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Go Home Great Apologies In History

THE PLANK JULY 10, 2008

Great Apologies In History

BY JAMES KIRCHICK

Jesse Jackson's apology to Barack Obama for whispering that he wanted to castrate him brings to mind the wonderful speech he delivered at the 1984 Democratic Convention. In January of that year, conversing with a Washington Post reporter, Jackson -- a candidate for the party's presidential nomination -- referred to Jews as "Hymies" and New York City as "Hymietown." This slip has since become a defining moment in his career, and a flashpoint in the fraught history between blacks and Jews in America. Yet largely forgotten in the whole mess was the speech Jackson delivered several months later at the party convention in San Francisco. In my mind, it ranks as one of the finest American political orations of the past 25 years, not just for its humility, but its lyricism. Here's a snippet:

If, in my low moments, in word, deed or attitude, through some error of temper, taste, or tone, I have caused anyone discomfort, created pain, or revived someone's fears, that was not my truest self. If there were occasions when my grape turned into a raisin and my joy bell lost its resonance, please forgive me. Charge it to my head and not to my heart. My head -- so limited in its finitude; my heart, which is boundless in its love for the human family. I am not a perfect servant. I am a public servant doing my best against the odds. As I develop and serve, be patient: God is not finished with me yet.

There's also, of course, some vintage Jesse Jackson, like "Choose the human race over the nuclear race," and "Bury the weapons and don't burn the people."

You can watch (and read) the speech here.

--James Kirchick

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23 comments

Kirchick,

Good job. When I first saw the post and to be frank, your by-line, I thought that this was going to be a Spine like Jesse attack. Instead, you weave the low and high points of this complicated, brilliant, and bedeviled man to craft a fair and evocative post about Jackson.

And I am also heartened that you are not internalizing tnr's - or to be fair, marty peretz' hostile - idee fixee on the man. Stepping back, it is not hard to see why Jesse is torn about Obama. Generational differences and the [reluctant] passing of the torch. Like most prideful old coots - I can think of two who work for this magazine - it is hard to see the new guard vanquishing the old.

Jamie, more posts utilizing this aspect of your gift will go a long way towards helping you with a larger audience. You are critical of Jackson for sure - I like Jesse and realize that he is a flawed leaders for sure - but not snide or dismissive. Nice job.

- thejauntyboulevardier

July 10, 2008 at 11:11am

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"complicated, brilliant, and bedeviled man"

Oh, come off it. The guy is full of it and always has been.

If you apologize, not for what you said but for it being heard, than it is as though you never said it or didn't mean it.  What else has he said when he wasnt' miked.  

And a minister threatening to cut someone nuts off.  I am trying to imagine my rabbi threatening to cutt off Joe Lieberman's nuts.

- stanmvp48

July 10, 2008 at 11:32am

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I think "Sometimes I can be a real horse's ass" would have been more concise.

- drdannyu

July 10, 2008 at 12:00pm

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"I am trying to imagine my rabbi threatening to cutt off Joe Lieberman's nuts."

Worst bris ever.

- adaglas

July 10, 2008 at 12:02pm

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But the SNL sketch of Jackson's  Hymietown crack when it happened (Eddie Murphy was Jesse) was hysterical.  That was some real political comedy.

- tnmats

July 10, 2008 at 12:08pm

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I have learned long ago that except for a few exceptions, tnr, and more specifically, talk back,  is not the place to go for a reasoned, objective perspective on Jesse Jackson.  There seems to be a real inability here at tnr to put Jackson, his accomplishments, his failings, and his influence in the black community, into a balance perspective. This is exactly why I praise kirchick for this post.

adaglas,

well, that would be the worse bris mainly because the mohel hand to go that far astray would have to be damn shaky...

and as for Joementum's nuts, didn't he give those shriveled specimens to Sean Hannity as a two very very smal love tokens?

- thejauntyboulevardier

July 10, 2008 at 12:15pm

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I think "Sometimes I can be a real horse's ass" would have been more concise"

Or: "I am a real horse's ass, and sometimes I get overheard"

- stanmvp48

July 10, 2008 at 12:17pm

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"worst bris ever"

adaglas - you are some cut-up.  Question: would it have made Joementum more or less obsequious?

- JackR

July 10, 2008 at 12:22pm

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The use of the word "if" immediately negates any apology or attempt to take responsibility for a screw-up.  It's not what I said, it's what you heard.

Sorry, Jesse.  That doesn't cut it.

This may well end up being a great gift to Obama.  Those working-class whites who voted for Hillary (like myself) don't much care for loudmouths like Jackson and this will give him a chance to put some distance between himself and some of the demagogues on the left.

- desertdog

July 10, 2008 at 12:31pm

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It is way past time for the torch to be passed. In addition to being a camera whore, Jesse's call and response, Stepin Fetchit style of advancing his public policy views wore on me. (No offense to  Lincoln Perry, the quite literate journalist who played the role.)  What wrong with a bit of reason, and talking points that can't be put to music?

If nothing else, a man who insists on wearing all manner of leisure suits (e.g., short-sleeves, withepaulettes, and safari-syle) , 10, 15--30 years after they've gone out of fashion, has no business being the spokesman of the black community. (Or any community except for the 70s Polyester Couture Refugee Liberation Army.) Even Al Sharpton (with the excepion of his conked, processed hair), long ago gave up the mega-medallion, velour warm-up suit look.

