First Lady called "ghetto girl" by Martha Vineyard's black elite

This is a really interesting piece. I am a historian and I study class, in particular classism within the black community. It is my belief that the black elite are a very insecure group of people. They are caught in between two worlds, the white world, which rejects them, and the black middle and working class, which they can't relate to. They are in so many ways a tragic group of people with no real community to call their own. E. Franklin Frazier's "The Black Bourgeoisie" explains it better than I can. And Lawrence Otis Graham's "Our Kind of People" is a revealing book that really speaks to this insecurity. I would recommend them both as good reads. The Obamas, secure and comfortable with themselves, don't need to be associated with the black elite. They have nothing in common with them. They are not out to prove anything to anybody. They are not trying to be white, nor are they embarrassed by their middle and working class brethren. They are who they are, take it or leave it. And they certainly are not tragic. So I guess that would mean, yes, Barack is "a man for the people" and in my opinion this is a good thing. Because if he was in bed with the black elite, how then would he be any different than GWB, who was in bed with the Texas elite? In regards to the comment about Michelle being a "ghetto girl" again this is a clear indication of how insecure and fragile the black elite is. This is merely testimony to how threatened they are by her. That this common woman form "the hood" is their first lady. That most likely if a black elite family had put in their bid for the white house (which I don't think they aspire to anyway), they would have not even made it past the Iowa caucasus. And here is this "common man" with his "ghetto" wife who is not only accepted and loved by "the masses" but also accepted by the white community as well. A feat the black elite will NEVER master! It is pure jealousy and quite fascinating. Sad too.

WELL SAID CARLA......If you call a 2 time Princeton/Harvard graduate ghetto I'd love to be ghetto..I find that insulting and funny at the same time because there's nothing ghetto about Michelle Obama, she always carry herself with extreem, grace and dignity..And I'm sure that these so called "Elite House Negros" probably don't have half the education that Mrs. Obama has..Affluent black folks kill me, they get a little wealth, turn their noses up, join the black Republican party and forget what color they are while forgetting that the white man don't give a care about them.

who cares what those uppity negroes have to say. They are just plain and simply jealous. At Least Michelle knows where she is coming from and their old money still don't make them a better person then the most elegant first lady. And just how come they never say this about Oprah? Oh yeah she has weight problems so she is non-threatening and she doesn't have the smartest handsomess catch in Washington. This piece should never have been printed. Those people are getting more attention than their sour asses deserve.

I totally agree with everything that Carla said as well as the other two posters, Stefany and Karen. I have absolutely nothing else to say and certainly wouldn't even want to dignify the so called "black bourgeoisie's" comments and certainly don't care about what they think !!! As an African American man, 4th generation college graduate, son of a prominent physician and an English professor, I don't have to be validated by a group of people who seem to believe they're less black than those who are not as affluent (I won't say fortunate) as they are !!!

I really have to laugh at this comment, ghetto girl, well all I can is please let all ghetto girls reach the same potential that Michele has reached, thank goodness they have someone that they can look up to & say I want to be like Michelle. It's time for the so call elite blacks to realize something, sometimes they are being accepted for what they have & not who they are. Live in that fantasy world that you have created, one day you will wake up to see the real world of us ghetto girls. Here's a little food for thought, there are some highly educated people that come out of those so call ghetto's. As a foot note,I was raise in Harlem & in my house right now, I have a letter from President Dwight D Eishenhower, a beautiful set of china that I received from him for Xmas. Put that in your pipe & smoke you elite afro american.

Carla I am very familiar with both books and they were eye openers. Lawrence Otis Grahams book kind of updates the orginal thesis of E. Franklin Franzier. Both are worth the read. Unfortunately, the black elite with their class differences live in a bubble and that bubble has become more and more obsolete as the newly rich obtain their wealth and take on a different set of values. Like the paper bag test this group use to use for acceptance, their way of thinking is being taken over by a new breed minus the snobbery. President Obama and First Lady Michelle are part of that new group.

Good point Ostend. The "old guard," as I like to call them, are definitely dying out. I would argue they've been dying a slow death since the civil rights movement.

