Michelle Obama Wrongly Claims BLM Protests Overwhelmingly 'Peaceful'

The debate about how much racism there is in America—and specifically the disparity between the races—is just as fierce as ever. Discrimination still exists. Let's deal with it openly and honestly. Unfortunately, that's very hard to do.

One reason is that many people feel that they have to treat blacks with kid gloves. They think this is noble... enlightened... progressive. It's not. It's demeaning and condescending. In fact, it's racist.

When it comes to judging black behavior, the facts matter. To suggest anything else is to perpetuate discrimination, the very thing that those who espouse social justice claim to want to end.

Anyone, whether white or any other color, who excuses blacks for bad behavior just because they are black obviously doesn't consider blacks their equal. Rather, they view blacks, in effect, as children who are unable to adhere to the standards to which every other group is held. Think carefully about that. The only difference between this view and that of white supremacists is that white supremacists are honest and open: in their view blacks are inferior to whites. Period.

But those who condescend to blacks cloak themselves in self-righteousness. So, somehow that makes it okay. The bad behavior happens—a riot in Ferguson—and they nod knowingly: "They couldn't take it anymore. Who can blame them?"

BLM activists who engage in violence aren't carrying on MLK's legacy; they're erasing it.

These protests are not about empowering black people. They are about disempowering black people. Because when the fires stop burning, all that remains is hopelessness, anger, and shame. That’s not empowerment. That’s oppression.

Look at the innocent victims—the business owners, many of them black, who have lost their life’s work to looting and arson. What are they supposed to do now? Who cleans up the graffiti and the shattered glass? Who rebuilds? Who, after seeing their dreams go up in smoke, even wants to?