Carole Simpson

George Floyd did not Cause his own Death

Apr 14, 2021 | Black Lives Matter, Racism, Something. To. Say. | 0 comments

George Floyd did not Cause his own Death

Hello Everybody:

I have something to say about the George Floyd murder trial. The prosecutors show again and again the awful images of Floyd’s face contorted in pain, the sound of his voice calling, “I can’t breathe.” The knee of a white cop cutting off his air supply. It is almost more than I can bear and I’m sure I’m not alone.  White cop kills black suspect is a recurrent theme in America.

I have covered police brutality ever since I started my news career in Chicago in 1965. One of the first stories I covered involved a black teenager, shot in the back and killed by a white police officer, who chased the boy because he had been throwing rocks. Chicago police were famous for using drop guns at crime scenes, just dropping a gun and telling the lie that the black guy was threatening him. He claims he had to shoot to protect himself. And the policeman got away with murder.

Over 50 years the problem has only gotten worse. More blacks killed by white cops. And many, many more police walked away from killing black people. Is it any wonder that the public has taken up the mantra—Black Lives Matter?

In the trial, the ex-policeman’s defense is that George Floyd’s death was his fault because he was on drugs. But George Floyd’s horrific death captured on a mobile phone galvanized the planet. The whole world is watching. If Derek  Chauvin goes free, there will be hell to pay.

WARNING

Sep 26, 2020 | 2020 Election, Crazy Town, Government, Racism, Republicans, Something. To. Say., Trump | 0 comments

WARNING

No friendly hello this time, my fellow Americans. This is a 5-alarm fire. It’s Defcon 5.  It’s code red. It’s time to scream:  WTF?

       If you haven’t watched the news in the past few days, then you don’t know that Donald Trump is planning to hurl this country into the biggest constitutional crisis the US has ever seen. He would destroy our democracy to avoid losing the election to Joe Biden. He’s so sick and power-hungry that he wants to install himself as the supreme leader for life. An American dictator. To him, rules do not apply.

        So, what is he up to? He’s saying the Democrats are trying to rig the election with mail in ballots. If Biden wins, he will say the election was stolen from him.  He indicates he may not leave office. He’ll just remain president. Never in the 244 years of our history has a president dared to pull such a stunt. Trump can’t do that. The people decide with their votes who will be president.

      Why all the alarms I was setting off? Because some historians say this could lead to America’s Second civil war. The country is so divided. Some of Trump’s supporters are gun-totin’ white nationalists who have been itching for years for a race war. Oh, and would Russian President Putin invade to help his old pal, Trump? And all of this during racial tensions and a pandemic.

       What can you do? On November 3rd, you have got to vote, you and everybody you know. You have got to let your political leaders know that you will vote against them if they don’t denounce Trump’s shenanigans. Folks this is deadly serious. It’s just about as bad as it can get.

See you again.

 

 

 

And A Child Shall Lead Them

Jun 5, 2020 | Black Lives Matter, Racism, Something. To. Say.

And A Child Shall Lead Them

Hello Everybody, I have something to say about the healing power of children.

The awful events of the past week and a half left me in the dumps. My days were dark and my nights sleepless. Then I remembered some videos of children that gave me cheer and I watch them over and over. I’d like to share them with you.

First—and I’m sure you’ve seen it: the two toddlers who make black and white together look beautiful. Then a black teenager leading a protest march in Washington, DC. And finally, a 4-year-old’s song that always lifts me up:

[Video inserts]

That precious baby sings, “don’t worry,”  We may as well believe every little thing’s gonna be alright. To think otherwise is hazardous to our health.

Until next time?

Kids Say The “Damndest” Things

Nov 21, 2019 | Racism, Something. To. Say. | 0 comments

Kids Say The “Damndest” Things

Hello Everybody.  I have something to say about kids and race.

         I love children. Lately, on Sunday nights after 60 Minutes, I watch “Kids Say the ‘Darndest ‘Things” hosted by Tiffany Haddish. It’s an update of the old  Art Linkletter show of the same name.  Cute precocious children are asked  questions and their answers can be sweet, hilarious and outrageous.

        Recently, Tiffany asked a nine-year-old boy what his ideal wife would be like.

Without hesitation, he said, “Maybe a white girl.”

        The audience gasped and then laughed. Tiffany pretended to cry and told the boy he hurt her feelings, because, as she put it, “I feel you’re telling me I don’t have a chance.”  The little boy seemed to realize that what he may have said the wrong thing, and he buried his head in his hands, while his parents cringed in the audience.