This "article" is bad reporting about bad reporting. The Obama's have already been to Martha's Vineyard without incident, while he was a Senator. The few "elite" Black folks I know with homes on the Vineyard were strong supporters throughout the campaign, were over the moon when he won, and love the very idea of the Obama's visiting. Don't go for the okeydoke of getting mad about an article with a central point that may be entirely made up (by the New Yorker, not Ms. Reynolds).

I have never heard of such ignorant bullshit... People are people. It does not matter what their skin looks like. I'm not a Harvard graduate, but I have gone to school there, and the one thing I don't remember being taught was intolerance and stupidity. Does anyone know when the Obamas will be here so I can be of the rock?

Journalism took a roundhouse to the jaw for this one. This is a bad piece of work on so many levels. I don't even give this any meaning.....

Tonya Lewis Lee I wonder what her family background is. She is probably a descendent of the maids who are like the people who work in places like Saks, who confuse their minimum wage employment with the status of the place they are pushing for. Anyway that kind of attitude is not really even expressed among the white elite. Because if you know anything about history and you got any sense you realize that kings, nobility and all the sh*t was a result of physical strength, intelligence and beauty. The rest is just make believe. The king of Saudi Arabia's father was a leader of a bunch of tribesmen who fought and won less then a hundred years ago. They bestowed those titles upon themselves and now we call them Princes and princesses. This was not new it was always like that. So go figure.

"We are the only race that has prejudices against other members of our own race"...I don't think so. I'm of Irish descent and way back when, there was often a lot of tension (animosity?) between "lace-curtain" Irish and "shanty" Irish. There's an old quote, by whom I don't know, i.e. "The Irish they are a most peculiar race, they never speak well of one another."

We are probably the only race that has prejudices against other members of our own race. I'm pretty sure the term "white trash" was invented by white people. And the way Sarah Palin is treated? Whatever you may think of her, she is an accomplished woman, but the disdain heaped on her by country club whites (of both political leanings) exemplifies the sort of snobbery you allude to.

Affluent black folks kill me, they get a little wealth, turn their noses up, join the black Republican party and forget what color they are while forgetting that the white man don't give a care about them. By that, do you also include white Democrats? Can't you see your own bigotry?

So Michelle is trash? Yes, yes she is.

To hell with these lackey negroes and sambos and their kkkracker republikkklan enablers.

wealthy ghettos are the worst. they are lucky michelle and the girls will visit there! it will class up the joint.

So if Michelle doesn't pass the "paper bag test," she's ghetto? I guess it would've been OK if one of the "cotillion elite" had made it to the White House. These women should get a grip. We were ALL ghetto at one time, remember?

I dont feel sorry for Michelle Obama because she treat black people the same way in Chicago who are poor. WTF is the black elite? Most of the so called black elite are a bunch of hand picked safe uncle tom types who just ape white people. Go check the forbes list, its only 1 african american on it and 3 african people including oprah. Man its no such thing as a black elite, its just a bunch of black people with token jobs who work for the government or some white corporation acting like they are something they are not. I get so tired of these stories about slights directed at the Obamas, when they are so appeasing to racist white liberals. Barack Obama goes to beamont, texas and tells black people they need to stop eating fried chicken from popeyes, then goes to Iowa and tell fat white women they need health care, I saw no critical argument about that. The Obamas do the same self deprivating and race distancing actions in order to appease white people, Sean Bell got shot 50 times, Obama said respect the court decisions, then when the Iranian Governmetn elects Ahmadinejad he speaks out for the people of iran? Its seems the black community has alot of double standards, those so called "wealthy" blacks who never make it to the forbes list of richest americans and to the Obamas, who cares, we as a black community have bigger problems than the Obamas, and some black snobs who work for rich white people. I forget that many African Americans are assimilationist like the Obamas, so their is no greater honour than doing the white mans dirty work.. If its so many wealthy blacks in the USA, why is the Black median income the lowest in the usa?

Another good book that has a chapter or two on the black elite of Martha's Vineyard is "Walking on Water" by Randall Kenan. To Kansas Girl: Since you're an authority on "trash", just maybe you should first look long and hard in the mirror.

