In reporting on Alveda King's commentary, on Monday's Fox & Friends, "Jezebel" nails it in their description of the interview, on her uncle's birthday, as an example of how Fox News can "wrap a crap sandwich in a lie and call it history." And that's precisely what the right wing is trying to do in attempting to change the legacy of MLK, Jr. in order to make it more user friendly for right wing memes. No social justice or union advocacy here so move along. As part of her revisionist history of MLK, Jr., ultra anti-choice, anti-gay conservative Alveda King claimed, on Fox, that he was a "pro-life conservative." While we have no King quotes regarding abortion, one thing is clear - he was a staunch supporter of Planned Parenthood, admired Margaret Sanger, and advocated for all women to be able to control their fertility. If anything, he would be appalled by his niece's right wing militancy.
Alveda King is part of an extremist anti-choice group "Priests for Life" whose former leader, Fr. Frank Pavone, was suspended from his leadership position after his overseeing bishop accused him of financial mismanagement. She is also a pal of Glenn Beck and spoke at his Washington rally. She also was a featured feature at Gov. Rick Perry's religious rally where she prayed for an end to abortion. One suspects that her uncle wouldn't be thrilled by her attack on Planned Parenthood as part of a webcast hosted by the SPLC designated hate group, Family Research Council. Not only does she believe that black women, who exercise their right to choose, are contributing to black "genocide," but she also believes that gay marriage will lead to genocide of everybody - a belief that she has expressed on behalf of the virulently homophobic National Organization for Marriage.
But in speaking with Fox News host and mouthpiece for the anti-choice US Council of Catholic Bishops Peter Johnson Jr, King, as reported by News Hounds Aunty Em, she made the claim that her uncle would be anti-abortion. What neither she nor the Maltese Knight, Johnson, mentioned is that MLK, Jr. advocated for women's reproductive choice when it came to family planning. And for that advocacy, he was awarded, in 1966, The Planned Parenthood Federation of America Margaret Sanger award. In his acceptance speech he said that "intelligent guides of family planning are a profoundly important ingredient in his quest for security and a decent life." King referred to the award as "one of my most cherished possessions." Yet, Alveda King claims that her uncle did not write the speech. Go figure.
If Fox viewers are ill informed, the Alveda King interview is a prime example of this phenomenon. But rather than information, the piece was all about pushing the agitprop of the anti-choice movement for which Fox provides a ready conduit. "Skeptical Brotha" says that Alveda King "has fallen off the mountaintop, bumped her damn head, and become a member of the vast right-wing conspiracy." Nice to see that America's "fair & balanced" network gives her a platform for this.
And BTW, Alveda King's "doctorate" degree is an honorary one from a Catholic college. (St. Anselm's) And given that Johnson addressed her as "doctor," one wonders if he would accord Steven Colbert the same honorific. (Actually, many news hosts have honorary doctorates including Chris Matthews of MSNBC and Fox's Sean Hannity who received one from Liberty University!)
1) How does Jackson being on Fox News make the other two guests not even appear?
2) Some people admitted that the other two on are known bigots, but tried to argue that Jackson is somehow so not racist that she absolved them, in clear contradiction to that they normally trash that family every chance they get. Not naming names cough J$ cough on this one…
3) Let’s assume that Jackson is somehow such a holy sanction of civil rights that she can cancel out two of the most notorious bigots in America’s black community- that still doesn’t pardon Fox News from failing to disclose the affiliations and reputations of both King and Parker. I know Fox News is aware of it, both women have been defended by Fox News hosts.
These people get up in arms when CNN or MSNBC acknowledges a guest having a past with such behavior, or at least an unfounded accusation of it but not making it the majority of the segment. Yet we’re supposed to ignore it from Fox News.
Double standard, anyone?
I posted a link to his speech in which he said:
“There is a striking kinship between our movement and Margaret Sanger’s early efforts. She, like we, saw the horrifying conditions of ghetto life. Like we, she knew that all of society is poisoned by cancerous slums. Like we, she was a direct actionist â a nonviolent resister. She was willing to accept scorn and abuse until the truth she saw was revealed to the millions. At the turn of the century she went into the slums and set up a birth control clinic, and for this deed she went to jail because she was violating an unjust law. Yet the years have justified her actions…”
Sanger and WEB DuBois were also close in their efforts to secure, for black women, the same kind of birth control that was available to white women.
