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'Barack, the Magic Negro': Will Rush Limbaugh Get the Ax?
By Aysha Hussain
April 25, 2007
Rush Limbaugh yesterday delivered
a jaw-dropping video called "Barack, the Magic Negro." Will he follow in Don
Imus' footsteps?
The video, shown to subscribers on
his web site, focuses on the Rev. Al Sharpton's vocal discredit of Democratic
presidential candidate Barack Obama as an effective leader.
The video, entitled "U Da
Real Negro Al, Screw Obama," was a parody by Paul Shanklin, a well-known
conservative political satirist famous for his voice impersonations, who tries
to imitate Sharpton's voice and includes a slideshow of images of Sharpton and
Barack pointing out the differences in their "blackness." Toward the middle of
the video, Shanklin harmonizes "Barack, the Magic Negro," a twist on the 1963
hit song, "Puff, the Magic Dragon" performed by Peter, Paul and Mary, which
seeks to suggest that Barack is somehow a manufactured black man.
This would not be the first time
Limbaugh has attacked Sharpton and Obama. According to Media Matters, Limbaugh
once said the attendance of Democratic presidential candidates at Sharpton's
National Action Network (NAN) convention was similar to Republican presidential
candidates attending a hypothetical convention of "The Rev. David
Duke's—whatever, whatever organization." Media Matters also has reported on
Limbaugh constantly referring to Barack Obama as "Obama Osama." Many are now
wondering whether this new video footage will warrant the same criticism Imus
received.
Limbaugh is the host of an
opinionated talk show popular for its right-wing content. "The
Rush Limbaugh Show" is a national
radio show distributed by Premiere Radio Networks, a division of Clear Channel,
with approximately 20 million listeners per week, according to Premiere Radio
Network's web site.
During a recent taping of "Paula
Zahn Now," Zahn took note of other on-air personalities like Imus who have made
similar derogatory remarks, including Limbaugh.
"And while radio host Don Imus
calling the Rutgers University women's basketball team
'nappy-headed hos' is certainly beyond the bounds, it is not the first time
offensive comments have been spewed on the radio. Conservative Rush Limbaugh,
who has offended just about every minority group, drew special criticism for
attacking actor Michael
J. Fox," she said, recalling Limbaugh's charges that Fox went off his
medicine to show the severity of his Parkinson's symptoms in a plea for federal
funding of embryonic-stem-cell research.
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