Thread: Rev Jackson To Help Mexico With Race Issue

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Jackson to help Mexico with race issues

01:48 PM CDT on Wednesday, May 18, 2005
By LENNOX SAMUELS / The Dallas Morning News

MEXICO CITY – The Rev. Jesse Jackson emerged Wednesday from a meeting with President Vicente Fox saying the president had expressed “sincere regret� about any misinterpretation of a recent remark that some took as racist and had indicated a desire to reach out to the U.S. black community.

He said Mr. Fox had agreed to work with him to help bring American blacks and Latinos closer together, help improve the lives of minority workers and bring about comprehensive immigration-policy.

Tell us: Racist or common comment?
Mr. Fox made “a statement that was insensitive. He realizes the harm it caused and he wants to correct it by reaching out,� Mr. Jackson said at a press conference with Mexican Foreign Minister Luis Ernesto Derbez.

Flanked by officials from the Mexican American Legal Defense Fund, Mr. Jackson said blacks and Latinos plan to build on the momentum of the Fox meeting to create “a more formidable coalition� to push for human and worker rights in the United States.

Mr. Jackson used the press conference to turn the spotlight on the conditions of minority workers in the U.S., saying that many Mexican-Americans and African-Americans have the right to vote, but not the right to living wages, health care, education and collective bargaining.

“We cannot afford to have Mexican-Americans as pawns and blacks as scapegoats,� he said. “We must not let this degenerate into divisiveness and violence.�

Mr. Fox had said: "There is no doubt that Mexican men and women, full of dignity, drive and a capacity for work, are doing the jobs that not even blacks want to do there, in the United States."

Mr. Derbez said the president spoke in language that is used in Mexico, though not in the U.S. And he made clear that Mr. Fox was not apologizing for the remark. He went so far as to distance himself and the administration from comments made earlier by his undersecretary, Patricia Olamendi, that, “if anyone felt offended by the statement, I offer apologies on behalf of my government.� He said she was speaking for herself.

“There will not be a diplomatic note to explain the remarks,� Mr. Derbez said. “Now we simply look toward the future.�

Mr. Fox and Mr. Jackson, he added, would “take this opportunity to work together in the United States� to improve the rights of minorities.

Mr. Jackson said the president had agreed to appear on his radio show next Sunday and had committed to sending an emissary to meet with various U.S. civil rights groups, including the National Urban League and the NAACP, as well as the Congressional Black Caucus.

He added that he had invited Mr. Fox to this year’s convention of the Rainbow-PUSH coalition and that he hoped the president would attend.

Mr. Jackson noted that the impact of the African slave trade is obvious in Mexico, where there is a small minority of black citizens, many of whom say they feel invisible.

“The dark skin color of Mexico is real� he said, but added that race is an even bigger challenge in the U.S.

Mr. Derbez said his government and all Mexicans have to work to eradicate discrimination in the country.

What a suprise. Two stone cold racists, Fox and Jackson, tongue kissing each other, and agreeing to work towards their common goal of destablizing the US.

I'm suprised that Bush wasn't there to make it a trifecta.

Has Jackson punked out? Did fox gave him a donation for that rainbow coalition of his? Or maybe not. Maybe, he read Fox the riot act behind closed doors and this is the public face he is puting on it. Hard to tell.

Originally Posted by CountFloyd

What a suprise. Two stone cold racists, Fox and Jackson, tongue kissing each other, and agreeing to work towards their common goal of destablizing the US.

I'm suprised that Bush wasn't there to make it a trifecta.

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