Wow! Joni L. Reynolds comments addresses classism and colorism, but I think her posting of this statement from black elite is worse than colorism (racism based on skin tones between African Americans). Ms. Reynolds should be caution with some restraints in relaying comments of this nature. All is does is play into white racist political opinions that blacks are not supportive of each other. Yet, the audacity for a black person to suggest that First Lady Michelle Obama is "ghetto" is ridiculous and offensive. Are you kidding me? I think Carla argued enough for everyone in her comments about classism and the insecurity of black elites. President Obama and his wife are for all class of people. This is the reason that Americans love the Obamas because they are not caught up in class, but based on their politics, their progression for all Americans is in favor or all class of people. Lastly, Mrs. Obama has a certain kind of swagger and flare that can not be purchased at Neiman Marcus.

The nerve of these people to speak in this manner about the "First Lady". I'm appalled that the people have their noses so far up in the air that the can't see the forrest from the trees. One thing the have to remember; take away their briefcases, fine suits, and fancy cars, they are still n!%%ers, and still couldn't catch a cab if alone in NY. This is the manifestation of how cultural conditioning has effected the black race. Michelle Obama is one of the more real women I've seen one the public scene in quite some time.

This is, oh so rich. Oh i made a paronomasia, with that statement. I am just too phuney.

THOSE of us whom may be considered part of the "black elite" clearly understand that TOURE MADE THOSE QUOTES UP!!! Descendants of people who fought the good fight, built our institutions of higher education, started the local insurance companies, funeral homes, went to fisk, famu, spelman, meharry HAVE NEVER AND NEVER WILL DOWN OUR FELLOW MAN IN THE FIGHT FOR EQUALITY!!! DON'T BELIEVE THE HYPE PEOPLE!!! WE "BLACK ELITE" WELCOME MICHELLE & BARACK WITH OPEN ARMS! AFTER ALL THEY HAVE SUMMERED AT THE VINEYARD BEFORE! IT IS NOTHING NEW! JUST SOME DUMB SOCIALLY UNACCEPTABLE NEGRO -TOURE- TAKING SHOTS AND THE CLUB HE CAN ONLY WISH HE WAS A MEMBER OF!

Much to do about nothing.

Much to do about nothing.

Black Bourgeois are just that -Black Boy Geoges.

I don't get what all the fuss is about. I'm willing to bet the author is pulling this stuff out her arse. Until you provide names to back up these quotes, and display a bit of journalistic integrity, I cant take this "article" serously.

The person who wrote this piece calling the First Lady, especially the First African-American Lady a "ghetto girl" is jealous (because she is not in the White House herself and because is not married to a man like the President). This person is despicable, has low self-esteem, I'm sure a Republican who is in denial. This person is also classless with ulterior motives. I'm glad our First Lady, Michelle Obama, has class and does not stoop to this person's level and respond.

It is a very sad commentary that as a people we need not worry about those who may despise our very being - when we can do a darn good job of destroying ourselves for them! How tragic!

If all ghetto girls take the same path as our First Lady, Michele took; we'll have some very bright, intelligent and brilliant lawyers after graduating from Ivy League schools. Gee, we are going to have an "overstock" of African American Attorneys/First Ladies!" I wonder how white/"wanna be white" american will adjust. You unhappy people need to get a REAL LIFE!

I agree with Karen who wrote on 25 Jun. These folks are so full of themselves they can't appreciate anything else. They are like those spoken of in Revelation 3 from the Church in Sardis...DEAD! This is not to heap praise on Michelle, although she is gracious and lovely for someone who braved the south side of Chicago to become the First and most beautiful President's wife in this country's history, as well as a Harvard schooled lawyer, who will probably do what I will for the one who spoke or represents the comments that can only be from a "hate-group"...pray, in earnest, for them. It is a wonderful thing what Christ did...He made a way for all things which includes the representation, and example, that Michelle and Barak are for the rest of us who are from the ghetto. Take a look at the mirror and see if you can tell who you are.

