Ferraro ‘88: If Jesse Jackson Wasn’t Black, He Wouldn’t Be In The Race
From an article by Ben Smith in this morning’s Politico:
If Jesse Jackson were not black, he wouldn’t be in the race,” she said.
Really. The cite is an April 15, 1988 Washington Post story (byline: Howard Kurtz), available only on Nexis.
Here’s the full context:
Placid of demeanor but pointed in his rhetoric, Jackson struck out repeatedly today against those who suggest his race has been an asset in the campaign. President Reagan suggested Tuesday that people don’t ask Jackson tough questions because of his race. And former representative Geraldine A. Ferraro (D-N.Y.) said Wednesday that because of his “radical” views, “if Jesse Jackson were not black, he wouldn’t be in the race.”
Asked about this at a campaign stop in Buffalo, Jackson at first seemed ready to pounce fiercely on his critics. But then he stopped, took a breath, and said quietly, “Millions of Americans have a point of view different from” Ferraro’s.
Discussing the same point in Washington, Jackson said, “We campaigned across the South . . . without a single catcall or boo. It was not until we got North to New York that we began to hear this from Koch, President Reagan and then Mrs. Ferraro . . . . Some people are making hysteria while I’m making history.”
In the north we’ve all seen what you’ve done to the cities and were not looking forward to that happening to the country. Oh, but, we can’t describe things the way they are, that would be racist.
March 12th, 2008 at 6:38 amJohn,
the truth isnt PC. I would like to go on a rant about that myself but unfortunately im not not allowed.
March 12th, 2008 at 11:32 am