Obama Calls Grandmother ‘Typical White Person’ in Radio Interview
Barack Obama called his grandmother a “typical white person” in a radio interview on Thursday, raising eyebrows among some of his critics only days after he sought to bridge racial division in a major campaign speech.
Obama had pointed to his mother’s mother in his speech Tuesday as an example of someone who harbored fears of blacks based on racial prejudice. The Illinois senator revisited his relationship with his grandmother on Thursday in an interview on 610 WIP, Philadelphia Sports Radio.
He denied his grandmother held hatred toward blacks, but described her as a “typical white person.”
“The point I was making was not that my grandmother harbors any racial animosity — she doesn’t,” he said. “But she is a typical white person who, you know, if she sees somebody on the street that she doesn’t know, there is a reaction. That has been bred into our experiences that don’t go away and that sometimes come out in the wrong way.”
On Tuesday, Obama described his grandmother as a woman who was at times fearful of black men.
In the speech, he said: “I can no more disown [Wright] than I can disown my white grandmother, a woman who helped raise me, a woman who sacrificed again and again for me, a woman who loves me as much as she loves anything in this world, but a woman who once confessed her fear of black men who passed her by on the street, and who on more than one occasion has uttered racial or ethnic stereotypes that made me cringe.”
The remarks weren’t the only ones focusing on race and the campaign on Thursday.
Geraldine Ferraro complained that Obama had lumped her in with his controversial pastor, whom she called a “racist bigot.”
Obama mentioned the 1984 vice presidential candidate on Tuesday in his speech on race and his relationship with the Rev. Jeremiah Wright Jr., whose heated, anti-U.S. sermons raised questions about the company Obama keeps.
“To equate what I said with what this racist bigot has said from the pulpit is unbelievable,” Ferraro told the Los Angeles newspaper, The Daily Breeze, on Wednesday. “He gave a very good speech on race relations, but he did not address the fact that this man is up there spewing hatred.”
Ferraro, who left Hillary Clinton’s campaign finance team after saying Obama wouldn’t be where he is if he were white, said she had “no clue” why Obama included her in his speech. She said Obama’s relationship with Wright raises questions about his judgment.
“What this man is doing is he is spewing that stuff out to young people, and to younger people than Obama, and putting it in their heads that it’s OK to say ‘God damn America’ and it’s OK to beat up on white people,” she said. “You don’t preach that from the pulpit.”
The Wright controversy lit up shortly after Ferraro left her post on the Clinton finance committee following her initial interview with The Daily Breeze on Obama’s success.
In his speech, Obama drew a comparison between the two individuals.
“We can dismiss Reverend Wright as a crank or a demagogue, just as some have dismissed Geraldine Ferraro, in the aftermath of her recent statements, as harboring some deep-seated racial bias,” he said.
Speaking in Philadelphia, Obama then argued that the issue of race cannot be ignored and that to over-simplify and focus only on the negative aspects of the matter would distort reality.
Overall, Ferraro said Obama’s speech was “excellent,” aside from the part where her name was mentioned.
Click here to read the article in The Daily Breeze.
Obama talks out of both sides of his mouth. He is a Democrat. God Bless America and protect us from hate filled people such as Obama and his preacher.
I know that it might not be my place to speak of my opinion of these American racial issue surrounding M. Ferraro and Pastor Wrights since I am a foreign student living in US.
But, I have been getting an impression that the Fox media (in my case, mainly focusing on the attitude, tone and facial expression from the people delivering the news) is quite condescending to Sen. Obama and his Pastor with unfair criticism.
To tell the truth, I, as a foreigner, was more offended and threatened by Ms Ferraro’s several comments including this one than the Pastor’s clips of comments and Obama’s words of “Typical White America.” The reason was that her tone, and attitude of her words including the comment itself were so arrogant, condescending, and incorrect. Based on that, I felt that she exhibited the typical white supremacy, which you may highly disagree.
The other thing I want to say, even though you may not agree, is that I think that you are constantly taking certain words out of the context in case of Sen. Obama and his pastor while you tried to give an extended context to excuse M. Ferraro’s comment.