There were also "Ghetto trash" comments from FreeRepublic. I don't think these posters love OB and MO. Here's a sampling of comments: They make me sick .... The whole family... mammy, pappy, the free loadin' mammy-in-law, the misguided chillin', and especially 'lil cuz... This is not the America I want representin' my peeps. Could you imagine what world leaders must be thinking seeing this kind of street trash and that we paid for this kind of street ghetto trash to go over there? Poor kids. I hope they're not 'punished with a baby. Hopefully they won't deal cocaine like the Kenyan. This disgusting display makes me more and more eager for the revolution... I never actually wnated [sic] to be a pistol before but... DIRTBAGS! All of them. Our [White House] is now a joke to the rest of the world. We have no respect and this is not going to turn out well, mark my words. We will be hit, and much worse than last time. We are now seen as weak and vulnerable. Ghetto and Chicago thugs have taken over. When the thread came under wider scrutiny and drew negative comment on the web, it was again placed under review before being pulled.

Ok so I am one of those black vineyard people and I don’t know what she is taking about my set of friends who summer on the vineyard cant wait in till she comes.

We all know that bougie blacks are the most racist in this country, always have been, and, get them in a club like Jack and Jill and the like, it gets worse as they seem to think they are better for some odd reason. While Mrs Obama is a tad bit uncouth, that has nothing to do with her being black.

It is in a way durtying my mind reading about people that are fotunate to have money but inferior metally ,spiritualy and intelectually.It is idiotic at best for this want- to- be's to talk about such an intelligent black woman that way.They forgot how they ended up with light skin and hazel eyes {some of them} I know the Obama's wont give their comment the time of day. Just swap i off.Excuse my english i am Haitian-American and i have no tolerence for this type of stupidity.

Carla, An awesome response to this article!!!!

I am shocked. There are blacks on the Vineyard.

The comment in defense of the first lady are commendable and those critical of the slant, based on our history of struggle differing modes of survival. A captured people who have been brutalized,intimidated, coerced, etc.,(still are in a modified manner)are often at odds with each other. In one of toni Morrison's novels a remembered phrase,"the condition of our condition" may shed some light on this discussion and the many that is sure to follow before we are really and truely liberated.Within a week this old college professor from a poor working class family will be "chilling out." Hope to see the Obama's but if I don't, I will be glad to see all the other friends, old and new, and will wish them all well as I feel the same for all of my brothers and sisters where ever you are. It's another year and we are still here and God bless us all. Peace and stay cool.

THOSE REPUBLICAN HOUSE NEGROS WHO MADE COMMENTS LIKE THAT [ INCLUDING THE REPORTER FOR WRITING IT DOWN] MADE THEIR MONEY UNDER BUSH/CHANEY. WHAT CAN YOU EXPECT. THE GHETTO IS WHERE WE ALL CAME FROM. AND BUT FOR THE GRACE OF GOD ...... YOU FILL IN THE BLANKS

wait a minute. before we begin lynching the well-meaning and progressive black population in MVY, let's try to remember that this reporter chose to print an a inflammatory quote from an anonomous source. if the reporting were credible, why not reveal the source? at least give more background info on the source (m/f, age, occupation, length of residency, where residing, etc). and while we're at it, why not poll other black residents to see what the consensus opinion says? otherwise, there is no credibility to what was being quoted, and therefore no real issue to be addressed. in fact it's just ignorant pablum meant to stir up some muck. dont even waste your time with it.

So well said, Carla. These are VERY insecure people who would go to great extremes to hide their own past lives without wealth. They are mostly insecure because they no longer have the power that once came with being Black and wealthy. They can't snap a finger or make a threat and it holds any weight. Wealth and power are not synonymous. You can have wealth, but it's no match for power (e.g., MLK, Colorofchange, Sharpton). It's truly said they feel the First Lady is "ghetto" because she does not reach out to rich snobs, who, like them, have done nothing for the people. The President and the First Lady has shown them REAL power and their names are Barack, Michelle, Jarret, Holder, Sotomayor, Barnes...need I go on?

