Al sharpton?

[NewJersey]

So he certainly loves to come out of the woodwork for any publicity he can get.

There was a tragic police shooting last weekend in NYC where cops fired 50 shots at 4 unarmed men leaving a strip club after one of the men's bachelor party. The groom was killed and the others were either critically wounded or are in stable condition. The facts are still coming out. It's really quite sad.

But you have Al Sharpton all over the tv and newspapers...I'm sorry but I really don't see him as someone who is a positive role model. I just think he likes swooping in and getting his 5 minutes of fame and then going into hiding again.

He is seeming to make this shooting more about him than the real problems that face the police department when it comes to racial tensions.

 

[ducklite]

I couldn't agree with you more. I have yet to see him have a positive impact on ANY situation. He is a racist IMHO.

Anne

 

[Charade]

I couldn't agree with you more. I have yet to see him have a positive impact on ANY situation. He is a racist IMHO.

Anne

I don't see him as a racist but a racist bater. If he tries hard enough, he can make a racial issue out of anything.

If he was truly concerned about racism, he would go after anyone accused of racism, not just non-black people.

 

[NewJersey]

I agree John. He seems to bait racial issues more than help to alleviate the underlying problems.



ETA: Holy crap, John and I agree!!!

 

[T1130]

I can not stand him. It makes me laugh when he tries to run for political office. Does he not remember Tawna Brawly case.

 

[CapeCodTenor]

I agree John. He seems to bait racial issues more than help to alleviate the underlying problems.



ETA: Holy crap, John and I agree!!!

This is a day in history that I will remember, you two agreeing on sometihng. I know that New Jersey and I don't usually go after it on political debates, and I usually don't agree with you, but I to agree have to agree here. Al Sharpton is race baiting, plain and simple. He's also a media hound (would like to have used something else here, but this is a family friendly site). All Al Sharpton cares about is getting Al Sharpton out into the media.

 

[Princess89]

2 words

Tawana Brawley...nuff said

 

[NewJersey]

This is a day in history that I will remember, you two agreeing on sometihng. I know that New Jersey and I don't usually go after it on political debates, and I usually don't agree with you, but I to agree have to agree here. Al Sharpton is race baiting, plain and simple. He's also a media hound (would like to have used something else here, but this is a family friendly site). All Al Sharpton cares about is getting Al Sharpton out into the media.

First for everything.

 

[eclectics]

It's a shame, because the man is intellegent and can be quite articulate and witty. His tendency not to research and to pull out the race card for every percieved slight is unfortunate. If he saved his outrage for the real cases only, he could be a positive asset to his cause.

 

[Mugg Mann]

I couldn't agree more. I think experience has shown that Sharpton's involvement actually becomes detrimental to the various causes that he is trying to champion, and causes public opinion to sway the other way.

Frankly, this one is a no-brainer.

 

[Saffron]

I like Al Sharpton. He is a civil rights activist, race/racism/police brutality etc are all part of who he is and what he does. He doesn't only speak out about black issues. He speaks out about and against or for any and all civil right issues.

I'm paraphrasing here, but Sharpton believes the government should not care what anyone does in their bedroom, but instead care if there is enough food being eaten in the kitchens. The government shouldn't care about one language, when an English test isn't given for those that sign up to serve in Iraq. The government should make sure that those who clean hospital beds should be able to afford to stay in one if one is needed. The government shouldn't care if presciption drugs are ordered from across the border, they should be worried about making sure people have the drugs they need for that day, etc, etc. They aren't all black issues, they are human issues.

He's a black man that grew up in a single parent home, in Brooklyn, at a time when black people were discrimated against openly. Because of his life experiences he made civil rights issues his life work. We all have something we feel passionate about, something we fight for or against. I see Al Sharpton no different than any other person who feels they want to right a wrong that they feel strongly about.

The family of the unarmed men who were shot by the police called him and asked him to stand with them during this tragedy. Who better than to draw media attention than Al Sharpton. That's exactly what he does, that's exactly why people call him because they know the media will soak up the fact that he's involved in anything and that's exactly why he goes when called.

