Letters: Chewing the fat over Paula Deen

Re “Wal-Mart, Caesars drop Deen,” Business, June 27

As a black person, I often feel like I am living in a parallel universe. So Paula Deen is now the face of racism in America? She had the nerve to admit to using the “N-word” and wanting to dress up black men like servants for a party with a Southern theme.

Black people in this country are overwhelmed with poverty, bad schools and other injustices. The media trivialize racism when Deen trumps those stories.

This is like a black man tied to the railroad tracks with a boulder on his chest, and then a white woman comes by and throws a pebble at him and there is this immense outcry about what a racist she is.

The racists in this country are those with the political and economic power to deny large segments of the population the ability to operate in society on an equal footing.

This farce distracts from the real issues confronting African Americans.

Gail Christian

Palm Springs

The answer to “Are you a racist?” is not as simple as Deen would have it — as yes or no — unless the answer is yes. It is more like learning to cook with less butter or shedding some weight — it is a process rather than an end point.

The best answer to the question is this: “I continue to work on the racist issues I am confronted with daily. It is a process.” Then follow up with, “If I have offended anyone by my ignorance, then please teach me; talk to me; forgive me.”

Deen should start her education soon, and in a while she will be less racist, just like she learned to shed a few pounds and fix some of those great recipes with less butter.

Bob Farran

Los Angeles

The highest court in the land dismantles one of the fundamental safeguards of Americans’ right to vote, and next it knocks down Proposition 8 on a technicality, not because it is wrong or discriminatory.

Yet the airwaves are flooded with the tearful apologies of a powerless, butter-peddling maven whose misspoken words decades ago have caused her empire to collapse and everyone to turn their backs on her. Am I the only one who sees an imbalance here?

The Voting Rights Act is gutted, gays get their rights through the back door — and we care more about whether Deen used the “N-word” many years ago. Talk about misplaced anger.

Craig B. Goodwin

Riverside

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