The whole Scott Brown attack against Elizabeth Warren over her Native American background has finally just completely pissed me off. My maternal grandfather was half-Cherokee. That makes me 1/16. More than enough to petition the tribe if I wanted to. Do I look like an Indian? Or can Scott Brown just tell with his magic eyes that can determine a person’s racial makeup. I have a feeling that Scott Brown’s magic eyes would determine I was not Native American.
In the old South a drop of African American blood made you black, and therefore subject to incredibly restrictive laws. So Elizabeth Warren doesn’t have enough genetic material from her mother to allow her to mention that background? Where’s the cut off point?
And do people really think that marking that box is going to guarantee you a job, slot in school, etc.? It’s not. It’s a factor. Just like me being a woman was factor to my getting into law school, but it wasn’t the sole reason I got in. It’s the totality of the person.
And dear god, we have real issues to address in this country, and this clown is going on and on about how Warren looks white.
Personally I wish we lived in a society where race wasn’t a factor at all. But we don’t. We’re getting better, but we’re still years from having that longed for “even playing field”. The starting blocks aren’t all set at the same starting line. Race is a factor. Gender is a factor. Socioeconomic levels are a factor.
So I’m going to send my fellow Cherokee sister some money today.
