MSNBC PoliticsNation host Al Sharpton reacted on the “Trump court” striking down affirmative action on Thursday with, even by his standards, a long list of absurdities. Sharpton would claim the move was akin to “sticking a dagger in our back,” claimed his opponents believe black people are genetically inferior, and equated the decision with the arrest of Rosa Parks.
Jose Diaz-Balart Reports guest host Alex Witt asked, “What has gone through your mind in terms of how you believe this will affect specifically the African-American community?”
Sharpton wasted no time in getting to the hysteria, immediately declaring:
Well, I think that this is tantamount to sticking a dagger in our back because what they have said now is that it is unconstitutional to even consider race and given the racial history of the country, let's not act like blacks are behind because there’s something in our genes that made us behind, it was against the law for us to read and write until 160 years ago. We were enslaved 246 years. So it is to completely throw to the wind the history of why we needed affirmative action in the first place.
After absurdly claiming affirmative action was a conservative idea, Sharpton tried to portray the Court has former President Trump’s stooges because they won’t rule in the way he desires 100 percent of the time:
Secondly, let's remember that affirmative action was a conservative remedy that came out of the Nixon Administration, written by Art Fletcher. So now you have a right-wing Trump court because let's not forget Trump nominated a third of the sitting court, nine members, three of which Trump put on there, that is saying well, we'll protect the voting rights on Thursday, Friday, and Monday. And then we're going to pull the rug from under you in terms of you being able to have an even consideration.
Sharpton then went on a weird bender about how the ruling will impact corporations and their board members, before declaring, “This is a tremendous setback that must be resisted by every corner, including the Department of Justice and including states because what they have said is that it is unconstitutional to even consider race and I think it is unimaginable not to consider race given the history of this country and given the data that we still see in this country.
Returning to his earlier false choice that you either support affirmative or some theory of genetic racially superiority, Sharpton tried to tie the decision to Rosa Parks:
Blacks are still 10 percent less in terms of family wealth than whites. We are still less in education. So either you're saying we're genetically inferior, or that there is something that is unequal in society, and it is unequal because of law. It was against the law for us to be able to go to certain schools. It was against the law for us to be able to go to certain schools. That's why Rosa Parks was arrested. She was not given therapy. She was arrested. The laws were against us, and now the law has turned on us.
What really turned against Sharpton was his car-based video feed that ended up being only slightly more reliable than his ability to offer up a level-headed argument.
Here is a transcript for the June 29 show:
MSNBC Jose Diaz-Balart Reports
6/29/2023
11:08 PM ET
ALEX WITT: You know, Reverend Al, listening to Maya Wiley, she has just offered a comprehensive analysis of how this is going to affect multicultural communities, but specifically to you, sir, the African-American community in this country, you probably anticipated this was going to be a possibility, this ruling overturning affirmative action by the Supreme Court today. What has gone through your mind in terms of how you believe this will affect specifically the African-American community?
AL SHARPTON: Well, I think that this is tantamount to sticking a dagger in our back because what they have said now is that it is unconstitutional to even consider race and given the racial history of the country, let's not act like blacks are behind because there’s something in our genes that made us behind, it was against the law for us to read and write until 160 years ago. We were enslaved 246 years. So it is to completely throw to the wind the history of why we needed affirmative action in the first place.
Secondly, let's remember that affirmative action was a conservative remedy that came out of the Nixon Administration, written by Art Fletcher. So now you have a right-wing Trump court because let's not forget Trump nominated a third of the sitting court, nine members, three of which Trump put on there, that is saying well, we'll protect the voting rights on Thursday, Friday, and Monday. And then we're going to pull the rug from under you in terms of you being able to have an even consideration.
We're not even talking about a mandatory -- a consideration of race to higher education. My last point, my last point that really is frightening to me is now in the private sector, corporations, many of whom made pledges around the George Floyd movement, that didn't live up to them, can now say, well, we can't consider race in terms of contracts and employment and board members and what we do in the community because the Court now is saying it is unconstitutional.
This is a tremendous setback that must be resisted by every corner, including the Department of Justice and including states because what they have said is that it is unconstitutional to even consider race and I think it is unimaginable not to consider race given the history of this country and given the data that we still see in this country.
Blacks are still 10 percent less in terms of family wealth than whites. We are still less in education. So either you're saying we're genetically inferior, or that there is something that is unequal in society, and it is unequal because of law. It was against the law for us to be able to go to certain schools. It was against the law for us to be able to go to certain schools. That's why Rosa Parks was arrested. She was not given therapy. She was arrested. The laws were against us, and now the law has turned on us.