Dear Ms. Reynolds: Thanks for your insight. While our society's racism affects us all, many of us have forgotten that we are all human and are subject to all of its limitations. We get hungry, we bleed, we love, we hate, we eat and most of all we live and die. If this is absorbed at a very personal level, we will see each of us as who we are, just another human.

Dear Ms. Reynolds: Thanks for your insight. While our society's racism affects us all, many of us have forgotten that we are all human and are subject to all of its limitations. We get hungry, we bleed, we love, we hate, we eat and most of all we live and die. If this is absorbed at a very personal level, we will see each of us as who we are, just another human.

When will we all grow up to the idea that we are all one family under God. God is the Creator, the Father,and the Mother of all humanity. God is Love. As soon as we grow up we will grow up in love and love each other more than or at least as much as we love ourselves. When this happens we will do no harm to our environment, the creatures of this planet, and finally each other.

If the "ghetto" comment is true our so called elite is truly washed up. No wonder the Asians, Caribbeans, and other immigrant groups are running circles around us. Rather than uplift members of our own community and celebrating their achievements and appreciating their authenticity we sniff and snipe. Quit drinking the "haterade." Elite-ism stinks whether its white, black or "near to white." I stopped at a magazine stand in JFK on a recent trip to Nice, and I happened to leaf through a new black lifestyle magazine. (I think it was Uptown). It featured articles about "successful" African Americans and their homes and lifestyles. What I couldn't help but notice was aside from the featured artists/actors, etc. who do reflect the diversity of hues and backgrounds of our communities, all of the other features were about members of the black elite. They were typiclly mullato in complexion. They always talked about the colleges that they attended (Howard/Spellman etc., postgrad Princeton, Yale) and never failed to mention their familial pedigree, blah, blah, blah. It's like we have adopted this 1950 stick up the butt country club caricature of "our kind of people." It seem that American society at large has moved beyond that stereotype of success and class. I thought class had more to do with the content of out character, integrity and personal achievement. It's time the dinosaurs in the so called black elite wake up and smell the coffee. The world is changing fast.

"To call a Harvard lawyer a "ghetto girl" is absolutely ludicrous." "Ghetto" girls can't be Harvard lawyers??

@ Michele: I think you're being disingenuous. A woman who earns a juris doctorate from Harvard may be from the ghetto and may even have some of the tropes/sensibilities associated with the ghetto, but, no, she cannot be ghetto. As to the idea that the First Lady is ghetto, what makes it ridiculous has little to do with her education. It's ridiculous because it says that blacks need either be bourgie OR ghetto. She's not reaching out to Washington's black society so she's ghetto? Why would she reach out to them? She's the First Lady. Her calendar is the one to be one, not the other way around. I'm from Chicago, so I know firsthand that the South Side isn't one big ghetto. It's a part of town that has some ghettos and some nice areas (Beverly Hills/Morgan Park, Hyde Park, North Kenwood), along with areas that are just average. The people who are calling Michelle Obama ghetto are saying more about themselves than they are about her. And I'd be willing to bet that almost none of them have JDs from anywhere.

WOW, I am shocked to hear people of our own race making such a comment, calling Michelle a "ghetto-girl" that makes me laugh because I'm thinking if you call a 2 time Princeton/Harvard graduate ghetto I'd love to be ghetto..I find that insulting and funny at the same time because there's nothing ghetto about Michelle Obama, she always carry herself with extreem grace and dignity. I think Michelle is a beautiful women with a whole lot of class.

It is a shame that black people are belitteing their own race. Isn't it enough that white people do it. Why do we do it to ourselves. A lot of these so called affluent black folks ancestor's probably were a white man's bed wench, who produced these mulatto children who grew up to think that they we better then other blacks because they had fine hair and light skin. For this so called black elite to call Michele Obama Ghetto is a disgrace. I bet Michele has more class in her middle fingers then this woman who wrote this comment. She needs to look at herself because ghetto to me is a state of mind and she made a ghetto comment. She needs to check herself.

