Chicago Sun-Times columnist Mary Mitchell has proven that skin color is deeper than hate in her Sunday column as she scolded Barack Obama for distancing himself from the endorsement of the racist Nation of Islam leader, Louis Farrakhan. Mitchell scoffed at Barack's denouncement of Farrakhan as merely a "game" to placate racist white people and tried to pump up the legitimacy of Farrakhan at the same time. Shockingly Mitchell excused every hateful thing ever said by Farrakhan and said that Barack should have "found a way" to accept Farrakhan's endorsement "without denigrating Farrakhan's legacy."

Mitchell scolded Barack Obama because he tried to make sure that voters don't think that he, Barack, supports the sort of racism evinced in the past by Louis Farrakhan. Saying that, "most black people understand the game," Mitchell seems to feel that the only reason Obama eschewed Farrakhan’s praise is because all those racist whites would pillory Barack for accepting such an endorsement and so, she feels, he had to trash Farrakhan. Sadly for Mitchell, Farrakhan is a worthy representative of the black community and she feels that Obama is somehow being an apostate to that community for dumping on Farrakhan.

How Mitchell can excuse Farrakhan for all his racist comments is inexplicable. She seems, though, to merely accept at face value his word that he isn't a racist. One wonders if she would as easily accept the disclaimer from any KKK member that he doesn't really hate blacks... wink, wink... in the same way she so easily seems to take Farrakhan at his word despite all his continued racist comments?

But, Louis Farrakhan has a long and storied history of racist pronouncements against Jews and whites and has made many, many threats of violence against whites as well as numerous proclamations urging black separatism. He hasn't just made a comment or two that "might" be interpreted as racist he's made a career out of being a hatemonger.

During the 1984 presidential campaign of Jesse Jackson, for instance, Farrakhan threatened white America with a black insurrection. Farrakhan said he'd "lead an army of black men and women to Washington, D.C. and we will . . . negotiate for a separate state or territory of our own." This is Black Panther type rhetoric not that of a religious leader, for sure.

The ADL has chronicled many of Farrakhan's anti-Jew, anti-white, and anti-homosexual attacks over these many years.

Farrakhan’s bigoted and anti-Semitic rhetoric has included statements calling whites "blue eyed devils" and Jews "bloodsuckers" that controlled the slave trade, the government, the media and various Black individuals and organizations. In 2006, he blamed Jews and Israel for the war in Iraq, for controlling Hollywood and for promoting what he considers immorality during his February Saviours' Day address in Chicago.

In a 2007 interview with Arabic-language television news network Al Jazeera, Farrakhan accused Jews of anti-Semitism, charging that "The real anti-Semites are those who came out of Europe and settled in Palestine, and now they call themselves the true Jews, when in fact, they converted to Judaism."

There are dozens and dozens of Farrakhan quotes revealing his hatred for white and Jews. It is without legitimate dispute that he is an overt racist and a violence advocating cult leader. Mitchell's ability to ignore decades of Farrakhan's hate-speak is simply incredible.

Apparently Mitchell doesn’t even believe Barack when he says he disavows 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.

Here Mitchell winks at Obama's possibly fake denouncement of Farrakhan as a sop to racist whites. Of Barack's rejection of Farrakhan, Mitchell says that his efforts were "insulting" to Farrakhan and the black community.

Although Obama scored points for defusing a political bomb, his answer was insulting.

She goes on to paint Farrakhan as the sensible one by praising his efforts to smooth Obama's feathers and seems to praise other Nation of Islam followers for keeping their eye on good politics by "forgiving" Obama for his apostasy.

Other longtime supporters of the Nation of Islam are willing to forgive Obama for playing into the hands of his staunchest critics.

Forgive? What is to forgive? Barack rightfully let people know he doesn’t support the hate that constantly flows from Farrakhan. Barack has nothing to be forgiven for in this case. But here is Mitchell imagining that Barack must be forgiven for speaking out against racism! Simply unbelievable.

Then Mitchell ridiculously praises Farrakhan for his long "battle against racial oppression and hatred."

At 74 years old, Farrakhan has paid his dues in the battle against racial oppression and hatred. Over the years, a lot of black people have disagreed with Farrakhan on his stance regarding Israel, and many of us have regretted his ongoing controversy with powerful Jewish leaders.

This is amazing for its obliviousness. Farrakhan is an agent against racism and hatred? His entire history is one of fomenting such sentiments! Yet, here is Mitchell bold faced in her denials of such. This is simply a head spinner.

Mitchell ends her piece with a finger wagging in Obama's face.

Obama should have found a way to escape Russert's trap without denigrating Farrakhan's legacy.

This Sun-Times piece has to rank as one of the most obscene apologias for evil I've seen in a national U.S. paper since Walter Duranty won the Pulitzer making excuses for Joseph Stalin in the pages of the New York Times in the 1930s.

The Sun-Times should certainly be ashamed of this idiocy.