Morgan Freeman says racism has nothing to do with income inequality

By Scotty Reid

Last night on CNN, Don Lemon sat down with Morgan Freeman to discuss income inequality in the United States and his upcoming birthday. Both Lemon and Freeman expressed their sincere distaste for discussing the topic of racism. Don Lemon went as far as to insinuate that he would never talk about racism if it was not in the news cycle and his producers did not force him to do so. Of course, Morgan Freeman going as far back as 2010 has preached a theory that says that if you do not talk about racism, it would not exist. Given his long-standing position on the non-existence of racism in America, why Don Lemon would ask Freeman if racism plays into income inequality is beyond me except perhaps he has an ulterior motive to downplay the impact of racism and white supremacy on the lives of non-white people in a system of white supremacy.

Here is the exchange from last night between the two…

Freeman holds up his personal success in Hollywood and Don Lemon’s success as a major network news anchor as examples that prove employment discrimination does not exist and plays no role in income inequality. Freeman goes on to state “its (racism) kind of like religion to me, it’s a good excuse for not getting there”.

Of course Freeman is expressing his opinion, the fact that his opinions fly in the face of decades of academic studies and social experiments on racism in employment opportunities in America, just proves once again that opinions are like assholes, we all have one.

Freeman is a perfect example of the type of celebrity the Mindy Project star Mindy Kaling spoke about in her recent Harvard commencement speech where she said,

“What advice could I give you guys? Celebrities give too much advice and people listen to it too much. … Most of us have no education whatsoever”.

Freeman does have a high school diploma and turned down a drama scholarship to pursue his life long dream of becoming a fighter pilot joining the US Air Force in 1955. However, instead of be coming a pilot he was regulated to being a mechanic and radar technician. He then stated that he lost interest in being an Air Force fighter pilot because he did not like the idea of shooting people down. Sounds like someone making an excuse about not achieving a life long goal.

Perhaps closer to the truth is that he either could not pass the rigorous testing involved in becoming an Air Force pilot or perhaps racism played a role in his dreams being deferred but you will never hear that from Freeman. It was after getting out of the military that Freeman fell back on acting for which he had a natural talent. However, one does not have to be highly educated to know that racism is alive and well in the United States, all one has to do is pay attention.

Freeman does remind me of another black television icon, Bill Cosby. Like Cosby, Freeman spent the majority of the civil rights movement and the parallel black liberation movement sitting on the sidelines choosing not to take part in the fight for equal rights but instead, spent his time on Broadway entertaining white people. Freeman was not a Freedom Rider but he did have a role in the 1967 off-Broadway play called “The Nigger Lovers” which was about black and white people who risked their lives to integrate the national bus system in America.

Based on comments I recently read gave me a little more insight into this black man who has such a disdain for discussing racial issues except when he is denying racism exists. There is that one time he said President Obama made racism worse by talking about racism and he did call the Tea Party racist in defense of Obama. Freeman is not terribly consistent. How could President Obama make something worse that in Freeman’s mind does not exist but then to accuse the Tea Party of non-existent racism does not make any sense. What does make sense is that Freeman is not being very honest about racism and denies its existence so that he can be viewed as a non-threatening black man in the system of racism and white supremacy.

Keith Ponder, an extra in the blockbuster movie Glory, recalled when he met Denzel Washington and Morgan Freedom on the set. His interactions with both men were vastly different experiences.

Ponder wrote,

“I’ve never cared for Morgan Freeman. Met him on the ‘Glory’ set 25 years ago. Denzel was cool as hell with all of the brothers. Freeman was a straight Tom. He used to have a scowl on his face when he had to deal with the Black extras and a watermelon grin when he was dealing with Whites.”

If Morgan Freeman were sincere in his statements about non-existent racism in America, he would simply state no comment when asked about it. Remember, Freeman believes if we did not talk about racism it would not exist but instead he spews post-racial nonsense. One might say he has an agenda and that agenda seems to be confusing people about racism and white supremacy. Morgan Freeman is a coward and worse, he is acting as the proxy for racist men and women in the system of white supremacy.

While Morgan Freeman is doing his part to make racism an outdated notion used as an excuse by underachievers, he certainly believes that gays in America are discriminated against and his lent his voice to several political ads promoting “marriage equality”. I’m almost sure that is what Don Lemon would rather spend his time on CNN discussing.