rather, it seems limited to reading comprehension-challenged blowhards. Every poster who has acknowledged positive aspects to Barry had also agreed that there are negative aspects. I understand that you do not want your one-dimensional image of Barry to be complicated by facts that don't fit your preferred narrative. One dimension is probably enough of a challenge for you in any case. But, why are do you mischaracterizing the views of those of us capable of observing more than one dimension? Is this an accidental result of your inability to read simple English, or an intentional distortion that is simply your style of argument?

[Anonymous]

Yep, I was right about that. Here's a link to the DC code on bias-related crime: http://dccode.org/simple/sections/22-3701.html

What the code actually says is that a hate crime is a regular crime that the criminal committed because he/she was prejudiced against the group he/she believed that the victim belonged to. There's nothing in there about a person's speech alone being a hate crime. So basically, that person who wrote up the webpage for the MPD got it wrong. (shaking my head) So please stop using that other link to say you can be arrested only for racial slurs.

For the purposes of this chapter, the term:

(1) "Bias-related crime" means a designated act that demonstrates an accused's prejudice based on the actual or perceived race, color, religion, national origin, sex, age, marital status, personal appearance, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, family responsibility, homelessness, physical disability, matriculation, or political affiliation of a victim of the subject designated act.

(2) "Designated act" means a criminal act, including arson, assault, burglary, injury to property, kidnapping, manslaughter, murder, rape, robbery, theft, or unlawful entry, and attempting, aiding, abetting, advising, inciting, conniving, or conspiring to commit arson, assault, burglary, injury to property, kidnapping, manslaughter, murder, rape, robbery, theft, or unlawful entry.

[Anonymous]

jsteele wrote:

Anonymous wrote:- and Donald Sterling once made donations to liberal democrats and was nominated by the NAACP for a civil rights award- so should we look the other way towards his racist comments the way you suggest we ignore Barry's bigotry?

24 years of racist bigotry? Decades of public corruption? Violations of DC hate speech laws within the last few years??

C'mon! How big of a hipocrit are you? Why are you trying so hard to defend someone who has damage our city as much as Barry has??

Apparently we have a new tradition in which we compare anyone we don't like to Donald Sterling. I actually shouldn't say "we", because this is not my tradition. Rather, it seems limited to reading comprehension-challenged blowhards. Every poster who has acknowledged positive aspects to Barry had also agreed that there are negative aspects. I understand that you do not want your one-dimensional image of Barry to be complicated by facts that don't fit your preferred narrative. One dimension is probably enough of a challenge for you in any case. But, why are do you mischaracterizing the views of those of us capable of observing more than one dimension? Is this an accidental result of your inability to read simple English, or an intentional distortion that is simply your style of argument?

The fact that he once fought against racism only makes his own personal racism all the more loathsome. Like a campaigner against pedophilia who turns out to be a pedophile himself. That's what Marion Barry is.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:- and Donald Sterling once made donations to liberal democrats and was nominated by the NAACP for a civil rights award- so should we look the other way towards his racist comments the way you suggest we ignore Barry's bigotry?

24 years of racist bigotry? Decades of public corruption? Violations of DC hate speech laws within the last few years??

C'mon! How big of a hipocrit are you? Why are you trying so hard to defend someone who has damage our city as much as Barry has??

I don't think any poster has said that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

jsteele wrote:

Anonymous wrote:- and Donald Sterling once made donations to liberal democrats and was nominated by the NAACP for a civil rights award- so should we look the other way towards his racist comments the way you suggest we ignore Barry's bigotry?

24 years of racist bigotry? Decades of public corruption? Violations of DC hate speech laws within the last few years??

C'mon! How big of a hipocrit are you? Why are you trying so hard to defend someone who has damage our city as much as Barry has??

Apparently we have a new tradition in which we compare anyone we don't like to Donald Sterling. I actually shouldn't say "we", because this is not my tradition. Rather, it seems limited to reading comprehension-challenged blowhards. Every poster who has acknowledged positive aspects to Barry had also agreed that there are negative aspects. I understand that you do not want your one-dimensional image of Barry to be complicated by facts that don't fit your preferred narrative. One dimension is probably enough of a challenge for you in any case. But, why are do you mischaracterizing the views of those of us capable of observing more than one dimension? Is this an accidental result of your inability to read simple English, or an intentional distortion that is simply your style of argument?

The fact that he once fought against racism only makes his own personal racism all the more loathsome. Like a campaigner against pedophilia who turns out to be a pedophile himself. That's what Marion Barry is.

Yep - like the judge or police officer caught in a criminal act, Barry shoul - of all people, know better than to continually make racist comments about people in the very city he's elected to lead. And it isn't even white people he's bigoted against; it's minorities and new immigrants! No amount of supposed civil rights work in the 60s makes up for his continued, unapologetic racism today.

Stop making excuses for racists.

[Anonymous]

jsteele wrote:

Anonymous wrote:- and Donald Sterling once made donations to liberal democrats and was nominated by the NAACP for a civil rights award- so should we look the other way towards his racist comments the way you suggest we ignore Barry's bigotry?

24 years of racist bigotry? Decades of public corruption? Violations of DC hate speech laws within the last few years??

C'mon! How big of a hipocrit are you? Why are you trying so hard to defend someone who has damage our city as much as Barry has??

Apparently we have a new tradition in which we compare anyone we don't like to Donald Sterling. I actually shouldn't say "we", because this is not my tradition. Rather, it seems limited to reading comprehension-challenged blowhards. Every poster who has acknowledged positive aspects to Barry had also agreed that there are negative aspects. I understand that you do not want your one-dimensional image of Barry to be complicated by facts that don't fit your preferred narrative. One dimension is probably enough of a challenge for you in any case. But, why are do you mischaracterizing the views of those of us capable of observing more than one dimension? Is this an accidental result of your inability to read simple English, or an intentional distortion that is simply your style of argument?

Oh please - spare us the drama. It's obvious: Donald Sterling is under attack for his racist comments; Marion Barry has repeatedly made racist comments - just like Sterling. It has nothing to do with "anyone we don't like" now does it?

And sterling isn't an elected leader - he just a rich guy who bought a team.

On the other hand, Barry is part of our city's leadership. His job is to represent the people. Do you honestly think someone who repeatedly makes racist comments is a suitable representative of D.C.'s citizens? Seriously?

Would you vote for him if he were in he mayors race? Serious question - would you? Because you certainly seem to admire him and go to great lengths to defend his record of public service to our city.