Actual unedited video.

The NAACP has retracted its original statement condemning comments made by a former Agriculture Department official who resigned after a video clip surfaced of her discussing a white farmer…

“Having reviewed the full tape by Shirley Sherrod, who is the woman who was fired by the Department of Agriculture, and most importantly heard the testimony of the white farmers mentioned in this story, we now believe that the organization that edited the documents did so with the intention of deceiving millions of Americans,” the statement from NAACP President Benjamin Jealous said.

Jealous later posted on his Twitter account that he “Spoke to Ms. Sherrod earlier today and personally apologized. Plan to meet with her face-to-face the next time I’m in Georgia.”

The organization also urged Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack to reconsider Sherrod’s resignation from her post as the department’s director of rural development for Georgia.

Breitbart originally posted the video, which was quickly picked up by Fox News…

Sherrod defended herself in a number of interviews Tuesday, saying her controversial comments were taken out of context. She had, she said, used a personal experience from nearly a quarter century ago in which she confronted her own racism and learned to move beyond it…

White House cowardice in the face of loudmouthed blather from right-wing nutballs is not justification for terminating someone fighting on behalf of poor people.

UPDATE: Tom Vilsack has apologized and offered Mrs. Sherrod a job back with the USDA.




  1. MikeN says:

    Glenn Beck wasn’t calling on her to be fired.

    http://hotair.com/archives/2010/07/20/naacp-and-glenn-beck-agree-people-rushed-to-judgment-on-sherrod/

    The NAACP was applauding the racism. That she later became not racist is irrelevant.

    Even if it were relevant, Breitbart has apparently decided to use the left’s tactics against the left, and a primary tactic is to make unfair accusations of racism.
    Just see the Journolist response to the Rev Wright story:Pick somebody, anybody, and call him a racist.

  2. dusanmal says:

    a) Both Fox and BBart provided entire clip, NOT just edited part. Stop pretending that we live in 1984. Lie from get-go.

    b) I don’t buy her “lesson learned” claim. She speaks how she didn’t provide all the help she could because of color and how she “sent him to his own kind” not in apology but followed by laughter! And what the “lesson learned” she claims is – it is about class hate, not racial hate…as those are not the same bigotry. Title should be “How Shirley changed from racist bigot to class-ist bigot”.

    Just imagine someone claiming to have learned lesson from his violence while stabbing someone, recalling it years later as “And I stabbed that idiot and thought him a lesson, hahaha, … and I learned the lesson that violence is bad…” Would you buy it?

  3. bobbo, to the left of Obama says:

    I thought the “hypocrisy” of the left was that they are quick to call racism on the right, but slow to call it on the left?

    Thats not at all the same thing as falsely accusing others of racism.

    So–any right wingers here complaining of same wish to give a short list of who on the right has been falsely accused of being a racist? Every one I can think of over the past 5 years or so was right on the money.

    Prove me wrong.

  4. Make mine Kimber says:

    Funny watching the “progressives” defending racism.

  5. The0ne says:

    #28
    While I detest your ego views of things (for example, what you just said that you’re here to ‘inform” the unknowing), I whole heartily disagree with you. I rather enjoy the heated debates, arguments and name calling. It shows me a side of people that doesn’t come out in a clam discussion. Most time I just do it purposely, which I hope is OBVIOUS as I make provide tons of sarcasm here hahaha That’s not to say I don’t prefer the later…no no no. For scientific and technical discussions I much prefer the calm, rational, thinking order. For politics, Global-wah (Futurama), Religion, etc I just have a good time.

    See that guy above saying racism isn’t a big deal and we should all get over it? Well, I spent about a year of my life back in MN thinking what I should do about these racist white people there. I would have gladly taken up arms and snipe them easily and take the jail time. I have no problems with that, nor death. But, ego coming in here, being more intelligent I had to take that much time to consider why these fcks are the way they are, why their kids will most definitely grow up to be like them, and why this racism crap will continue forever. I can’t solve this problem, it’s not mine nor a single individuals. It’s a disease and all I can do is stay away from it.

    Sorry for off-topic, it’s a good day for me today.

  6. MikeN says:

    The NAACP had a resolution calling the Tea Party racist, so they needed to act quickly to keep that story alive. Too bad they didn’t bother to watch the video.

    Still not sure how the USDA fired so quickly.
    Sounds like something from the Clinton Administration watching the polls.

  7. bobbo, to the left of Obama says:

    #32–dusanmal==well written critique. Don’t know how “accurate” it is though. For my education, can you state the time when the class hatred excuse is made?

    To that point in a vacuum, do you accept that there is very little validity to what is called racial bigotry but that there can be very valid points/issues made to what can be called class bigotry? Not all bigotry is the same. Not all hatreds are the same.

    Hard to fit on bumper stickers, I know.

  8. MikeN says:

    How about Charles Pickering, the judge called a racist for his actions on a cross burning case.

  9. bobbo, to the left of Obama says:

    #35–theOne==ha, ha. So YOU give yourself permission to drop your pants revealing a throbbing red rash of an ego, but anyone else is to be criticized for the same? How very special of you.

    And yes, it is for knuckle draggers just like YOU that I post just as I have here.

    Knock, knock===and I hear the echo fade away into the deep recess of nothingness.

