The Shame of New Orleans

Brilliant interview with Shelby Steele. Thanks for the link.

TAE: How does political correctness affect black Americans?

STEELE: Political correctness is an outgrowth of white guilt. It’s a way for guilty-feeling whites to constantly indicate that they’re not racist, not colonialists, not imperialists, not warmongers, and so on. It’s a kind of ritualization of life by which some whites free themselves of the stigma that history has left them. History has left whites stigmatized as racists, just like blacks were stigmatized as inferior. Both of those are irrational conclusions, but that’s how stigma works. And political correctness is a way to address that.

Posted by Jack Trainor at March 16, 2006 10:15 AM

I am amazed to read exactly what my thoughts have been for the past 25 years. I was apparently born the same year as Mr. Steele. It is so discouraging to have lived through those promising '60s and see it all go to hell. And we aren't "allowed" to speak honestly about it all. We've all lost so much freedom in this politicization and hijacking of the race issue by the black and white charlatans.

Posted by Sheila at March 18, 2006 9:55 PM