The Miseducation of Bill O’Reilly

I’m trying really hard not to go into a full on Kanye West rant but Subcontractors, Subcontractors, really, is that what we’re talking about here Subcontractors?

Woosah.  No matter how many times I have to woosah, we are going to get through this and work this nonsense out. Because- subcontractors – oh no sir, no ma’am I can’t let that one slide.  I will however act like I have some home training and decorum. I am going to act like I have some sense, because Michelle Obama has given us all a directive. “When they go low, we go high.” So I’m going to tray and take the high road Bill O’Reilly, you can thank my mom and Michelle Obama.

Let’s get to the facts. Slaves were not sub-contractors. Sub-contractors get paid. Sub-contractors can refuse to take on your little building project. That wasn’t an option for slaves. Don’t take my word for it, here’s Webster’s definition:

sub·con·trac·tor səbˈkänˌtraktər/ noun

noun: subcontractor; plural noun: subcontractors; noun: sub-contractor; plural noun: sub-contractors

A subcontractor is a person who is hired by a general contractor (or prime contractor, or main contractor) to perform a specific task as part of the overall project and is normally paid for services provided to the project by the originating general contractor.

I could be wrong but somehow I don’t think that definition applies to slave labor. But, hey I’m just a sportswriter who descended from slaves so what do I know? I’ll tell you what I know, I know that slaves weren’t subcontractors.

Bill had a lot to say on the subject matter of slavery or the lack thereof. “There were no illegal immigrants at that time. If you could make it here, you could stay here.” Woosah, all together now y’all breathe in, breathe out and woosah. Jesus, Mary and Joseph who started this nonsense that slavery was a career choice. Our ancestors did not book passage on the Mayflower and come over here to this fine country. No one was sitting in Africa dreaming of the day they “could make it here,” so that they could be whipped, raped, sold, and killed. Very few wanted to stay here. Most were trying to go back home or at the very least trying to escape their masters. It’s mighty doggone big of you Bill to point out that we could stay here if we wanted,  as if we had a choice. Woosah,  I’m going to try and get through this with less than 20 woosahs, I may not make it.

I’m pretty sure the Native Americans would have a different perspective on illegal immigrants. Our forefathers marched their happy selves over here like spoiled brats because they didn’t like the way things were going in their country and TOOK OVER. This was not their country to take. By my definition our forefathers were illegal immigrants. I don’t want to give out any misinformation so let’s check Webster again and see what he thinks before I get out of hand.

Illegal immigrant. n. an alien (non-citizen) who has entered the United States without government permission or stayed beyond the termination date of a visa.

Well, Bill, that seems pretty cut and dry to me. They were not U.S. citizens, the Native Americans were doing just fine without you. They didn’t send out a homing signal or an engraved invite. I’m quite sure they over stayed their welcome.  So let’s call our forefathers exactly what they were illegal immigrants. Now,  collectively you have the audacity to tell someone else they can’t come to America and strive for a better way of life. Woosah, if that’s not white privilege I don’t know what is.

I’m not saying this was a mic dropping commentary, more like cut the mic quick commentary. You would think our good friend would have hung up the mic at this point. But oh no, not Bill.

He had more enlightenment to share. “Slaves that worked there were well-fed and had decent lodgings.” Surely, he isn’t suggesting after a hard day’s work the slaves, were all rounded up and taken to the Ruth Chris Steakhouse of the time. The slaves were given scraps to eat. They weren’t eating crab, and shrimp out of the Chesapeake Bay. They weren’t eating Angus Prime ribeye steaks. They were eating slop, if they were eating at all.

For the record Bill, at least 12 of our 44 Presidents owned slaves and at least 25 were descendants of slave owners. That brings the total to a whopping 37 who owned or descended from slave owners. Check my math but by my count that’s 84%. That’s an outlandishly high number of slave owners or descendants of owners of “subcontractors.” Even #1 the Great George Washington owned slaves. That cute little story about George chopping down a cherry tree is a lie of omission. Let’s be frank, there might have been a tree chopped down but George didn’t do it. He gave an order to his slave or more likely as the plantation owner he gave a directive to his slave handler and the handler had the slave chop the tree down.

Here’s the list of the slave owning Presidents:

1) George Washington, 1st President, Virginia

2) Thomas Jefferson, 3rd, Virginia

3) James Madison, 4th, Virginia

4) James Monroe, 5th, Virginia

5) Andrew Jackson, 7th, South Carolina/Tennessee

6) Martin Van Buren, 8th, New York

7) William Henry Harrison, 9th, Virginia

8) John Tyler, 10th, Virginia

9) James K. Polk, 11th, North Carolina

10) Zachary Taylor, 12th, Virginia

*) James Buchanan, 15th, Pennsylvania

11) Andrew Johnson, 17th, North Carolina

12) Ulysses S. Grant, 18th, Ohio

“Even some of our most recent presidents have ties to the slave trade. George H W. Bush – not only does he descend from slave owning families, his GGG grandfather was a slave trader and slave ship captain. Jimmy Carter – his GG grandfather owned a cotton plantation, worked by slaves. Additionally, Truman, FDR and Wilson all had slave-owner forebears. In fact, Wilson’s father had owned slaves prior to Emancipation and was a staunch supporter of the slavery system.” (slate.com)  Basically, this nonsense that slavery was a career choice, and that slaves were subcontractors is just some old fashioned BS.

I know it’s been a while since Bill O’Reilly was in a classroom. But he needs to fact check and stop spewing this fictionalized account historically account.

I know, I know. My road wasn’t that high, what can I say I’m no Michelle Obama, but I tried. I also know I keep saying summer vacation is over and I’m going to get back to sports, specifically covering the latest news in FOOTBALL. No I do not mean soccer. For the record that’s not football. But any who I digress yet again. Tomorrow I promise to get back to FOOTBALL. Unless of course, someone says something idiotic and then, well, I can’t make any promises.

References

Akam, S. (2013, June 20). George W. Bush’s Great-Great-Great-Great-Grandfather Was a Slave Trader 0 A surprising new discovery about the notorious Thomas “Beau” Walker. Retrieved July 27, 2016, from slate.com: https://slate.com/human-interest/2013/06/george-w-bush-and-slavery-the-president-and-his-father-are-descendants-of-thomas-walker-a-notorious-slave-trader.html

Bill O’Reilly. (2016, July 27). Video ››› July 26, 2016 9:19 PM EDT ››› MEDIA MATTERS STAFF 1621 Print Email . Retrieved July 27, 2016, from mediamatters.org: https://www.mediamatters.org/fox-nation/oreilly-slaves-who-built-white-house-were-well-fed-and-had-decent-lodgings-provided?redirect_source=/video/2016/07/26/oreilly-slaves-who-built-white-house-were-well-fed-and-had-decent-lodgings-provided-government/211921

democracy now. (2014, February 17). Untold History: More Than a Quarter of U.S. Presidents Were Involved in Slavery, Human Trafficking FEBRUARY 17, 2014STORY. Retrieved July 27, 2016, from democracynow.org: https://www.democracynow.org/2014/2/17/untold_history_more_than_a_quarter

DNC Convention. (2016, July 26). First Lady Michelle Obama at DNC 2016. Retrieved July 27, 2016, from youtube.com/dncconvention: