1. Dale J. Thomas wrote:

Thank you for posting this Marc. I hope more people start listening.

2. Marc Lamont Hill wrote:

I can’t wait to hear what Tom Penn has to say!

3. Tom Penn wrote:

First of all Dr. Hill, what I have to say is, Dr. Dyson was on fire in that segment !!! I only wish it was an hour long !!!

Second, I am deeply bummed that Dr. Dyson has yet to be invited to The White House. I am hoping that when The President and The First Lady host their first White House State Dinner, that both Dr. Dyson and and his wife Rev. Dyson are both in attendance.

Thirdly, I wish that Dr. Dyson had more time to share with us the type of policies directed at Black people to which he says President Obama has not addressed. I can make an educated guess to what those polices are, but I would love to be informed of these short comings by Michael Eric Dyson himself.

Fourthly, I am glad that as one of his earliest supporters, Dr. Dyson does not hold back his criticism of the president. This is classic Dyson; props where they are due, yet strong critique when it is necessary.

4. Clif Soulo wrote:

I appreciate criticism like this. Dr. Dyson speaks that real.

5. DCI74 wrote:

I needed to listen to this more than once before I could comment. This interview is extremely rare in that you have clear, distinct and reasonable criticism of the President while still being respectful and that’s what I don’t get with certain media members. They give the impression that their disagreement with the President or his policies gives them the license to criticize in a disrespectful manner. Dr. MED proves you don’t have to do that.

6. Clif Soulo wrote:

DC explained my thoughts exactly, with a much more detailed and thought out comment, so please disregard my previous comment..haha

7. DCI74 wrote:

Lol glad to help Clif.

8. ~JJG~ wrote:

Yo, what does MED always sound like he’s performing at an open mic?. . .lol

Dyson’s words are intellectually sound, fair and balanced. Great video!

I do not think that Obama has played us (blacks). Obama never promised “blacks” anything. While campaigning he promised to address the needs of the people. He did not promise to address the needs of a particular race. To echo Dyson, Obama did not run as a “black man” for president. Obama ran as a man who just happens to be black. When I voted for Obama I did not have the expectation of him to address racial issues or tackle issues that are primarily germane to Blacks and latinos. It’s not his platform. Either we need to accept this or demand more (if we want him to have a second go).

9. phddiva wrote:

This is the same dude who wrote a book about “why I love black women” and then turned around and funded that crooked womanizing cheating mayor kwame kilpatrick’s legal defense fund; he prefers to defend the use of the “n” word rather than admonish it, and every year he plays “who’s bigger” with Tavis and Co at the State of “you got issues” forum, so excuse me if I find him and his comments about Obama a joke!

I spit up when he accused Obama of jerking working class folks when “Big Brother All Mighty” himself supports Tavis’ “big dick” forum every year sponsored by corporations who exploit working class black folks EVERY DAMN Day, so Negro Please!

I FULLY support a critique of policies etc, but this is a GROWN AZZ MAN TANTRUM not a serious political critique of the issues, and to claim it to be anything more is a damn shame Marc!

10. Cézsar wrote:

Interesting analysis. Dr Dyson’s fierce intelligence is always rivetting to watch; a blessing and a curse, to be sure. Especially when he consciously and vigourously and relentlessly and repeatedly puts his intellect in the employ of his personal and subjective self-oriented, self-preserving psyche as intellectual incissors tasked with drilling deep down into the core of the Black psyche (a homogenous concept that is but fantasy) and then attempts to use raw intellectual brute force and aesthetics to emanate HIS psyche from the core outward, hoisting it within and upon all African descended people in a bid to have them accept it as theirs. If only it were that simple…or realistic…

He has laboured tirelessly to equate slavery, its legacy and afro-focused racism to homophobia. The greatest crime against humanity in his estimation is no more troubling than being gay. He dishonours, degrades, dismisses and diminishes the memories and the lives all of those Black bodies thrown overboard slaveships, murdered, raped, torturted, tormented, demonised, sodomised, hanged, ethnically “cleansed”, and had all manner of pure evil and sadistic atrocies committed against them, a legacy that still lives on to this day, when he equates THAT to being gay. It is offensive and insulting and makes his motives look seriously suspect. He preaches about Black people in America having been made “queer” (his words) from the outset in America because of their sexual fecundity but who among you has ever felt like a “queer” heterosexual? He has mis-read white jealousy toward Black sexuality as his own personal feeling of queerness and would like all of us to accept that as our reality too. Like a man possessed he has unrelentingly tried to re-define Blackness in terms of homosexuality. Those of you who follow him will know this.

