First Lady Michelle Obama was caught on tape making remarks that are insulting to the intelligence of blacks, racist at worse, and contrary to her own efforts.
Speaking on a national radio program on TV One, Obama (jokingly) gave the Black Community permission to eat fried chicken and other soul food but only after they vote, to celebrate a Democratic victory.
Worse, she said that black people should ignore what candidates say or their track records and just vote Democrat. Never mind that the policies her husband and liberals have instituted have done little to actually help black Americans get back on their feet following the recession rather than on government dependence.
The Christian Monitor reports the transcript:
Martin: So can we, if we go out to the polls, can we say, we have ‘souls to the polls’ on Sunday, can we do ‘soul food after we vote’?
Obama: Absolutely, I give everyone full permission to eat some fried chicken after they vote only after—if you haven’t voted…(laughter.)
Martin: Just checking!
Obama: You make a good point because I am, I do talk about health. But I think that a good victory for Democrats on Tuesday, you know, should be rewarded with some fried chicken.
Earlier, she told listeners, “This isn’t about Barack. It’s not about the person on the ballot — it’s about you. And for most of the people that we’re talking to, a Democratic ticket is the clear ticket that we should be voting on, regardless of who said what or did this. That shouldn’t even come into the equation."
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Though it was said in jest, as a motivation for getting out the black vote, the comment was doubly controversial for some: first, as proof of Michelle Obama's position as food police, as some on the right see her; and second, for its racial undertones, linking the black community and fried chicken.
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Of course, in this case, there's a reason the First lady was speaking with an African-American-oriented radio station on Election Day eve – and a reason why conservatives are using the opportunity to inflame potential voters. The black vote is seen as the last hope for Democrats to hold onto the Senate, as the New York Times explained in a recent article.
According to a confidential memo from a former pollster for President Obama, the party would suffer “crushing Democratic losses across the country” if it did not do more to get black voters to the polls.
The First Lady’s comments are insulting and reinforce stereotypes of blacks in this nation as eating unhealthy foods. As a black person, I do not regard fried chicken as a reward for me and it shouldn’t be considered one – especially from Michelle Obama.
Embarrassingly, it exposes that the First Lady is not the tough food cop that she claims to be. For someone who has waged a war against obesity among kids by taking on sugary foods and too many calories in our schools, why is she now co-signing the same eating habits that lead to obesity and the chronic health issues related to it in the black community?
The food comment is one issue, but perhaps the most distressing of FLOTUS’s Get-Out-The-Vote comments are that all blacks are best served by voting for Democrats regardless of their record, their (broken) promises, and their current performance in office. Perhaps she’s referring to ignoring her husband’s record.
Under President Obama’s Administration, blacks have fallen behind. The unemployment rate among Blacks was 12.7 percent when he initially took office. While the national unemployment rate for the nation dropped below 6 percent, black unemployment increased to 12.9 percent and then to 14 percent. Black youth are especially hard hit as we are facing 22 percent unemployment. Even national black leaders like the head of the NAACP are calling out the President for falling blacks in this country.
The black community doesn’t need fried chicken and we don’t need to support politicians whose policies set us further back.