Relinquish the torch, Jesse.

- tec619

July 10, 2008 at 12:40pm

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I second jaunty.

I used to kind of hate Jesse Jackson for all the obvious reasons until I saw him read "Green Eggs and Ham" on SNL, as a guest commentator on the news. It was so perfect. At that moment my hate flipped to love, and whatever he does now - nut cutting, whatever - I will always love him. Sorry.

- psantillana

July 10, 2008 at 12:57pm

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oh ouch, I seconded jaunty's first post. Just to clarify. I'm still reeling from the 5:15. Dang.

- psantillana

July 10, 2008 at 1:00pm

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Hands down the best the speaker the Democrats had in the '80s but after picking Mondale and Dukakis as your standard bearers, the bar is pretty low for that.

- alexmh

July 10, 2008 at 1:09pm

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This morning on the way to work I was hearing Lee Morgan's trumpet solo on "Moanin'", the classic by Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers. You know how you can listen to a song a dozen, a hundred times even, without really hearing it? This morning, somewhere between the Walnut Creek BART station and the Oakland hills, Morgan's trumpet grabbed me by the shoulders, shook me, and yelled "Hey! Hear THIS!"

The song is a hard bop classic, with "Moanin" standing as a gorgeous amalgam of gospel, blues, and jazz. As such, Morgan is chained to the chord structure and rhythm but seeks--must seek--his independence. So he blows the notes he must...but how he blows! He cracks open notes like fresh walnuts, sticking his pen-knife into the hard crunchy meat, proffering the succulent reward to all who would partake. His solo swaggers, teases, floats, and attacks, before sliding back into Blakey's groove to seamlessly hand off to Benny Golson's tenor.

Morgan was a few months past 20 years old at the time of the recording (October 30, 1958). Unbelievable.

That tense paradox, between obeying the song's structure versus breaking out into one's own universe, chains and impels us all--musicians, bloggers, preachers, politicians. The "low moments" of which Jackson spoke are when we forget or ignore our inherent, impossible to escape duality as individuals and members of a group. We are separate strands of DNA and we are part of the genome. Even as we are "boundless in [our] love for the human family," as Jackson argued in self-defense (and I am inclined to agree with him), we are beset by pride as a defense against the loss of our selves, and so we revolt--we push against the chains. In so doing we can make beautiful music or we can miss a note so horrendously that Mr. Blakey behind his kit calls a halt to the proceedings and forces everyone to start all over again.

I remember seeing the AIDS Memorial Quilt the first time and being struck by how different each panel was--some were crudely fashioned of simple embroidery; others were elaborate, gorgeous designs. The common denominators were their 3' x 6' rectangular geometry, and the love that radiated from each of them. All human beings, all different, all separate, all together.

Jackson stumbled; we all do. He deserves a break. Kirchick, who also sometimes seems to struggle to resolve his inherent human dilemma, deserves much praise in this instance, in my opinion.

- williamyard

July 10, 2008 at 1:24pm

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JackR - the less consideration any of us give to the pros and cons of Joenitalia, the better.

- adaglas

July 10, 2008 at 3:02pm

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Al Sharpton is a horse's ass even more frequently than Jesse is, but I thought his 2004 DNC speech was the best of the convention.  What?  Better than BHO?  Perish the thought, I know.  But it's true.

- achester99

July 10, 2008 at 3:02pm

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adaglas....

Joenitalia!  Fabulooooous!

though, even the phrasing seems tiny...

- thejauntyboulevardier

July 10, 2008 at 4:15pm

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Look again.  This rhetoric that's got you so enthralled is a collection of platitutdes.

- aarong

July 10, 2008 at 5:33pm

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Mr. Kirchick, I would be a little more reserved in granting Mr. Jackson absolution for his sins so quickly.

Jesse Jackson now has a long history of statements against Jews & now African Americans.  This pattern is troubling and needs more than a Dom Imus or Michael Richards apology.

Mr. Jackson needs to understand his workds are hurtful to many in the community, especially now the Obama campaign, and develop a plan to correct his behavior.

If we let this issue pass, what will happen to others who use the often hurtful and divisive language in the future?  

- CRS9TNR

July 10, 2008 at 5:57pm

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CRS9TNR, we don't have to let anything pass. But the person is different. We can appreciate the good they do, root for their better angels, and still furrow the brow and scold them when they mess up. I would want the same done to me.

- psantillana

July 10, 2008 at 7:03pm

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Jesse Jackson, whatever courage he might have exhibited during his days as an apostle to MLK, evolved into a con man, a scam artist, and an extortionist.

How many corporations has he held up for protection money?  Toyota comes immediately to mind, and there were many more.

It is only too bad that it has taken all this time for Jackson to (perhaps) take the big fall.

- ChanRobt

July 11, 2008 at 4:05am

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TNR.com loves the smell of policy reversals in the morning. This week, John McCain promised to balance

- Anonymous

July 11, 2008 at 5:17pm

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I am one of the many fans of Shelby Steele. He has an article, "Why Jesse Jackson Hates Obama,"

- Anonymous

July 22, 2008 at 3:03pm

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