If you missed the coverage of what happened, here's a brief explanation: An African American woman called into the show to complain about her Caucasian husband whose friends and family often make racial comments that make the woman really uncomfortable. The doctor immediately suggested that the lady might just be over-sensitive then proceeded to demonstrate some of the greatest insensitivity a person could muster. When the woman (very politely) informed Dr. Laura that they even use the 'N' word sometimes, the radio host pointed out that many in the black community call each other that word all the time and that it bothers her because it seems to be a double standard. She went on to point out that we now have an African American president, implying that people should just get over it and move on.
To her credit, Dr. Laura issued an apology today, but the damage is done. You just can't simply unsay the things she said. The interesting thing is, I think I understand where she's coming from, to a degree. No one should use the 'N' word and if someone is truly against racism, they should never justify the use of it under any circumstances. I also agree that it seems like the election of our first black president should have leveled the playing field a little bit and yet the opposite seems to have actually happened. Now if one doesn't agree with the policies of the president, they're accused of being a racist. There is a frustration rising among whites these days, but it does not give anyone a license to do and say the things Dr. Laura did yesterday. There are deep wounds in the African American community from years of bigoted mistreatment, but that doesn't give anyone the right to slap the 'racist' label on people who aren't.
I suppose racism may be more deeply rooted than ever before in some segments of both the black and white communities, but there are many of us that want it to go away once and for all and never rear it's ugly head again! It's true that some may be over-sensitive, but in my opinion the greater sin would be insensitivity! So instead of peddling bad advice to unsuspecting listeners, I would admonish Dr. Laura, Physician - Heal thyself!
