Michael Richards, AKA "Kramer," Proves that Racism Still Exists

While honeymooning in Maui last year, my eyes spotted a gorgeous dress in a store window. I asked my husband if he would mind us going inside so that I could view it up close and possibly try it on. Normally, he would have said "Yes" since he hates shopping, but since he too found the dress gorgeous, he had no problem with me satisfying my curiosity. I knew the dress on the mannequin was too small for me, so I asked the saleswoman while pointing toward the window, "Do you carry that dress in a different size?" Instead of answering with a "Yes" or "No" the saleswoman, who was Caucasian, quickly replied while peering over the rim of her glasses, "That dress is $700."

I never asked the saleswoman how much the dress cost, but she assumed that because I am young and black, there was no way I could afford it, which was a bit presumptuous on her part. To add insult to injury, the saleswoman later struck up a conversation with my husband, and after discovering that we were married, looked us up and down and said, "You two look well put together." She may have thought that she was giving us a compliment, but the fact that my husband and I are both adults and therefore not children who need assistance getting dressed or making ourselves look "well put together," I didn't take it as one. In fact, I took my entire encounter with this saleswoman as a sign that racism, although not as overt or widely accepted as it once was, is still alive and thriving. Michael Richards' recent racist tirade at the popular Los Angeles comedy club, the Laugh Factory, is proof positive of this theory.

After being heckled by a black man in the audience during his stand-up performance, Richards, a former actor on the hit television series Seinfeld, called out, "He's a n*****! He's a n*****! He's a n*****! A n*****, look, there's a n*****!" While issuing an apology three days later on the Late Show with David Letterman, Richards claimed, "I'm not a racist. That's what's so insane about this." Yet, I beg to differ. One who allows the "N" word to slip out of their mouth once, may get away with considering it an accident, but there is no way that a person can use that word repeatedly, a word that is tied to years of pain and struggle, and not expect anyone to perceive them as racist. Richards' outburst was taken a step further when he began advocating the once used system of lynching, which killed many African Americans during slavery: "Fifty years ago, we'd have you upside down with a f***ing fork up your ass."

Richards attempted to apologize to America during an appearance via satellite on the Late Show, which was a very bad move in my opinion, considering the light-hearted and entertaining nature of the show. Given that the Late Show is not a serious venue for one to confront an issue of this magnitude, I find Mr. Richards' apology very insincere, especially since it came three days after the incident. I do however support his idea of needing to do "personal work" in order to resolve this conflict. I have personally attended several comedy shows where African American and Latino comedians have made fun of Caucasians and people of other nationalities, and their words, although drawing laughs from the audience, made me slightly uncomfortable. Although these comedians also made fun of their own race while onstage, it doesn't justify the negative stereotyping of other races.

I believe that we all need to do "personal work" in order to fight the issue of racism in America. We all must look deep within ourselves and tackle the stereotypes and negative images we carry of people of other nationalities. When someone wants to assert that racism no longer exists, not only do they need to look at the current crisis in America that has caused many to become prejudice towards Muslims, but most importantly, they need to look within themselves. Racism exists just as much as ageism and sexism. Anyone who has worked in Corporate America has had an opportunity to witness such prejudices at play. Thus, we all need to be honest with ourselves and examine the evil that lurks within. The book of James in the Bible teaches us that what is in our hearts will eventually come out of our mouths, so the next time we try to brush off any negative or offensive comments, we should take the time to look at ourselves and battle the issues taking place inside our hearts and minds.