Again, I am a foreigner so I don’t know about every level of racial issues in US. (Neither do I know either Ms Ferraro or Pastor Wright and their achievements in the nation and communty) But, I believe that Obama’s speech was outstandingly futuristic and hopeful with openness even though it made many people including myself uncomfortable.
I just hope that Fox media considers about this controversy in a more positive way with a more fair view including the effort of providing the full context in both sides.
Good luck on America.
I hope that this controversy didn’t distract you from the more important issue.
Ferraro is the same, there is comparison between the remarks. It amazes me that Obama is being judged on what his pastor said. People even have the nerve to say he has been shaped by going to that church. Obama was raised by his grandparents who happen to be white. Obama’s mother is white, Obama’s father left when he was 2 or 3. Many people have been in the Catholic Church for 50 years and they don’t agree with everything the church says or does. They don’t agree with the priest raping children. They are not leaving the church. Hillary Clinton, and John McCain went to segregated schools, didn’t that shape them. Didn’t the governor of Arkansas spray the fire hose on the black children to keep them from going into the schools, where did Hillary go to school? Did John McCain father a black child, this was on CNN? I don’t know if he did or didn’t. How were their back grounds formed. Let’s look at everyone! We should be talking about these gas prices, and the war.
“Poverty pimp mafia”
“two faced liberals”
And you folks get all heated up over Wright!
A little more puffery and you can work yourselves into a fine froth..
Signifying nothing
But that is what bigotry is all about isn’t it?
I’m just loving every minute of watching the Democrats destroy each other. This is great! I hope they keep it up so that we will have another Republican as president. Yea, McCain!
Sen. Obama continues to attempt to apply a psychological tactic commonly known as “negative transference.” … IT FAILED MISERABLY.
Although, Sen. Obama “appears” to be a fine and decent man … His inability to separate himself emotionally and intellectually from Rev. Wright’s racial charged bigotry is disappointing to say the least.
The Media is guilty as hell on this one … big time! Why did it take the media over 12 months to “decide” to investigate Sen. Obama’s history? Unfortunately, the American public has lost trust with our press and the media only listens to those that “pay them.” (aka: Fortune 500)
I would like to paraphrase Rev. Wright… “THERE IS NOT A SNOWBALLS CHANCE IN HELL THAT A MAJORITY OF AMERICANS WILL SIT BY AN ALLOW SEN, OBAMA TO BECOME PRESIDENT BASED ON HIS CONTINUED RELATIONSHIP WITH A RACIAL BIGOT AND HATE MONGER THE LIKES OF REV. JEREMIAH WRIGHT.”
His inability to “disconnect” with the good reverend says everything… and much more!
It’s the much more part that is truly suspect.
Let’s see..Obama has been nothing but gracious to her to the point of telling CNN that he did not consider her a racist yet once again someone who harbors racist thoughts open her mouth and lets the feces run out. This is what she will forever be known for and in this regard only she has my pity.
Wake up America! Wake up Super Delegates! Wake up anyone who has a normal IQ. Read between the lines. Obama and all his ties to Pastor Wright have just taken the Democratic Presidential hopes away. Please Super Delegates, you know you have not heard nthe end of this. Barrack Obama will be torn up and now all of those that voted for him in the early primaries are crying that they made such a terrible mistake. He is a wolf hidden in sheeps clothing.
Ms. Ferraro has every right to not want to be lumped in with the vulgar and hate-filled Rev. Jeremiah Wright.
Sen. Obama should be ashamed of himself. He knows very well that Ms. Ferraro is NOT a hater; and he most certainly knows that Rev. Wright IS a hater.
Barack Obama is the worst thing that ever happened to the Democratic Party.
He will not get my vote in November if he ends up being the Democratic nominee.
I will simply not vote. And I’ve been a Democrat since I was 20.
As a conservative I have rarely agreed with Ms. Ferraro’s political views, but I have always admired her as a classy lady who has ideals and stands by them. In this case, I agree wholeheartedly with her assesment that Barak Obama is where he is because he is black, just as she was the VP candidate because of her gender. His attack on her, and that is exactly what it is, betrays his lack of class, conviction, and honesty. Barak Obama is unfit to hold public office in this great land. He also owes Ms. Ferraro and his grandmother serious apologies. What a cad.