Jewish World Review May 12, 2003 / 10 Iyar, 5763

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Consumer Reports


Danny Glover's supporters start letter writing campaign with ugly, racial overtones


http://www.NewsAndOpinion.com | Over the past few days, we have been investigating the political views of MCI spokesman, and movie star, Danny Glover. It hasn't been a pretty sight. And this morning, Glover's supporters launched a letter writing campaign with ugly, racial overtones.

DANNY GLOVER is a well-known star of the screen who has traded his likeable image in for lots of money, as spokesman for telecom giant MCI, formerly, your friends at WorldCom. Nothing wrong with that, lots of stars do it, and Glover seems ready-made to pitch a product. But as much as I have always like Danny Glover on the screen, I have found his political views deeply disturbing.

Danny Glover says that the president is a racist. That's right, according to Mr. Glover, George W. Bush is a racist. Glover also says that American policies were responsible for the September 11th terror attacks that killed 3,000 Americans. He recently signed a letter praising Cuban tyrant Fidel Castro, and signed a petition that compares American troops with 9/11 hijackers.

Danny Glover obviously has a right to express his opinions. So do we.

Maybe it doesn't bother you that Glover calls our president a racist, while at the same time embracing a murderous dictator like Castro. Maybe some agree with Glover that America was to blame for the ruthless terrorist attacks of September 11th. Fine.

But it's also okay for the rest of us to be bothered by the political views of MCI's pitchman, which strike many of us as being extreme.

Today, Glover's supporters began a letter-writing campaign claiming that I was "patently racist" and a "right-wing reactionary." I won't waste my time even addressing the right-wing reactionary attack, because anyone spending a few seconds reviewing my record in Congress regarding human rights, Sudan, Tibet, the environment and privacy rights would find that label laughable.

As for the racist label, I'll just ask a few simple questions:

Was I racist when I challenged the Dixie Chicks, and supported a boycott of their concert? Did the fact that I agreed with the Baseball Hall of Fame when they cancelled Tim Robbins and Susan Sarandon's event last month mean that I hate white people? And did my inquiries into Janeane Garofalo's views reveal my feelings toward women, Hollywood actresses or short people who wear glasses?

Of course not. The race-baiting has begun simply because Glover's views are extreme by today's standards. And, his supporters think name-calling will scare me into silence. Nice try, but no dice. Because just as my parents taught me that all are created equal, they also taught me not to back down from telling the truth just because the heat gets turned up.

I'll continue following their advice, on both counts, whether Danny Glover likes it or not.

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Former Congressman Joe Scarborough (R-Fla.) hosts “Scarborough Country,” 10 p.m. ET, weeknights on MSNBC. Comment by clicking here.



05/09/03: Berkeley's Center for Middle East Studies funded by al Qaeda financial supporter?
05/08/03: Why they love Castro
05/07/03: Book industry finally opening doors to conservatives
05/06/03: ‘The Real Deal’ on ABC News: Another media insider expose
05/05/03: Why, despite recent successes, re-election is not a sure thing
05/02/03: ‘Capitol Offenses’
05/01/03: ‘The Real Deal’ on Hillary Clinton
04/30/03: The Iraq-al Qaida link: The elitists were wrong
04/29/03: Shiites biting the hand that released them
04/28/03: What the capitulation of Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister, Tariq Aziz, means for the rest of the world's tyrants
04/25/03: Noble-sounding names mask political motives
04/22/03: Bill Clinton should heed Paul McCartney's advice
04/21/03: The president with an I.Q. of a pot of clay has made New York City elitists look like a bunch of bumbling idiots
04/16/03: Russia, France and Germany: Not stupid, just immoral
04/15/03: CNN's too little, too late apology
04/14/03: Who's the first elitist to admit they were wrong about the war?
04/10/03: He's baaack --- and his terror tactics deserve an 'F'
04/09/03: Iraqi lawyer and American teenaged girl proved themselves to be 'The Real Deal'

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