MSNBC host Joy Reid and frequent guest Michael Eric Dyson faced backlash online late on Thursday evening after a video clip went viral from Reid’s show that was widely panned as blatantly racist.
Dyson purportedly made the remarks about Virginia Lieutenant Governor-elect Winsome Sears, a Republican, who won her election on Tuesday night as Republicans dominated across the state.
Dyson said:
The problem is here they want, they want white supremacy by ventriloquist effect. There is a black mouth moving, but a white idea through the, running on the runway of the tongue of a figure who justifies and legitimates the white supremacist practices. We know that we can internalize in our own minds, in our own subconscious, and in our own bodies, the very principles that are undoing us. So, to have a black face, speaking in behalf of a white supremacist legacy is nothing new. And it is to the chagrin of those of us who study race that the white folk on the other side and the right wingers on the other side, don’t understand this is politics 101 and this is race, not even 101. What’s beneath 101? It’s the it’s the pre-K of race, you should understand the fact that if you tell black people, look, I support a negro Look, there is a person of color that I am in favor of and that person of color happens to undermine and undercut and subvert the very principles about which we are concerned, you do yourself no service by pointing to them as an example of your racial progressivism.
WATCH:
FBT is non-partisan, but we respect @WinsomeSears' win—the 1st black person & 1st woman elected to statewide office in VA.@MichaelEDyson's take:
“a black mouth moving"
"a white idea"
"a figure who justifies and legitimates white supremacist practices”
*Not* healthy, folks! pic.twitter.com/lQRxAh0Z7g
— Free Black Thought (@FreeBlckThought) November 5, 2021
Some of the most notable responses to Dyson’s remarks included:
- Colin Wright, evolutionary biologist: “This is one of the more disgusting racist rants I’ve heard in a while. The ideology producing this is unbelievably insidious. I just can’t fathom how so many self-proclaimed “anti-racists” are unable to see this rant as the epitome of what they claim to be against.”
- Brian Riedl, economist: “This is more racist than anything you’ll see on Fox News.”
- Zaid Jilani, author: “Do they not realize this is racism? They are proscribing someone’s mental state — the ideas generated by their mind and soul — to melanin content and ethnic heritage. It’s like something you might very well hear in the Jim Crow South. I assume he thinks Winsome Sears being pro-life is also some kind of betrayal, but she was born in Jamaica and raised within that culture as well. Abortion is mostly illegal in Jamaica. There are lots of cultures out there. You can’t just position people as white ventriloquism.”
- The New Liberals Podcast: “I’m on my way to a nice date, so I don’t want to get my blood up, but: It offends me to my very bones that this is accepted in polite society. It offends me that the host nods along. It offends me that his mic wasn’t cut. It offends me that he’ll be praised for saying this. I likely would not have voted for @WinsomeSears , had I had the opportunity. But she is her own woman. She is not a g*****n puppet. Show some respect.”
- Becket Adams, commentator: “It’s a scandal of its own that not a single on-air personality at MSNBC has the balls even to suggest this stuff may be out of line.”
- Kmele, political commentator: “Grotesque, undignified, and decidedly on-brand for this pair. There’s no argument on offer + no allowance for earnest disagreement. *Your independence of mind is proof of your corruption.* Religious fundamentalism always operates like this.”
- Rita Panahi, political commentator: “Disgusting racism from @MSNBC These ‘anti-racists’ are proudly, boldly racist. Gross.”
- Ryan James Girdusky, political commentator: “This rant is the product of critical race theory… certain ideas are white, if you believe them you are promoting white supremacy. They want to destroy the ideas that built this country and improve the human condition. That is why it must be destroyed and defeated.”
- Curtis Houck, NewsBusters editor: “This reminds me of how Michael Eric Dyson and a nodding Joy Reid argued Daniel Cameron’s ‘mouth is moving,’ but it’s the ‘thoughts’ of Mitch McConnell that are controlling him.”