Tavis Frustrated with Panel and Audience at State of Black Union

[Tess99]

Man, this State of the Black Union is awesome and completely different from last year and it just shows how even the toughest critics in the Black community have rallied behind Obama. Last year, some of those same people sitting on the panel right now were dissing Barack big time. Last year, the audience booed and hissed at the mere mention of Obama's name. Last year, it was a pro-Clinton panel and a very pro-Clinton audience. This year, not even close.

First, Jesse Jackson gave a mini speech/sermon about why Obama is who this country needs right now, and the audience and some panelists were brought to their feet and cheered for about 2 minutes. Tavis was ticked off about that and said no more stumping for candidates. LOL. Well, there's been about 3 more "stump speeches" for Obama on that stage and Tavis is tired of hearing it!

Oh, this is awesome.

And for white DU'ers who keep claiming that this is going to hurt Obama, you have no idea what you're even talking about. Let me let you all in on a little secret. Tavis is not our "leader". That's a label you all have put on him and he's graciously accepted it. Tavis has been roundly verbally beat up by black folks since he started openly shilling for Hillary and bashing Barack after she lost Iowa.

Anyway, glad to see the audience and the panelists stand up for Barack against Tavis. I still like Tavis, but he's shown himself to be a very jealous man and a liar at times.

[tishaLA]

1. It's really been enlightening

and it's always energizing, year after year.

[splat]

2. What were they dissing about Obama last year?

[tishaLA]

3. He was announcing his candidacy

on the same day so he couldn't make it.

[Tess99]

4. They were dissing him because

they were saying that he should have announced his candidacy at the State of the Black Union.

Tavis, is now defending his stance on Obama. He's getting pissed. Now, Jesse's defending Barack again. Man, this is good!

Ok, anyway, last year Obama announced his candidacy on the same day.

Oh, audience HISSING at Tavis!!

[Connie_Corleone]

5. I wasn't watching, but Obama announced his candidacy on the same day...

as the state of the black nation last year. I guess Tavis wanted Obama to announce it at the forum. If Obama did that, then he would've been cast as the "black" candidate.

[Radical Activist]

38. Sounds like Tavis is all about Tavis.

There are about a million people who all think their event is the most important one for Presidential candidates. I bet Obama has 1,000 other invitations for today alone that all DEMAND Obama be there or else it means he doesn't care about X group, cause or town.

[Tess99]

6. Michael Eric Dyson defending Obama!! Audience cheering!

[Connie_Corleone]

7. He's doing a damn good job!!

[ecstatic]

10. he raised good points, but I don't like the way he delivered those points

[K Gardner]

23. I agree with that. Only one more irritating than Dyson is his wife.. argghh ! lol

[ecstatic]

8. Michael Eric Dyson is irritating me

[Tess99]

14. that's just his style. Very hip-hop.

[tishaLA]

9. Stop playa hating on Negroes!

Go Dyson

[Cha]

60. Wow! Great! So much better that

Obama stayed on the vital campaign trail!

[cali]

11. well, that tickles this

white lady pink. Thanks for the report and analysis. As I don't have TV, I can't watch it.

[tishaLA]

13. cali you can watch it on the internets

[monmouth]

12. And again, Obama using good judgment by not attending..Good on him. n/t

[ecstatic]

15. Is Tavis admitting that it's fear that's holding him back from supporting Obama?

Hmm...

ETA: Afraid that young, newly interested voters are going to be hurt beyond repair if Obama loses.

[K Gardner]

17. Tavis is "concerned" that people are going to be "crushed" if the nominee isn't

who they want it to be. That's what I'm gathering.

[Tess99]

18. Sounds like it. He's wants to go with a winner and still believes

after 11 losses in a row, that Clinton's a winner. What a genius! LOL

[ecstatic]

20. LOL! nt

[K Gardner]

21. *snickersnort*

[Kahuna]

33. He is a freakin idiot. I have very good judgment about these things. I

never liked him. He always seemed to full of himself for my taste.

[Forkboy]

61. No, he's not. And it saddens me to see you say that.

Whether he supports Obama or not, claiming he's full of himself and an idiot is sad. What do you know about him other than his show, if I may ask?

