I hope Rosemarie Tate has a few friends/relatives to let her know how wrong her statement about the First Lady is. Tate seems to be saying 'I had to have Michelle do things I would do to forget the race of Michelle Obama in order to like her.'
And no the First Lady's race doesn't define her but it shouldn't be treated as some malady to be ignored. #michelleobama
I'm worried this turnabout has something to do with her relatively hands off approach to policy, as though people were very concerned she might become a force in instituting radical changes in government, but now that she's obviously playing a more traditional first lady role she's not as threatening (to conservatives and to sexists, I guess). In other words, I don't think it's necessarily a good or flattering position, I think it's more about being seen as "harmless." #michelleobama
@Bitingpika: Well, that wasn't USA Today saying that as an editorial line, that was USA Today quoting someone saying that.
That said, I think that quote is quite revealing. I suspect it's from someone who perhaps has only ever thought of black women in that politicised sense and is maybe beginning to see them in a different way. Perhaps the speaker has never encountered a black woman. So she's coming from a cloistered place of white privilege - not a great place, but if Mrs Obama is making her think differently, then is that so bad? #michelleobama
"She has conducted herself as an educated, sensitive, down-to-earth woman - not a black woman, a woman - like when she does the gardening (to encourage healthful eating) and taking care of the family,"
What the hell? Are black women not educated, sensitive, down-to-earth gardeners who eat healthfully and take care of their family? Sounds like Ms. Tate needs to stop taking her cues about the world around her from COPS. #michelleobama
I think my favorite thing aboug Michell Obama is how much she reminds me of my own mother. I can honestly say I feel blessed to have been raised by such an amazing, intelligent, open-minded, independent, and engaging black woman. Maybe now people will realize that we are not all head snapping, pushy people. Just some of us! #michelleobama
Yeah that quote right there.. sigh. That just a epitomizes my frustration when (white) people say how colorblind they are or how they wish we lived in a colorblind society. O rly?! My race is not something that should be hidden! Equality doesn't mean not acknowledging what makes people different; it's respecting and appreciating the differences.
Um, Michelle Obama is still a black woman. It is a part of who she is. It's always going to be. Ending racism does not mean forgetting our history, our culture, or our experiences as individuals.
People who "don't see race", don't see racism. Which most often is unconsciously perpetuated by the privileged and the colorblind. Skin color is just one aspect of race. It's a very superficial, ignorant, and lazy way of thinking. #michelleobama
@la vie en hypnose: In between headdesks, I'm trying to parse that quote as an idiot who watched too much Faux News trying to say, "Wow. She's not at all like they were trying to portray her during the campaign, and she's so awesome I'm having to to reassess my prejudice."
God, she's just so... dreamy. In every sense of the word. She's beautiful without being fussy and intelligent but, when expressing herself, she's uplifting rather than condescending. She seems to take her passions seriously but not herself. I need to inject myself with some Michelle Obama qualities. #michelleobama
She has conducted herself as an educated, sensitive, down-to-earth woman - not a black woman, a woman
Jesus! Some people just can't let it go, do they? Like, they might try to say something in order to not sound like morons, but at the same time, they hold to their racist shit and prejudices as if they were some sort of life jacket that help them stay afloat. #michelleobama
@Casquivana: Did you know that Black Women are actually Women? They will be very surprised to hear this!
Word is still out on the gays, the unmarried, the childless, the poor, the geeks, the fats, and whatever people who aren't Black or White could possibly be, is that a thing? #michelleobama
"I'm also a little skeptical at why Michelle is suddenly embraced."
Mainstream America is cool with Michelle now because she's had a comprehensive image makeover. Not to say she's not still as fierce and smart as she was a year ago, but her image now isn't about being a supposedly threatening, unapologetically successful black woman. Its about being a doting mother and wife and embracing typical First Lady duties. That role is equally important but it breaks my heart to think that there are still so many people out there afraid of powerful women. #michelleobama
Maybe we consider our "love lives" more of an expense than people in some other cultures. People think about paying $10 for a movie and $30 for dinner, and that's an expensive date. Maybe other cultures encourage people to court more cheaply.
Maybe we are more likely to have a negative outlook on other aspects of our lives when placed in a bad economic situation.
In a country that is largely consumed by an obsession with wealth, it makes sense that when money gets tight, everything else starts to look pretty bleak as a result.
My love life experienced an uptick (my current relationship) just as the first signs of the economy tanking started. We're both strapped for cash, but neither of us was used to a luxury lifestyle anyway. I can't say that the economy has really affected my relationship at all, except that my boyfriend is a little stressed about the fact that his job is not tenure-track. We're both employed, though, so I guess we can't complain too much.
Less materialistic? I don't think that's it. We don't have the social safety nets in place that those other countries do, and we really are totally on our own when it come to our finances. This is hugely stressful in relationships.
10/24/09
And no the First Lady's race doesn't define her but it shouldn't be treated as some malady to be ignored. #michelleobama
10/23/09
10/23/09
Ah, nice to see that there are women and there are those other people who seem like women, only darker. Screw you, USA Today. #michelleobama
10/24/09
That said, I think that quote is quite revealing. I suspect it's from someone who perhaps has only ever thought of black women in that politicised sense and is maybe beginning to see them in a different way. Perhaps the speaker has never encountered a black woman. So she's coming from a cloistered place of white privilege - not a great place, but if Mrs Obama is making her think differently, then is that so bad? #michelleobama
10/23/09
What the hell? Are black women not educated, sensitive, down-to-earth gardeners who eat healthfully and take care of their family? Sounds like Ms. Tate needs to stop taking her cues about the world around her from COPS. #michelleobama
10/23/09
10/23/09
10/23/09
Um, Michelle Obama is still a black woman. It is a part of who she is. It's always going to be. Ending racism does not mean forgetting our history, our culture, or our experiences as individuals.
People who "don't see race", don't see racism. Which most often is unconsciously perpetuated by the privileged and the colorblind. Skin color is just one aspect of race. It's a very superficial, ignorant, and lazy way of thinking. #michelleobama
10/23/09
Yeah, I have a headache now. #michelleobama
10/23/09
Now that needs to be knitted on pillows, printed on bill boards, and shouted from the roof tops. #michelleobama
10/23/09
10/23/09
Jesus! Some people just can't let it go, do they? Like, they might try to say something in order to not sound like morons, but at the same time, they hold to their racist shit and prejudices as if they were some sort of life jacket that help them stay afloat. #michelleobama
10/23/09
Word is still out on the gays, the unmarried, the childless, the poor, the geeks, the fats, and whatever people who aren't Black or White could possibly be, is that a thing? #michelleobama
10/23/09
Mainstream America is cool with Michelle now because she's had a comprehensive image makeover. Not to say she's not still as fierce and smart as she was a year ago, but her image now isn't about being a supposedly threatening, unapologetically successful black woman. Its about being a doting mother and wife and embracing typical First Lady duties. That role is equally important but it breaks my heart to think that there are still so many people out there afraid of powerful women. #michelleobama
07/28/09
07/28/09
In a country that is largely consumed by an obsession with wealth, it makes sense that when money gets tight, everything else starts to look pretty bleak as a result.
07/28/09
07/28/09
07/28/09
07/28/09
07/28/09