       I wondered why this little boy would specify the race of his ideal wife. He didn’t say she had to be pretty or smart or rich. She had to be white. Where did he get this? From his parents? Friends at school? The media?

       I only saw one boy on TV, but I thought about how many other young boys out there would give a similar answer? Hundreds of thousands? Probably.

       We know there is racial prejudice in America, but that today, it is still reaching down to our young children, is truly depressing. Many people like me dreamed that someday color would not matter. Unfortunately, it will always matter. Huh, I just said the damndest thing.

Until next time.

​

Reagan Called Black People “Monkeys”

Aug 6, 2019 | Racism, Something. To. Say. | 0 comments

Reagan Called Black People “Monkeys”

Hello Everybody. I have something to say about racist presidents. I’m sure you’ve heard about the racial slurs Donald Trump has been hurling around recently. But Ronald Reagan? One of the most beloved and revered Republican Presidents? No!!!

       Ohh, yes!!!  From the archives of the Nixon Presidential Library an audio tape was just released of a conversation between President Richard Nixon and Reagan, who was then Governor of California. In 1971, Reagan called Nixon and told him about what happened in the United Nations the day Communist China was accepted as a member.

       The delegates from Tanzania apparently did a victory dance on the floor. And from the transcript of the phone call let me quote what Reagan said to Nixon: QUOTE:  “Last night, I tell you to watch that thing on television as I did. To see those monkeys from those African countries, damn them.  They’re still uncomfortable wearing shoes.”

      And Nixon enjoyed retelling that nonsense again and again.

      As a reporter I covered both Reagan and Nixon… and it was hard to imagine them calling black people “monkeys,” and “cannibals,” I only saw them at official events where they acted very presidential. At first, I laughed about the stories, they were so ridiculous. But then I got angry. I remembered that recently my 10-year-old granddaughter at her predominantly white private school, was called a “monkey” on four separate occasions. My cute little granddaughter. She couldn’t understand why her classmates would call her names like that.

       Where do little white boys learn that it’s okay to call a little black girl an ape?  Well, probably at home, or it could be from the media, or maybe even from presidents of the United States.

See you next time.

Trump’s Racist Tweets Go Too Far

Jul 29, 2019 | Racism, Something. To. Say., Trump | 0 comments

Trump’s Racist Tweets Go Too Far

Hello Everybody.  I have something to say about Donald Trump’s racist, malicious, and hurtful tweets about black Congressman Elijah Cummings and Baltimore.

Trump has the audacity to demean my people, and brown people living in American cities. He says they are crime, rat and cockroach-infested. He suggests the people are to blame. Really, Donald? Really? How about neglect, poverty, no jobs, redlining and the lack of public services? I think so.

      I watched the respected Victor Blackwell, a CNN anchorman, fight back the tears as he expressed his anger at Trump for calling Baltimore, the city in which he was born and bred, a “disgusting…mess”…”filthy and dangerous” and of course, “rodent-infested.” I suppose he’d say the same about my old neighborhood on the Southside of Chicago.

       There are 37 million African Americans in this country. Thirty-seven million. It seems Donald Trump has only been exposed to black athletes and rappers. Oh yes, and his Uncle Tom Cabinet Secretary Ben Carson.  Has Trump ever had contact with working class and middle class black and brown people?  The vast majority who work hard every day to survive and who strive for the same things white people want: a good job, a nice home, good schools for their kids, and the pursuit of some happiness. Has Trump seen them? No, he hasn’t seen them. He doesn’t want to see them. Easier to paint us all with a wide brush of criminal activity, low I.Q.’s and dirt.       

       I have nightmares. You know what I think Trump is up to—and it scares me to say this—but I think he would like to begin the eradication of black and brown people from America. His Twitter campaign and his rallies have been building hatred and distrust. His master plan includes denying Muslims entry into the country.

       But his main attention is focused on South of the Border. He’s barred immigrants from Mexico and Central America. His administration has made those brown people seeking asylum, “untouchables” by forcing them into inhumane conditions. And by God he’s going to wall them off. And the cities, which he ignores other than to denigrate them, will be left to black people, who will only be able to find refuge in crime-infested ghettos.

It makes me so mad. Nobody in this country seems to have the will, the desire or the courage to stop Trump from tearing the country apart. What are you doing?