WOW! I don't know about this line though: "...We are probably the only race that has prejudices against other members of our own race. " ..my Asian friend said the Chinese are just as competitive with each other, and between the different ethnicity. And let's not even mention Indians and there "dark skin" "light skin" bias. When I worked in silicon valley, i heard a lighter skin Indian call a darker skin Indian a derogatory name, he told me we call people of his complexion that. Craziness. I agree though, with black folks it mostly comes down to jealousy/envy and the need for an "attitude adjustment" to those who do succeed- sad. Thanks for sharing.

I don't think that the "elite blacks" of Martha's Vineyard were told by their granies that they were the victims of sperms of white men that they cooked, washed, fed their children for during slavery. How dare they think they are better. If anything, they are rejects or worse-outcast of people who were not wanted but felt better about themselves because they thought "white was better" I feel sorry for you and those like you.

This is amazing..... So many of the concepts that I read about in the Book Our Kind of People by Lawrence Otis Graham were reflected in that "Ghetto Girl" comment. Will we ever overcome...... OURSELVES!!

After reading this article. I don't believe that the words were meant to be offensive. Maybe they were just stating the facts that Michelle actually grew up in the ghetto area of Chicago. But that's the great part of it all..... That "ghetto girl" is the first lady of the United States. So, who's laughing last.......

I think we should all remember the "Willie Lynch" speech. Some say that speech was a fabrication also but the premise is that no one has to do anything to bring us, Blacks, down because "WE" do it to ourselves. Unfortunately, that seems to be as true as the fact that racism is alive and well in the US. Why do we continue to do this to ourselves? Let's unite to fight the inequities that we still face. Let's work together people.

Black Elite= an insecure negro that "thinks" they are better than all black people but begging for the acceptance of any and all white people. Scared of their lives without money because they have nothing else to offer but a title; a poor white man would not want to be in their shoes as Chris Rock would say in bigger and Blacker "I think I will ride this white thing out. At the end of the day yearn for white acceptance but will never accomplish it so they stay out of reality and protect their selves with extemporaneous lingo about people who really earned the title "elite" such as Michelle Obama.

"We are probably the only race that has prejudices against other members of our own race" ...What? Can you tell me how this could possibly be true?

I am assuming the lash out against the first lady being called a 'Ghetto Girl' is to call it a lie because she really grew up in an elite suburb of Chicago! How else would you qualify to enter Harvard if you were not of the elite? Stop feeling sorry for yourselves and try to create your own society of the down-trodden instead of talking bad about people who have made a life for themselves and matched the white man at his own game. Maybe success, even at the white house, is a mulatto thing and being black is a good excuse to pull others down and complain about being black. So what if you don't have fair skin live with what you have and if you do what the mulattoes did and that is to rise above their skin colour then maybe one day we will see the first truly black man in the highest office in the world. It takes pride and self confidence to acquire success and it just may be that a fair skin provides a boost to that sort of thinking maybe being a mulatto does have an advantage. Think about it, without mulattoes blacks have very little to aspire to, so those who perpetually condemn mulattoes really have nothing else or just enough get by.

Get a grip! The first lady is far from a "ghetto girl," regardless of where she grew up. She is finely tuned and exceedingly humble. Oh, and I should mention, rather intelligent. Whoever begs to differ with me better produce her Harvard University degree. Let's embrace the success of a highly educated, hip, and yes, black individual who came from moderate means. The whole light-skinned, dark-skinned phenomenon is soooooooooooo 1800's. We are in the 21st century, and the wealthiest black woman in the country is dark-skinned and from a destitute background. Can u say Oprah Winfrey? Yep! That's right!!!

Our First Lady is Just that a First Lady(A Woman) who grow up in the ghetto, she is not the ghetto. what is the issue here. Please don't be distacted, We are Blessed people. just like anyone elso. lets not let our personal issue show our Ignorance. use your personal Issue as a point of refferance in your decision making for your our personal life, not for others. I said all that to say Our First Lady Is Just That,A First Lady(A Woman)

I am still laughing at the fact they called her a girl. Michelle is a very handsome woman indeed.