The third oldest of ten children, Tavis Smiley grew up near an Air Force base in Kokomo, Indiana, where his father was a master sergeant and his mother a Pentecostal minster.

Smiley took an interest in politics from an early age, and in high school was voted class president. He attended Indiana University, where the death of a classmate at the hands of the police first made him aware of the issues facing the African American community. Convinced that he wanted to pursue a political career, he spent a semester as an intern in the office of Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley and graduated from Indiana University with a degree in law and public policy.

After graduating, he returned to Los Angeles where he worked as an adviser to the City Council president and ran unsuccessfully for a council seat. Soon after his electoral defeat, Smiley started the Smiley Report, a 60-second radio news commentary. The report's popularity earned Smiley his own television talk show on Black Entertainment Television, BET Tonight with Tavis Smiley.

The show was extremely popular among African Americans and Smiley earned national recognition for an eclectic program that featured interviews with the likes of Bill Clinton, Ice Cube and Pope John Paul II. In April 2001, thousands of Smiley's viewers were outraged when BET terminated his contract.

Since his departure from BET, Smiley is now a correspondent for ABC on Prime Time Thursday and Good Morning America, as well as a commentator for CNN. He also hosts his own television show on PBS-TV, The Tavis Smiley Show .Smiley also hosts his own signature show on National Public Radio, The Tavis Smiley Show from NPR, a first for an African American. He has authored five books, including How to Make Black America Better, and also writes for USA Weekend.

Throughout his career, Smiley has used his visibility to lead numerous successful public advocacy campaigns, among them, saving the popular Fox television show Living Single from a scheduled cancellation, convincing Sotheby's to donate slave artifacts intended for auction to an African American history museum, and pressuring prominent marketing and advertising firms to spend more money in the black community. In 1999, he founded the Tavis Smiley Foundation, which funds programs that develop young leaders in the black community.

Smiley's success has brought him numerous awards and honors. He received a black Emmy Award in 2000, as well as a Congressional Black Caucus Harold Washington Award the same year. In 2001, he was honored with the NAACP President's Image Award, the Brotherhood Crusade's 2001 Walter Bremond Pioneer of African American Achievement Award and the Los Angeles Press Club Headliner Award.

I believe that you have good judgement, but not on this one. Rethink your antagonism towards him and where it comes from, please.

[GarbagemanLB]

16. I understand the purpose, but just the name makes me sort of cringe. It was a really good idea to no

t go.

[IndyOp]

19. I am glad to hear people are standing up for the person they believe in - but don't take Tavis down!

Tavis is a good man -- he is an Indiana University Alumnus -- virtually the only one that I am proud of -- don't take that away from me!

:hi:

[K Gardner]

22. I don't see that happening, Indy Op :-) He's entitled to his opinion !

[Tess99]

26. People still appreciate Tavis

but what is that we are turned off by his shilling for Hillary. We don't want a Taylor Marsh in our commnity. He's not that bad, but he has a penchant for lying on Barack that is on the way to Taylor Marsh territory. Don't say that you care about Black folks, and then turn around and claim Barack Obama doesn't care about black issues, yet you refuse to hold Hillary to the same standards. This man had Hillary on his show and didn't even challenge her on her stance on mandatory sentencing, which is killing a generation of black men.

People aren't falling for it anymore and Tavis is ticked off about that.

[K Gardner]

29. I didn't know that, Tess.. good info, thanks !

[IndyOp]

30. Mandatory sentencing is a nightmare -

and I think that everyone who interviews Hillary ought to specifically ask her if, as President, she will sign a bill to repeal the law that her husband signed that provided for much harsher penalties for possessing crack as opposed to powdered cocaine.

[NoBorders]

32. Good to know.

Thanks for that perspective.

[Yossariant]

43. Do you know Obama's stance on mandatory sentencing?

[Tess99]

47. Of course I do.

Why would I criticize Hillary and not even know where my own candidate stands on the issue? Give a black woman some credit.

[Yossariant]

48. You don't sound like you do.

OBAMA'S CAUTION ON DRUG SENTENCING

...