  10. aslightlycrankygeek says:

    So lets recap what happened.
    1) Months back, someone claimed he heard the “N” word from someone at a TEA Party Rally
    2) Andrew Breitbart offers $100000 reward for anyone with any proof of this event happening. No evidence is ever presented.
    3) NAACP attacks TEA party movement of having “racist” elements without any proof whatsoever.
    4) Andrew Breitbart finds video showing some people within the NAACP crowd applauding/laughing at Ms. Sherrod’s statements of her prejudiced actions in the past.
    5) The Obama administration fires her for feared of not being fair or looking racist.
    6) Anti-TEA party liberals on blogs everywhere such as this one somehow don’t see the connection between 1-5, and blame Republicans.

    The point of releasing the video was not to get her fired. Her being fired simply shows Obama cares more about his own political image than making a prudent decision. The point is that the NAACP is so quick to point fingers when there is no proof, but fail to consider they might have racist elements within their own ranks.

  11. Olo Baggins of Bywater says:

    #36 MikeN…that story is more bogus crap.

  12. bobbo, to the left of Obama says:

    Mike–I don’t recall that case. Got a link? I could look it up myself, but then we would be at cross purposes. Its also instructive to see what kind of reporting is taken as proof of the false charge of racism. In the normal course of affairs, there should be a few.

  13. MikeN says:

    Olo, what does that link have to say to whether this reporter thought it was a good idea to call Karl Rove, Fred Barnes, or someone else a racist to distract attention from an inconvenient story?

  14. MikeN says:

    http://nytimes.com/2002/02/07/opinion/07HERB.html

    Strangely this doesn’t mention the cross-burning case.

  15. Olo Baggins of Bywater says:

    Mike, and Brietbart’s timing for releasing this tape was done to accomplish what? I’ll tell you: Distract attention from the tea party managing its racist elements.

    The journolist story is garbage, pure crap, just like this story. When will you conservatives give it up already?

  16. bobbo, to the left of Obama says:

    Mickey–did you READ that article? A 2002 piece about what the guy was doing in 70’s?

    but I guess your standards are very high for finding a false claim of racism. Someone proposing to close a loop hole that might allow mix raced people to get married is surely not racist and is merely an issue of intellectual legal theory?

    So, like I said, there must a few out there, but not like the knuckle draggers are crowing about here.

  17. LotsaLuck says:

    Obama needs to invite all parties involved to the White House for another beer summit.

  18. MikeN says:

    Yea I read the article. It is not typical of the stories I remember which dealt with the cross-burning. Strangely the Google results show links of people defending against the charges instead of the actual stories. I remember Bob Herbert as one of the worst, but can’t find that column.

    I don’t consider him a racist despite his past given his later actions and the support of Medgar Evers’ brother. His actions in the cross-burning case were not racist, though a bit unusual. The summary I can see is 3 kids burned a cross, and one of the 3 was given a long sentence and the other kid and the ringleader got minor sentence, and the judge was upset.

  19. Al Gore Ate My Hamster says:

    Buwahahahaha…

  20. bobbo, to the left of Obama says:

    #49–Mike==so is it reasonable or not reasonable for some other folks to call Pickering a racist given what you admit his behavior was a bit unusual?

    Did he ever explain why he sought to close the loop hole permitting bi-racial marriages?

    Well Mickey==at least you did try. And you got as close as an “ify” case from 8 years ago. Maybe some of your brother mouth breathers will chip in and help you out???

    Or not, because they are all simply just full of it.

  21. Jmrouse says:

    Isn’t one of the BIG stories here who produced the edited tape in the first place? Whoever it was should have their reputation forever ruined for destroying this poor woman’s career.

  22. Olo Baggins of Bywater says:

    Jmrouse, welcome to the right-wing news world’s double-standard. In fact, Breitbart was behind the fake ACORN videos with the pimp and whore. His fluffer (O’Keefe) broke a ton of privacy laws, got people fired, and tore down ACORN all over fake video. Was he exposed and excoriated? No, he’s here doing this, releasing edited video when the timing is right. And will the real media focus on the real source of this controversy? Probably not. Who will be his next victim?

    While the liberal side of the house is all excited about firing and unfiring this woman, the right side is sitting on their hands while within their midst lies a repeat racist liar who is regularly coddled by the fair and balanced Fox GOP Propaganda Channel.

  23. hhopper says:

    Har! Trolls trolling trolls!

  24. Jmrouse says:

    #53

    It’s insane that anyone would take anything this guys says or produces seriously. The original video of this woman was a lie. Edited to smear her reputation and it cost her a good career. There is no excuse for this type of thing, right or left wing.

    I lean very liberal and voted for our President, but SHAME on our current administration for now fact checking this video.

  25. MikeN says:

    I have no idea if he explained it. One article says he regrets things in his past, but didn’t mention that, instead it was leaving the Democratic Party because of integration.

    His overall record is considered not just ‘not racist’ but actively anti-racist.

  26. MikeN says:

    Edited tape? It is just a clip, they cut off the beginning and ending of a 40 minute video. Let’s not make the tape provider into some master video guy. Another 20 seconds at the beginning provides some crucial context, maybe excuses the laughter, since the audience knows what’s coming.

  27. MikeN says:

    Bobbo, searching through CNN for racist, 3 names that stood out were George Allen, William Bennett, and surprisingly Pickering.

  28. bobbo, libertarianism fails when its Dogma blinds them to the rising threat of Corporations that can only be held in check by Government thru the will of the people says:

    Mikey==thats great. When I google, all I get is: Larry, Curley, and Moe.

  29. FRAGaLOT says:

    the most boring video ever made.


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