How dare you call the first lady a ghetto girl. She is one of the most educated first ladies ever, she is smarter then YOU our last President put together. Listen, you jealous hussy, ask the green eyed monster within you to shutup, and educate yourself on the real meaning of Ghetto. You may be surprised to note that the definition aptly describes YOU! Silburn

Just a minor correction here...Michelle Obama did not grow up in "the ghetto". She was raised in a working class neighborhood with a father who was a post office civil servant. Humble beginnings, to be sure, but by no means "ghetto". Both Robinson siblings attended Ivy League Princeton University, and education was highly valued within the Robinson household. BTW, I agree wholeheartedly with those who point out that that nasty little pus-bomb of a comment, supposedly credited to a maven of the Martha's Vineyard black elite is highly suspect. I mean, come on---an "anonymous source"? Not for a moment do I believe that the black elite of Martha's Vineyard view the Obamas in that way.

they are so nervous nobody will even care or know they were even alive when history gets written. but michelle will be known forever. ghetto or not.

Michele Obama and I share a birthday, January 17. She silences her snide critics with her beautiful heart in helping needy here in US. She's the best first lady theres been in my 50-year lifetime. We should all do as she does, and keep your traps shut dummies!

On other point, how dare you critisize people in or from the ghetto. I'm white, and I have black close friends, close as a Christian brother and sister can be, that lived "there" in their past. It's a place where people live, some bad, some good; better than you with your dirty mouth that should be washed out by some grand old lady from the ghetto, then tan your hide with a switch, teach you to keep your lip zipped! Watch what you say about my First Lady Mrs. Obama. Tad Toring

obamas my homeboy u all haters

The racism towards white people in these comments show that the race issues in America lie not within White America but within Black America. How can you expect to achieve racial unity with the language, slurs, stereotypes and insults posted from blacks towards whites? Until the overwhelming majority of black people get past race, as the overwhelming majority of white people in this country have, racism will continue to fester. It is not white racism against blacks that holds blacks down, it is the black racism towards whites that holds blacks down. Any black man or woman who achieves success is a "Tom" or "Republican" or some other derogatory label. Those blacks who understand this have achieved success and risen above the ghettos and culture that holds others down by denigrating them when they start to succeed. Why is it Clarence Thomas, Condi Rice, Thomas Sowell, and other sucess and conservative blacks are ridiculed by many blacks? Because they believe in personal responsibility and accountability? Because they did not succumb to the ghetto linguistics and culture, discarding them so they might achieve equality and success? The comments on this post are indicative of why there is so much poverty, illiteracy and bitterness in the black communities of America and demonstrate the barriers of racism that are put up by black Americans. Black American Princeton 1987

" We are probably the only race that has prejudices against other members of our own race. " Even though I found it interesting that someone admitted that blacks are prejudiced against each other; class, color, and "self-hate" against the community in general, I must disagree with the statement that "We are probably the only race that has prejudices against other members of our own race. " I think Hispanics, Filipinos, etc have color/class issues too. East Indians with all of their caste garbage have it really bad. These hatreds are so intense that they routinely led to hate crimes in their homeland. That being said, it is too bad that people who should be supporting Michelle are attacking her.

Just hearing this junk! Country and ghetto are the proudest names we wear. Those words are powerful. They stir up a passion of strength, wealth of knowledge, kindness in me that conquers the world. Michelle has demonstrated she doesn't give a hoot about these negative tones weaker scared people ascribe to ghetto. Like Michelle, I wear my country title proudly and am very proud of my accent. What does "elites" mean anyway? These self titled "elites" swcared negroes have profited from the strength, wisdom and power of those they try to put down. if we had to depend on those scary negroes we would still be on the auction block. That Ms G who said she was part of the black elite is a kook. Those schools fisk, spelman,etc.. were found and supported by the hard working, kind people who braved odds for educational rights for our future. They didn't make these sacrifices for us to become more ignorant and try to lord over others who don't have educational rights. There is no elite society anywhere except in the weak brains and wicked heart of ignorant, insecure, wicked people who have been getting their a--- kicked in revolutions, wars, etc.. throughout history by people who just aren't willing to put up with the s---. By the way, many of my family members and I graduated from Ivy league schools or so called white universities on academic scholarsips and self paid. We were pioneers to help ourselves and society not some dumb a--elites junk. We saw ourselves as students not giving a d---what other people thought of us. We are just as proud of those from traditional afro Am universities, Tech schools and those who didn't seek traditional education. One of the highest paid members in our family is a person who only finished 9th grade. His entreprenurial spirit was not hindered by family condemnation. He is self educated and can hold his own in any conversation. By the way, his money is legal. So just because Afro Am people who had less formal education supported your family businesses and universities as a community that doesn't make you better than them. My family motto is, "Class is a verb not a noun". The country version is, "No matter where you live or what you eat, drink, wear, travel, or live your a--gonna stink if you don't wash it, yor sh--still gonna stink and you are only uppity if it gets stuck up your a---.