That vacillation became evident as he kept talking about crack-vs.-powder sentencing, which has come to symbolize racial injustice in criminal justice. He said that if he were to become president, he would support a commission to issue a report "that allows me to say that based on the expert evidence, this is not working and it's unfair and unjust. Then I would move legislation forward."

That was a puzzling statement because the US Sentencing Commission, created by Congress in 1984, has long said the system is not working and reaffirmed in April that the 100-to-1 ratio "significantly undermines" sentencing reform...

"Even if we fix this, if it was a 1-to-1 ratio, it's still a problem that folks are selling crack. It's still a problem that our young men are in a situation where they believe the only recourse for them is the drug trade. So there is a balancing act that has to be done in terms of, do we want to spend all our political capital on a very difficult issue that doesn't get at some of the underlying issues; whether we want to spend more of that political capital getting early childhood education in place, getting after-school programs in place, getting summer school programs in place."

http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2007/08/15/obamas_caution_on_drug_sentencing/

[Forkboy]

62. Yes he is, and the ones tearing him down are sad.

[yourguide]

24. we were watching this earlier...

and turned it off after finding out HRC is not supposed to speak until 4:30. sorry I missed this and thanks for the updates.

[REACTIVATED IN CT]

25. Is it on the TV? n/t

[K Gardner]

28. Yes, CSpan.. its live..

[REACTIVATED IN CT]

59. Thanks . I caught part of it on CSPAN radio on XM

when I went out - I will watch for re-broadcasts on the teevee later

[NoBorders]

27. I've been listening to warren ballantyne and other

black radio hosts lately, for the first time in my life (came across it kinda randomlyl). It seems pretty clear to me that the 'black community' is NOT coming down on the Obama for not attending this thing. Callers repeatedly say thing believe 'Obama is running for pres of the united states, not the president of black america.' They don't seem to hold it against him for not going.

The general feeling seems to be leaning against Smiley.

[knowledgeispwr]

31. Exactly.

People (in general) understand that Obama can't be pegged as being an exclusively "black candidate" so they don't expect him to go to every black event. People are smarter than what we give them credit for sometimes.

[noiretextatique]

36. obama won't get much criticism for not attending

he's busy campaigning.

[Tess99]

39. Apparently, white Hillary supporters

seem to think they know the black community better than actual black people do. To see them post nonsense claiming that not attending this is gonna be the end of Obama shows just how out of touch they are with black people. I don't know a black person who knows about this situation that's siding with Tavis. He is getting ripped a new one by black folks and he deserves it. This is more about his ego and boosting his "girl" Hillary than it is about the good of the black community.

He's been hosting this forum for the past 10 years, and the only thing to come out of it is money for Tavis. Period.

Oh, and I have to wonder if those Hillary supporters trying to rake Obama over the coals for this realize that Tavis's event is not the only black forum! There are lots of forums like these by different black groups throughout the year, it's just that this particular event is televised. So is Obama supposed to go to all of those forums throughout the year? No. So this is just more phony Clinton outrage and arrogance. Black folks are behind Obama on this and they really ought to quit claiming they know what's going on in our community more than acutal black people do. It's ridiculous.

[NoBorders]

56. It's kind of funny to see them jump on this

as if they're sure its some sort of major blow for him. They're clueless.

[goclark]

40. That's my take on it as well

I'm African American and I'd much rather see Obama in Ohio and Texas today.

He is a quality and historic representative of the Black community as he reaches out to ALL people.

His mission on this date is to ALL people. We African Americans are his "home folks" he does not have to convince us in front of Tavis that he is in our corner.

Obama is WORKING today! He has been in LA and gotten the votes of the good folks in LA this year,today we are pleased and proud to share him with the world.

Tavis can take a leap today ~ at least he is getting a feeling about the way we are feeling about him on this election issue.

What he needs to say is ,"I AM SUPPORTING HC and that is my right as a citizen of the US!"

That would be the honest thing to do.

[NoBorders]

55. Yes. Would you rather have him kissing Smiley's ass or out trying to win the nom?

I know my answer.

[goclark]

58. mine too ~

[NDambi]

65. BINGO

[my3boyz]

34. Wow...it has to be uncomfortable for Clinton sitting through all of that.

Not that I care because I don't care for at all anymore.

