Mary Mitchell Has To Go

I finished yesterday's piece by proclaiming this...

Mary Mitchell's racism is no longer in question. The only question is how
much longer she will continue to earn a living from it.

I have decided to do everything I can to make the answer to the second sentence as short as possible. Before, I delve more into that I think it is appropriate to review somethings I have already pointed out along with some things I have since learned.

It all started with a column that started like this...

Whites don't get it, blacks do -- and it's time to move on

That blatantly racist proclamation was followed by one just as racist.

At a time when African Americans are on the cusp of watching a barrier come crashing down, up jumps a divisive issue that is being driven by those outside of the black community.

...

There is no institution in the black community more respected than the black church. And the notion that white pundits can dictate what constitutes unacceptable speech in the black church is repulsive to most black people.

Now, I have only begun to really analyze her work however I have no doubt those types of racist rants are plentiful and at least one reader concurs

If you are a reader of Mary Mitchell, you already know that in her world, there is no right and wrong, there is only black and white!I could cite many of her writings and find it amazing that she gets away with it further, she never answers any of the queries by the public!The vitriolic rantings by Rev. Wright is only another platform to blame the White Community for all the sins of the world.and her defense of his rantings, just further pulls the community apart.

I have also discovered some new information since my last piece. I found some very disturbing information.

I'm on the third day of a six-day bus tour through Pennsylvania as part of the media contingent covering the Obama campaign, and I have heard only one voter mention the name of Jeremiah Wright. Even then, the young white male dismissed the controversy as irrelevant.

Mary Mitchell is a columnist not a reporter. Furthermore, she has been decidedly in the tank for Obama for the entire campaign. What in the world is she doing being part of a contingent "covering the campaign"? Those reporters are supposed to at least give the presentation of being unbiased. Can anyone imagine the uproar if a newspaper sent out a decidedly pro McCain columnist to cover the campaign? Is it any wonder Mitchell found almost no one that was "concerned about the Wright controversy". I doubt it was her intention to find any. Then, she said this...

People who are concerned about Wright can no longer remain silent. At 7:00 p.m. Monday night, friends and supporters of Wright will hold a rally and prayer vigil at Trinity United Church of Christ to show support for their church and their retired pastor.

Mitchell has in fact been defending Wright from the beginning and she continues to defend him to this day.

Furthermore, she has spent the better part of the campaign accusing the Clinton campaign of stirring up the race card

Hillary again playing the race card

Polarizing politics seen as her only way to slow Obama's roll

If that isn't the pot calling the kettle black, I don't know what is.

She even attacked Obama for not defending Louis Farrakhan

When Sen. Barack Obama "rejected" and "denounced" the support of Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan during the MSNBC debate last week, it wasn't his finest hour.

This has to stop. The irony is that she has been doing this most of her career. As such it is not only that much more obscene, but it is that much more difficult to hold her accountable. Mary Mitchell is free to say what she wants however she is not free to receive a handsome living from being a racist.

I believe she can be held to account and everyone and everything else that set up a system that allowed a racist.


Thus, I am starting a campaign to get Mitchell fired that I am calling Mitchell Gate. I am announcing right here and now that Mary Mitchell must be fired immediately. There are many things everyone can do immediately. First instance, her boss is Tom McNamee and you can complain to him by calling 312-321-2510, emailing @ tmcnamee@suntimes.com, or faxing to 312-321-2122.

In order for this to work though, the advertisers of the Sun Times and Mitchell's columns in particular must be held to account. I believe a lot of advertisers find themselves supporting Mitchell without even knowing it. If they were contacted many of them would do the right thing. For instance, by merely going to each of her columns online you find several major corporations and businesses: Land Rover, Intel, Grossinger GMC, State Farm, XM Sattellite Radio, and Blackberry. I haven't even gotten to any of the companies that advertise in their print paper everyday.

I believe that I should lead by example so I will not only contact as many of these folks myself but also post emails I sent from time to time. I hope others will share their emails in the comments section. Let's remember the stakes folks. If Mary Mitchell is allowed to make money from being a racist, she can open up a niche for such venom. If she is held to account, it will make it that much more difficult for the next racist to profit.

Now, to start the campaign off, here is contact information for each company I listed: Intel, Grossinger GMC, State Farm, XM Satellite Radio,Ford, and BlackBerry.

Also, here is a copy of my email to Tom McNamee

Mr. McNamee,

In the last four weeks Mary Mitchell has published two virulently racist columns. As her editor, you had the responsibility of approving these columns. By that measure I assume that your editorial positions include such thoughts as

Black people get it, white people don't, now it's time to move on.

Mitchell has made a living out of being a racist and you have given her tacit approval as long as you have been her editor. This is inexcusable. Earlier during the campaign, Mitchell accused Hillary Clinton of playing the race card and just yesterday Mitchell said this

There is no institution in the black community more respected than the black church. And the notion that white pundits can dictate what constitutes unacceptable speech in the black church is repulsive to most black people.

It is nothing short of brazen chutzpah for Mitchell to on the one hand accuse someone else of playing the race card and then play it herself so blatantly. In my opinion, it is nothing short of incompetence for her editor to allow it. That is exactly what you have done. Furthermore, Mitchell herself proclaimed that she was part of a group of journalists "covering the campaign" of Barack Obama. She has been in the tank for Obama the entire campaign. Since when is a columnist with a clear bias toward a candidate assigned to cover that candidate?

In fact, your newspaper has allowed Mitchell to make a good living being a racist and as long as you have been her boss, you are the main culprit for that behavior. You have an opportunity at long last to do the right thing and hold her accountable. I will be watching and I have started a campaign to have Mary Mitchell removed from her duties. If you don't do it I will.

Michael Volpe

http://www.theeprovocateur.blogspot.com/