He himself said this case is not about race, it's about police brutality. When someone gets a call in the middle of the night that an unarmed man was just shot at 50 times and killed by the police, hours before his wedding, I think ANYONE would want answers. And the family wanted people to know that this is what happened to their son/sons. Maybe the shooting would have made news, maybe not, but with Al Sharpton around, he knows and the families know, their sons' death and shooting would definitly gain attention.

 

[Walter C]

I see this guy as a buffoon, ever since he made a few appearances on Boston Legal. Very hard to take seriously.

He might as well preach and put on a clown costume.

 

[eclectics]

I like Al Sharpton. He is a civil rights activist, race/racism/police brutality etc are all part of who he is and what he does. He doesn't only speak out about black issues. He speaks out about and against or for any and all civil right issues.

I'm paraphrasing here, but Sharpton believes the government should not care what anyone does in their bedroom, but instead care if there is enough food being eaten in the kitchens. The government shouldn't care about one language, when an English test isn't given for those that sign up to serve in Iraq. The government should make sure that those who clean hospital beds should be able to afford to stay in one if one is needed. The government shouldn't care if presciption drugs are ordered from across the border, they should be worried about making sure people have the drugs they need for that day, etc, etc. They aren't all black issues, they are human issues.

He's a black man that grew up in a single parent home, in Brooklyn, at a time when black people were discrimated against openly. Because of his life experiences he made civil rights issues his life work. We all have something we feel passionate about, something we fight for or against. I see Al Sharpton no different than any other person who feels they want to right a wrong that they feel strongly about.

The family of the unarmed men who were shot by the police called him and asked him to stand with them during this tragedy. Who better than to draw media attention than Al Sharpton. That's exactly what he does, that's exactly why people call him because they know the media will soak up the fact that he's involved in anything and that's exactly why he goes when called.

He himself said this case is not about race, it's about police brutality. When someone gets a call in the middle of the night that an unarmed man was just shot at 50 times and killed by the police, hours before his wedding, I think ANYONE would want answers. And the family wanted people to know that this is what happened to their son/sons. Maybe the shooting would have made news, maybe not, but with Al Sharpton around, he knows and the families know, their sons' death and shooting would definitly gain attention.

I agree with a lot of what you say Maggie, but sometimes he lets his stubborness, his fondness for publicity and his penchant for jumping in head first without getting all the facts cloud his judgment, imho. To this day he refuses to acknowlege Tawana Brawley might have lied. I like him too, in general, and I think he does a lot of good, and he brings legitimate issues to the table, but sometimes he deserves to be knocked off the high horse he sometimes rides.

 

[Saffron]

That's true, he never has said Tawana Brawley lied and that *kind of* sours him for me too, but I don't think the Tawana Brawley case defines his career as a civil rights activist, as so many tend to think it does. Maybe he won't say she lied because she still maintains that she did not lie, that her story is true. I don't know. It seems like he should say something, I don't know why he hasn't.

I remember the Tawana Brawley case quite clearly. It came on the heels of another case, the case of the jogger in Central Park, if I'm not mistaken. It seemed all too contrived to me at the time, but then again, I wasn't there, I just had to go with what the media was showing everyone. That was the second time I ever heard of Al Sharpton, and I took an instant disliking to him. I thought he was a loud mouth, arrogant, so-and-so who needed a haircut. But over the years, I've come to know what he's about and agree with just about everything he stands for or against. Maybe not his methods, but his principals.

Then again, I don't have to see him all that often as you New Yorkers do. I'm sure he makes the news there a lot more than he does here. In fact, I hadn't seen or heard him before this slain groom incident, since the 2004 DNC. And I applauded his speech that night.

 

[SamRoc]

I don't see him as a racist but a racist bater. If he tries hard enough, he can make a racial issue out of anything.

If he was truly concerned about racism, he would go after anyone accused of racism, not just non-black people.

I live in Brooklyn, where Al Sharpton lives. Al Sharpton doesnt care about black people, if he did, he would work harder to improve our schools here, instead of sending his kids to a nearly all white private school. You might say he wants the best for his kids, but what about sticking together, what he tries to portray on television. Hes a fraud, he wants his kids to be with white kids, what does he think its safer? Im not afraid to send my kids to the local public high schools which have a huge racial mix, why is he? And if you ask if i could afford the school his kids go to, yes i can, but why protect them, they have to learn to get along with other kids. Al sharpton preaches one thing, and does the exact opposite.