[wndycty]

35. She is not there . . .

. . .she will be there this afternoon.

:kick:

[ecstatic]

44. I was wondering about that... nt

[anamandujano]

57. If Hillary gets jeered when she's there, it's going to be on the news

incessantly.

It won't help Obama at all, to put it mildly.

[tishaLA]

37. Dyson is on fire

about class warfare in the black community, etc. I really like him

[Window]

41. Thanks for the updates. I haven't been able to find it anywhere.

I know C-Span will air the conclusion from 2 - 6 PM. I can probably see it in it's entirety throughout the night on C-Span.




Peace:thumbsup:

[FrenchieCat]

42. I had posted last night, an Email that has been going around in the Black community

that was written by a Black head Deacon from a very prominent Black church. It pretty much sums up how a lot of Black folks feel about Mr. Corporate McDonald I've got a book to sell Smiley .....

Subject: Can you believe this...Tavis Smiley attacking Barack Obama?
Date: Fri, 15 Feb 2008 17:43:07 +0000

> Good morning,
>
> Apparently Tavis Smiley went off on Barack Obama this morning because he
> declined an invitation to participate in Tavis Black America symposium.
>
> Tavis Smiley making an issue out of Obama not attending his Covenant with
> Black America Symposium is reckless, thoughtless, and just plain selfish.
> You would think that he is smart enough and progressive enough to realize
> the difference between attending a symposium for Black America and running
> a campaign to run America.
>
> Our self proclaimed leaders can't seem to see that the same old thing is
> gong to get us to the same old place. Jessie Jackson ran on a platform
> that targeted black america, he got real far. Obama can't afford to be
> pigeon holed into being the Black candidate if he wants to win. But he
> does understand he is Black. Look at the facts. His mother is white, and
> his black father left when he was two years old. He was raised by his
> white grand parents. However he still married a Black Wife, and has Black
> Baby's. I am sure he had the opportunity to marry a white woman and
> further separate his later generations from Black america. He has a law
> degree from Harvard, hell even a white father would give their white
> daughter to him. But he married a black woman and proceeded to serve as a
> civil rights lawyer in Chicago.
>
> Tavis, Tom, and Julian have done a lot of great things in our community.
> However, their reactive victim mentalities are continuing to cripple us.
> They have gotten rich off of playing to the black victim role. Yes there
> are tragedies happening to black people in America, but the biggest
> tragedies are the ones that we commit to one another by not telling each
> other the truth.
>
> Bill Cosby told the truth. And the truth is, running America is more
> important than Tavis's meeting. Being able to tell my future son that he
> can be president, is more important than Tavis's meeting and his book.
> Black boys seeing another clean black man that is not rapping, singing, or
> dancing is more important than Tavis's meeting.
>
> Why is Hillary showing up? She has to. Obama is eating into her base,
> therefore she needs to come to the biggest dog and pony show Black Am erica
> is having this year to try and steal potential supporters. And in the
> typical house negro mentality, Tavis and friends give her praises for
> this. All the while Obama is in the field trying to fertilize the land in
> order to grow change.
>
> Your summit is supposed to be about pushing black america forward in
> america. What better example of that is there than the Obama's? Isn't
> the goal to encourage black america, or for Tavis and friends to encourage
> black america.
>
> The civil rights movement was successful because Dr. King understood that
> it had to be about the civil rights of all americans. Black america was
> positively affected, but it would not have been such a movement if it was
> just a black thing. If you want Black america to progress it needs to be
> sold as a benefit to all america. Not just b lack america. Obama seems to
> understand this. Why can't Tavis.
>
> I encourage everyone that gets this email to do what Tom and Tavis do when
> they see injustice. Flood their faxes and e-mails with your thoughts and
> tell them to leave this man alone. They don't have to support him but
> they don't have to hate on him. The crabs in a barrel mentality has to
> cease.
>
> Come on Tavis...don't think so small, especially when you're attempting to self-promote at the expense of others. You are walking on thin ice!

[ecstatic]

46. Great letter! nt

[NDambi]

66. Very true and on point

[adoraz]

45. haha thats awesome

glad to hear this

[angie_love]

49. Stop this.

"And for white DU'ers who keep claiming that this is going to hurt Obama, you have no idea what you're even talking about."