Comments like this prove that "class" is not something money automatically confers. It was a stupid, ignorant remark by someone who is incredibly snobbish. This woman is an elitist in every negative sense of the word, and she is obviously blind to what so many of us see in our First Lady. Mrs. Obama has grace, class, and style, and there is no question about her obvious intelligence. There are also class distinctions among whites, as well as among every ethnic group, as quiet as it's kept. However,that is not the reason Sarah Palin is not respected. She has chosen to align herself with the likes of hate merchants like Beck, Limbaugh, Hannity, and others in addition to pushing her willful ignorance as "authentic." There are other "accomplished" conservative women, who do not put themselves out there like Palin does.

Neither of the two of this couple are "for the people". They are for themselves and regardless of how much education one receives it doesn't give one "class". There is a dignity and sophistication attached to the role of "first lady" (representative of ALL the people) and she doesn't have it. Read her Princeton paper!

What I don't understand is this? Don't they (the black elite) understand the blood sacrifices from people of a darker hue made to ensure their freedom. The elite would brag that their fore-fathers and fore-mothers came from humble beginnings (slavery), were laundry men and women, etc. Their wealth came from the scraps that their European ancestors left them, usually after years of turmoil from the black "woman" that was constantly raped, degraded, humiliated with the only strength the black mother had was envisioning the freedom for her children (the ones she had with "massa"). I see a lot of them being (once again I won't generalize all, to each his own)really white supremacist in black (semi-black) bodies. Wanting to really rule over the "lower" "darker" black caste. The aryan blood in them pushed for them to assume power and domination over those they saw as lesser. So these people were the first to rally for equal rights for coloreds. The only equal rights and empowerment they were interested in acquiring was only for them, not for all blacks. This is a fine example of socio-economic caste. It is a system that is practiced around the world, within all cultural groups to a certain degree or another. I used to think that racism was the biggest problem in society. Then I thought it was sexism. Now I'm pondering classism being the ultimate evil. Classism produces a slave master mentality and unfortunately you can look all around pop culture for images of subconscious programming to keep the masses "A-Sleep." Hatred is our global society's largest problem. Hatred and a Need for control. If we can rise above that as human beings...all people, then we can begin to move toward heaven on earth. Thanks for posting this article.

Sorry for that huge review, but Iam really loving the brand new Zune, and hope this, along with the excellent reviews some other people have written, will help you determine if it is the right choice for you.

The Black Bourgeoisie was a great read thanks to your suggestion back in 09. Thanks Carla.

calling any first lady ghetto is ghetto by the way... Martha Vineyard is like the drunk uncle that talks too much...

while i dont think its nice to call any names that are meant to put others down, i find it rather hostile that people are attacking other blacks like the black elite. Not all black elite derived their elite status from once being in the ghetto, black history tells us all that there have always been free blacks whom have been skilled laborers, land owners, business people, soldiers and even slave owners. Many blacks were never held as slaves, some bought their freedom, while others came up out of slavery. to put down michelle o's class, which was working class and not poor, is awful-but to turn around and everyone attack a black person who attacked a black person is just as heinous. Its funny that so many people wish to emulate the elite-fine homes, cars, clothing, education and careers but then they all gang up and Hate on the elites they love (all those successful folks-old adn new money are the elites folks. lastly, one doesnt have to be rich to go to the Ivy leagues of Harvard and Princeton, poor and working class kids get in just as or more easily based on test scores and scholarships-michelle and barrack did that.

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