Martin Luther King Jr. is not just an American icon. He is a worldwide icon. He represents the change that is possible when we believe in it and work for it.
On The View this morning, Whoopi Goldberg made a comment that I think perfectly sums up the current state of this nation and the larger world in general.
Starts at 2:47
She compared the progress that we have made toward equality to the game of whack-a-mole.
It makes total sense. For every step we take forward, we are pulled two steps backward. Women and people with uteruses have more rights and opportunities than ever before. But we are still fighting for the ability to control our bodies and our fates. During the last few election cycles, black women have paid a pivotal role in ensuring the future of our democracy. This is while gerrymandering is becoming the norm and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 has become legislation in name only.
MLK created the path to a better future. We only need to walk on it to make his dream a reality.
This was in response to Ilhan Omar potentially being removed from her committees by the Republican leadership in January. Now granted, this is a partisan proposal that is deeply problematic, but Goldberg’s comments are also problematic.
Both Hamas and the Taliban (as anyone with a brain would recognize), are known terrorist groups. If the only way to create their ideal world is to destroy and kill, so be it. The Hamas Charter goes so far as to say it in black and white.
“Which calls for the destruction of the State of Israel, and would not become a purely political movement, but quite the opposite, it would continue its policy of “resistance”.
The conflict with Israeli is religious and political: The Palestinian problem is a religious-political Muslim problem and the conflict with Israel is between Muslims and the Jewish “infidels.”
Goldberg seems to be an intelligent and capable woman. She would have lasted this long in Hollywood without a brain. But in making this comment, she has proven herself to be ignorant.
One of the newest films to be released on Netflix is Farha. It is supposed to dramatize the event known as “Nakba“. This is the lie that in 1948, Israel murdered and forced out hundreds of thousands of Arab Palestinians.
In any war, there is violence, there is death, and there is destruction. It is the nature of the beast. Nakba never happened. It was a story concocted to make the Israelis appear the Goliath to the Palestinian‘s David. The problem is that this fiction has continued to enable anti-semitism and has killed multiple generations on both sides.
Every time I read or see something about this, I get sick to my stomach. When I was very young, I was told the story about the ripple in the bond. As it got bigger, it spread. The same could be said for anti-semitism.
The only way to counter this hate is with love and acceptance. But first, we have to be willing to see one another as human beings.
The good thing about the Holocaust being common knowledge is that we know the facts. The problem is that even with what is known, some people still prefer to fudge history to fit their own needs.
Goldberg responded: “If you’re going to do this, then let’s be truthful about it because the Holocaust isn’t about race.” She added that the Holocaust, which saw an estimated 6 million Jews and 5 million others killed as a result of the Nazis’ racist ideology, was about “man’s inhumanity to man” and said it involved “two White groups of people.”
This morning, she apologized.
In a general sense, Goldberg (who is not Jewish and was given the name of Caryn Elaine Johnson at birth) is right. The Nazis were hyperfocused on race. But they also have one very specific goal: make Europe (and the world by extension), Judenrein. The Jews were a monolith that had to be exterminated. While we cannot ignore that other groups (Roma, LGBTQ, disabled, etc) were on the list, they were not the priority.
A lot of people talk about the Holocaust when they clearly know absolutely nothing about it.
As much as I admire Goldberg for her work and her outspokenness on certain subjects, this is a topic in which she knows less than she thinks she does. Had she done some basic research before opening her mouth, this little gaffe may never have happened.
P.S. If anyone wants to do some digging on this subject, I highly recommend Ben M. Freeman‘s book, Jewish Pride: Rebuilding a People. It is nothing short of eye-opening. If you only read one section, I recommend the interviews with six Jews of various backgrounds. Not all of them are Ashkenazi (from Eastern Europe).
P.P.S Since publishing the initial post, Goldberg was suspended for two weeks. There have been calls in the press for her to be fired. I personally think that firing is not necessary in this case. If she was an out-and-out racist, then firing would be appropriate. But she is ignorant. Ignorance can hopefully be fixed. Believing the lies when you know better is another thing entirely.
Sister Act was the one of the biggest movies in 1992.
Deloris (Whoopi Goldberg) is a lounge singer in Reno. When she witnesses the mobster boyfriend commit murder, she is sent to a convent under the witness protection program. When she starts to turn some of the nuns to the dark side, Mother Superior (Maggie Smith) steps in and sends Deloris to join the church choir. While Deloris finds her niche in the church choir, her boyfriend is looking for her.
This week, Whoopi Goldberg hosted a reunion of the movie on The View. It was the perfect reunion for a movie that still holds up 25 years after it hit theaters.
What makes this movie stand out is the humor and the strange in the strange land who finds themselves narrative.
If you have not seen it, I recommend that you do. It will time well spent.
The greatest gift we have as children is imagination. There is nothing that is impossible as a child if we just believe. Then we grow up and that imagination is replaced by the cold and hard facts of reality.
In 1996 movie Bogus, Albert Franklin (Haley Joel Osment) has just lost his mother. The person designated to be Albert’s guardian is Harriet Franklin (Whoopi Goldberg), his mother’s best friend. Harriet reluctantly takes Albert in.
But Albert is not alone. Along for the ride is Bogus (Gerard Depardieu). Bogus, a flamboyant French magician is Albert’s imaginary friend. While Harriet is caring for Albert materially and physically, she is unable to provide the emotional support that the boy lost with his mother.
Can Harriet become Albert’s mother in every sense (and get over the scars of her childhood in the process) and will Albert ever stop grieving for his mother?
I happen to think that this movie is enjoyable. The narrative and the journey of both Albert and Harriet has an undercurrent of grief and loss. But with that grief and loss is Bogus, who represents hope, love, childhood innocence and the promise of a brighter tomorrow.
A good movie is sometimes hard to find. A good sequel to a good movie is an ever rarer find.
In the early 1990’s, comedian Whoopi Goldberg could do no wrong. In 1992, she starred in Sister Act.
Deloris (Whoopi Goldberg) is a lounge singer who has lousy taste in men. Witnessing her mobster boyfriend killing an employee, Deloris goes into the witness protection program. Of course Deloris would be hidden in a nunnery. Mother Superior (Dame Maggie Smith) is not to pleased with her new charge charge, especially when she convinces several of the other nuns to stray to the outside world.
Deloris finds her place in the nunnery when she tries to revitalize the choir. But the revitalization draws the attention of her ex, who is eager to have reunion with Deloris.
This movie is just plain fun. Whoopi Goldberg puts her usual comedic spin on the story. And music never gets old.
A year later, Whoopi and Co returned in Sister Act 2: Back In The Habit. Returning to her career as a lounge singer, Deloris is called back to the habit (get it? ;)) when she is called upon by Mother Superior and the nuns. Their attempts to keep a parochial school open are not going well. Deloris’s task is to teach a music class. But the students are resistant and rebellious. Rita Watson (Lauryn Hill) has a gift, but her mother refuses to allow Rita to sing. When the chance to win a music competition comes along that could potentially revitalize the school, can Deloris convince the school to let the students sing and more importantly, will Rita’s mother finally recognize her daughter’s gift?
Again, this movie is just plain fun, the music is cool (and very dated, depending on your age) and Whoopi, as she always does, brings her own vision to the character.
Writergurlny 
You must be logged in to post a comment.