And what’s sad is that the less discerning and intellectually-able will be mesmerised by his intellectual aesthetics enough to accept his reality as theirs, unable to articulate a cogent and true view point more reflective of their own. This exploitation of racial affiliation is what concerns me. How can he say he loves Black people so much and yet be so willing to sacrifice the pathos of Black people (a manifest yardstick for all human suffering) in deference to the challenges of gay people on the altar of homosexuality? It is quite a perverse use of his great intellect and I resent it. His competing motives are under-mining his untimate goal and it’s a real let down for someone so talented. For all the knee-jerkers out there reading this, you will have noticed that my issue is with the equation of Blackness and homosexuality NOT with homosexuality. As regards my feelings toward that – it’s a free world.

If all injustices are the same then why does Dr Dyson not berate Jews for not making their pathos inter-changeable with that of gays? Why does he not berate another oppressed (formerly or on-going) peoples but us? I suspect that our natural inclination and kindness of heart in giving everyone a fair hearing even when they berate us also doubles as a sort of dart board for all manners of political game players. Everybody’s trying to score points off the perceived “easiest” targets to impress their “girl”, whoever that might be. In many ways, he is guilty of all the things he accuses Obama of; perhaps that is why he is able to so eloquently state them. I do respect and admire the man, but he needs to cut that shit out.

11. Cézsar wrote:

If you are unsure about Dr Dyson’s viewpoint on homosexuality, then watch this – http://www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=QXHfAlzj2Gw

12. Cézsar wrote:

If you are unsure about his views on the subject, watch him express them clearly here – www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=QXHfAlzj2Gw

13. Tom Penn wrote:

Wow Cézsar !!!!

I am going to have to spend some more time re-reading your statement. That is a seriously deep argument you have put forth.

Peace,

Tom Penn

14. Clif Soulo wrote:

But Cézsar, what does all of that have to do with his critiques of Obama?

15. Clif Soulo wrote:

And phddiva, you are attacking Dr. Dyson for everything else other than what he actually said. instead of judging him by things that have nothing to do with what he is speaking about in the clip, why not listen to his critiques of Obama and judge those?

16. DCI74 wrote:

So Cézsar I looked at that video. How does that connect to his critique of Obama?

17. Cézsar wrote:

Clif, it seems as if you missed the essence of my post so let me summarize it: Dyson is guilty of exactly what he accuses Obama of – playing Black people; I simply used his stance on homosexuality to illustrate my point. He stated that Obama is “willing to sacrifice the interests of African-Americans in deference to a concept of universalism because it won’t offend white people”, and I stated in my post that Dyson is “willing to sacrifice the pathos of Black people (a manifest yardstick for all human suffering) in deference to the challenges of gay people on the altar of homosexuality”. Are either of those statements correct? You review the evidence and decide.

As regards Obama, I’m still reviewing the evidence. Dyson is far too intelligent to expect Obama to initiate a race war in America by “overtly” focusing exclusively on Black people. Let’s be under no illusions, the scales of racial justice do need to be balanced, and will be. But that’s a goal that needs to be caressed and finessed and achieved politically three or four Black presidents down the line. You think a lone Taliban insurgent is just gonna walk straight into a US military base in Iraq and declare: “me and my peoples are gonna level this playing field and you guys are gonna help us do it”? Been watching Fox and the right wing nut jobs lately? They see this whole justice thing as a war between the races (God alone knows why) and they’ve got the means to incite a race war if necessary.

18. Logic wrote:

I love Dr. Dyson, my man 100 grand. However, I believe that the problems affecting Black America (at least today) are more social in nature and less policy driven. The root of “our” problems lie with our relationships with each other. Even those of us who have “succeeded”, have problems loving an nurturing each other. I see more single black professionals than I want to see.

I say all of that to say that our problems can’t be solved by policy initiatives. I also agree with JJG, he didn’t run as a black candidate. If you thought that was what it was about, then blame yourself.