Please stop talking like that, it isn't helpful. Plenty of white ppl support Obama, don't make this a race thing. I don't like it when Hillary supporters do it too. There are also black ppl who are against Obama on this board.

[jasmine621]

51. And folks are trashing Tavis just as they did Hillary. Tavis was all about

this forum years before Obama came on the scene and Tavis does not consider himself "our black leader." I do not subscribe to Obama being our leader either. You folks are just sickening with this stuff. I hope the crowd is gracious to Hillary. She is courageous for even accepting the invitation. Tavis has always been a champion for blacks especially poor blacks. He took great risks in putting a black agenda forward and many here now criticizing him never supported his efforts. You will get Obama as your nominee. I only hope you will be satisfied to stop this trashing of each other.

[angie_love]

52. Jasmine I hear it on hillarys side too, please read

I was looking over the comments at Taylor marshs website and you wouldn't believe the ugly things they said about Obama b/c he was beating hillary. They said "I'll start believing blacks when they think with their brain and not the color of their skin", they called black ppl traitors and other disgusting racist things. I don't like hearing this racist talk on both sides. I'm not a black person but I'm empathetic and it is discouraging to see this stuff in 2008.

[FrenchieCat]

50. Tavis Smiley just used up 10 minutes to hawk his books and other corporate sponsored projects....

and now a coporate executive from WalMart is Speaking. It all seems pretty awkward.

Oh, and when he announced that Hillary was the only one who accepted the invitation to speak, and that she would be there at 4:30.....there was not one applause from the audience; not even one.

[MethuenProgressive]

53. I'm watching it on C-Span so I know the truth about what you are typing.

Why do this? Who do you think you're "helping"?

[TexasObserver]

54. Amen!! Preach it!!

It's been a huge shift, and primarily due to two things:

1. The shine is off the Clinton name, due exclusively to what the Clinton campaign has said and done the past two months.

2. Obama has proved to blacks that he IS a legitimate candidate for president. Many blacks were afraid of falling in love with him, only to have their hearts broken when white America rejected him. White America didn't reject him, and he has become the man most Democrats and most Americans want to lead them. This is something blacks never expected to see happen in 12 short months. And who can blame them for thinking that?

[WillYourVoteBCounted]

63. thanks and cross posting your OP to the Daily News

here:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=4729380&mesg_id=4729380

Thank you for writing this up, and question - do you blog anywhere?

If not, I hope you will start up a blog over at TPM Cafe
http://tpmcafe.talkingpointsmemo.com/

[NDambi]

64. Amen sista

[WillYourVoteBCounted]

67. NC Op Ed: "A big frown to Smiley's attitude on Obama"

Feb 23, 2008 02:40 AM
A big frown to Smiley's attitude on Obama
Barry Saunders, Staff Writer
Take my wife - please. That's not just one of the funniest lines ever uttered -- by comedian Henny Youngman. It's also pretty much what Barack ("Barry" to his mama) Obama told Tavis Smiley recently.

Smiley, host of a television show and a syndicated radio talk show, declined the offer of Michelle Obama to speak on her husband's behalf. He wanted the Democratic presidential primary candidate to appear at his annual State of the Black Union conference this week, or no Obamas.

...The fight between Smiley and Obama is unseemly, diminishes the former's stature and can only distract Obama from his mission of winning the Democratic presidential nomination. It's not like Obama doesn't have other things to do this weekend -- such as campaigning in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Texas, states where Hillary Clinton must win to once again make this a real race.

In subsequent interviews, Smiley said variously that he was "catching hell" and being "barbecued" by black Americans for deigning to criticize Obama. Typical was a Web site post that accused the formerly beloved Smiley of drinking "haterade," slang for being jealous of Obama's prominence and success....

I won't go that far. Tavis Smiley strikes me as a good dude, someone with a genuine interest in leaving a better world than the one he found. Before this contretemps with Obama, my only issue with Smiley was his constant reliance on the phrase "black folks" in conversation and writing. Gee, Tavis. Can't we just be "people," even "black people"?

...