CNNer Equates Thomas Jefferson With an Accused Pedophile Hip Hop Singer #Political
In a segment obnoxiously dubbed “These Truths,” Cuomo called on Rye to give the argument for why we should tear down “all the statues” and remake the history of America:
After taking shots at President Trump, Rye lectured viewers (as if they didn’t already know) about the fact that George Washington owned slaves. “Did you know that George Washington was not only a slave owner but one who believed he was worthy of the very teeth that were in his slaves’ mouths,” she said. “Is that someone who you want to commemorate on the dollar bill, with a statue, with a holiday, and on Mt. Rushmore?”
“Yes, is what you'll get from 85 percent of Americans,” Cuomo pushed back, citing his status as the father of the country, the fact that humans were “highly imperfect,” and how you have to view historical people in the context of their time. Though, Cuomo failed to mention that Washington freed his slaves and rejected calls to be America’s monarch.
After Cuomo noted that Rye’s all-or-nothing approach to rewriting history was not going to get a majority of Americans on her side, she doubled down and attacked Jefferson (click “expand”):
RYE: But I do believe that should be the charge. I do believe that if, right now we're in a society that has -- just for example talking about R. Kelly. Right? R. Kelly has been canceled, right? Given this new term that exists on social media. Because of his predatory relationship with underage women. Rightfully so.
[TO CUOMO] You know who else had a predatory relationship with underage women?
CUOMO: Thomas Jefferson.
RYE: I give you Sally Hemings and Thomas Jefferson. Exactly. And so, the question is: should we be celebrating and commemorating people who were that treacherous to whole groups of humans in this country and I would argue no.
This is where Cuomo’s argument about viewing the full context comes in. Yes, we know our Founding Fathers were imperfect people, many owned slaves, had some destructive vices and tendencies. They knew it too; their writings show they were aware of the contradictions. But the Constitution they crafted has in itself the mechanism for change to be made; for the country to move towards that more perfect union, in time. It’s how slavery was abolished and the ratifications of the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments came to be.
But those facts were damned by Rye as she raged:
So, if 41 of the 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence can talk about these truths they hold as self-evident and then go to life, liberty and pursuit of happiness. Oh – oh – oh. There’s a large footnote. I wasn't considered human to them. So much so that the Dred Scott decision said so, so much so that we had to wait several years after the Declaration of Independence for the Emancipation Proclamation to even be signed.
She also invoked the names of African Americans such as Harriet Tubman, Crispus Attucks, and Frederick Douglas as if they weren’t known and revered by Americans, and demanded that they be put on Mt. Rushmore instead. Of course, there was no mention of a mob that tore down a statue of Douglas in Rochester, New York over the weekend.
In response to Cuomo’s note that Mt. Rushmore was carved with the understanding, they were immortalizing great presidents, Rye scoffed at the idea. “I think what I would say is maybe they were great presidents to someone. But who we really should be commemorating are the people behind ‘the great presidents,’” she sneered with air quotes.
Rye's denunciation of the Founders and comparing Jefferson to R. Kelly was sponsored Amazon, Mazda, and Uber. Their contact information is linked.
The transcript is below, click "expand" to read:
CNN’s Cuomo Prime Time
July 7, 2020
9:47: 10 p.m. EasternCHRIS CUOMO: Now, for some in society, what do we do about the monuments? Some say get rid of all the statues, all of them, all the Founding Fathers, get rid of all of them. All of them? You really think you're going to get a buy-in with the majority in this country saying we’re going to get rid of all the founding fathers and replace them with indigenous peoples and other heroes we choose today?
Well, it is true most of the Founding Fathers, certainly too many, had connections to enslaving people. Or, is all this monument talk a distraction from real changes that we need to on the table?
All good fodder for conversation for a new segment called "These Truths" birthed by friend-of-show Angela Rye.
(…)
ANGELA RYE: Did you know that George Washington was not only a slave owner but one who believed he was worthy of the very teeth that were in his slaves’ mouths. Is that someone who you want to commemorate on the dollar bill, with a statue, with a holiday, and on Mt. Rushmore?
CUOMO: Yes, is what you'll get from 85 percent of Americans. Because they’re going to say, “what he did was wrong but he was also the father of the country and you have to see your history of the context of where people were then. They were highly imperfect. This is an experiment. But if you hold everybody to that kind of standard you'll have nobody.”
And then, I don’t think you’ll have any buy-in on something that is – As we both know very well, the minority of this country cannot change what's wrong by itself. You need the majority to buy-in. That's a big obstacle to getting white Americans but non-white Americans also, to say we have to remake all our heroes in America.
RYE: But I do believe that should be the charge. I do believe that if, right now we're in a society that has -- just for example talking about R. Kelly. Right? R. Kelly has been cancelled, right? Given this new term that exists on social media. Because of his predatory relationship with underage women. Rightfully so.
You know who else had a predatory relationship with underage women?
CUOMO: Thomas Jefferson.
RYE: I give you Sally Hemings and Thomas Jefferson. Exactly. And so, the question is: should we be celebrating and commemorating people who were that treacherous to whole groups of humans in this country and I would argue no.
So, if 41 of the 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence can talk about these truths they hold as self-evident and then go to life, liberty and pursuit of happiness. Oh – oh – oh. There’s a large footnote. I wasn't considered human to them. So much so that the Dred Scott decision said so, so much so that we had to wait several years after the Declaration of Independence for the Emancipation Proclamation to even be signed.
And I think that we have to have those types of grounding conversations that, Chris, maybe it is that people will say, “You know, there's still my founding fathers.” That alone the patriarchal sentiment that exists in that, I think, also has to be reframed. Why aren’t there any black women heroes on Mt. Rushmore? We can't even get Harriet Tubman on the $20 bill after it being agreed to in the Obama administration.
We’re not talking about the indigenous people whose land was stolen from right from beneath their feet. Sitting Bull should be on the Mt. Rushmore. Crispus Attucks, who was fighting in the American Revolution before he was even deemed human, should be on Mt. Rushmore. Frederick Douglas who really shaped the way Abraham Lincoln thought about --
CUOMO: But those were all – the line was these are great presidents. And you know--
RYE: I think -- yeah I hear you. I think what I would say is maybe they were great presidents to someone. But who we really should be commemorating are the people behind “the great presidents.” The people who pushed them to their limits, the people who had them reframe thinking. That is what I believe this is about.
And the truth of the matter is, this country is built on a lot that's not good. And we’re in this time that is allowing us to reset and really think about what is right, what is true, and how we should go forward. There’s so much we were taught in history books that is not accurate. Right? I don’t think that we shouldn't hold up heroes or deem them heroes because it makes us feel better. That is not honest.
CUOMO: I think that where you wind up is -- as long as we don't let ourselves be consumed with this conversation. You’re right we have to have the right operating premise. But, changing who’s on Mt. Rushmore will help in some way. I think you would have to add. I think if you do addition by subtraction I think you'll have problems.
But if you add to our understanding of our collective history and who was positive and who wasn't. And change your education. Make it more fulsome, make it more honest and transparent about people, flaws and all. That's a good sign.
(…)
from Newsbusters - Welcome to NewsBusters, a project of the Media Research Center (MRC), America’s leading media watchdog in documenting, exposing Follow News Busters
Web Market Power providing the latest marketing tips, news and tricks throughout the industry.
Sourced by the online web marketing guys. Web Marketing Experts that know how to drive business uniquely using creative marketing methods, and self-sufficient social media strategies.
No comments