19. Clif Soulo wrote:

Logic, I like where your going with that. Our relationships with each other are not in a very good place. But do you think that may have something to do with the policies in place? In other words, is the way we relate to each other linked and affected by some of the policies set up in our society?

20. econwhat wrote:

I am leaning toward agreeing with Logic about the social aspect of this issue. Let’s take a look at a recent headline in a Boston newspaper.
Here’s the link – http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2009/06/02/as_graduation_nears_a_harvard_senior_finds_herself_in_trouble/

Long climb and fast fall for Harvard student

“…Chanequa Campbell was a shining star from the grimy streets of Bedford-Stuyvesant to an elite prep school called The Packer Collegiate Institute. The the moneyed crowd listened intently to a young woman who was bound for Harvard University…Four years later, they are hearing about Chanequa Campbell again – to their universal dismay…”

Because of a sleezy dope dealer, and maybe associations with other sleezes that do not have your best interests at heart, Chanequa may not graduate from Harvard or have the future she was seeking by attending Harvard.

President Obama can enact a thousand programs or policies that are steered toward uplifting downtrodden people, but you got sleezes lying in wait to mess it up every damn time. Dr. Dyson’s critique is off the mark because at the VERY CORE of EVERYTHING the Obama administration has in mind to do is about fairness and uncovering sleezy practices that for so long have served to cripple the progress of the poor. But good judgement is priceless, believe that! And Dr. Dyson discounts that underlying truth in his critique of President Obama.

And no I am not going to get into a long tennis match-like POV with any one. Take it or leave it, no biggie.

21. econwhat wrote:

I am leaning toward agreeing with Logic about the social aspect of this issue. Let’s take a look at a recent headline in a Boston newspaper.
Here’s the link – boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2009/06/02/as_graduation_nears_a_harvard_senior_finds_herself_in_trouble/

Long climb and fast fall for Harvard student

“…Chanequa Campbell was a shining star from the grimy streets of Bedford-Stuyvesant to an elite prep school called The Packer Collegiate Institute. The the moneyed crowd listened intently to a young woman who was bound for Harvard University…Four years later, they are hearing about Chanequa Campbell again – to their universal dismay…”

Because of (allegedly) a sleezy dope dealer, and maybe associations with other sleezes that do not have your best interests at heart, Chanequa may not graduate from Harvard or have the future she was seeking by attending Harvard.

President Obama can enact a thousand programs or policies that are steered toward uplifting downtrodden people, but you got sleezes lying in wait to mess it up every damn time. Dr. Dyson’s critique is off the mark because at the VERY CORE of EVERYTHING the Obama administration has in mind to do is about fairness and uncovering sleezy practices that for so long have served to cripple the progress of the poor. But good judgement is priceless, believe that! And Dr. Dyson discounts that underlying truth in his critique of President Obama.

And no I am not going to get into a long tennis match-like POV with any one. Take it or leave it, no biggie.

22. DCI74 wrote:

I think you make good point Logic. Public policy can’t make people care more about each other and from what I see in my city basic levels of respect are at the core of the issues in our communities. A public policy is not going to make the teenager respect the senior citizen living across the street.

23. ChgoSista wrote:

Damn, Logic–I can’t even say no mo’ after what you posted–AGREED!!

24. smackdown wrote:

Melissa Harris-Lacewell!!!!!!!!

25. econwhat wrote:

here’s the follow-up article:

Controlling the story at Harvard

http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2009/06/07/controlling_the_story_at_harvard/

I guess Harvard perceived that these two ladies broke the “stupid rule” and therefore were thrown under the bus and were denied their graduation diplomas and all the ceremonies that lead up to it as seniors. The stupid rule in a nutshell has nothing to do with ethics, it has more to do with getting caught in a situation that reflects poorly on the institution. Meanwhile, all the sleezy-weed-smokers that got dorm-door-delivery-service on campus on the regular’ from this now-deceased-sleeze-ball, get to shake their head when hearing about the situation that unfolded, then show all their teeth while taking graduation pictures with the family. When will you learn…

26. econwhat wrote:

old news, yet and still…an article from Casey Gane-McCalla, a writer, editor, rapper, producer and actor, author of the TALKING THE TRUTH blog. He is a Columbia University Graduate and previously worked in the non-profit sector:

http://newsone.blackplanet.com/nation/an-african-american-tragedy-at-harvard/