What happened to Megyn Kelly, who previously was an anchor for Fox News from 2004 to 2017 and was just fired from her position as host of “Megyn Kelly Today” on NBC might just be a perfect example of political correctness gone much too far.
In a recent episode of “Megyn Kelly Today,” Kelly proposed the question: what is racist? She used dressing up as Diana Ross for Halloween as an example, suggesting that for this particular purpose, going “blackface” should be accepted, as conversely going “whiteface” might be an acceptable choice for someone who wants to idolize a white figure for one Halloween night. Her panel debated her on the issue briefly, but the audience backlash came quick and hard. Kelly was forced to apologize first privately and then publically.
Al Roker, a colleague of Kelly said, “The fact is, she owes a bigger apology to folks of color around the country.”
Kelly raises the question: what is racist? Racism is directly defined by Merriam-Webster as: “a belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race.”
In other words, racism is simply regarding one or more races as inferior to your own. When Kelly proposes the question: “what is racist?” she really is introducing a sort of existential dilemma that has divided this country for years and goes far beyond what color Power Ranger is the least offensive for my son to dress up as for at this year’s Halloween Party.
Kelly, who by no means is perfect or even fit to challenge the status quo, raises a question that should be answered with by more than just criticism, though she is not asking it correctly. What Kelly should have asked is much more specific: why is it racist for me to dress as a character for Halloween respectfully? In a country where speech is free, there should be no sensitivity towards a black man dressing as Donald Trump or a white woman dressing as Diana Ross, especially on the one holiday where pushing the boundaries of your own character in costume is the custom ritual (respectfully, of course.)
Kelly wanted to dress as Diana Ross because she respects Diana Ross, not because she was trying to imply that Diana Ross is less than her because of the color of her skin.
If you wear black paint on your face because you regard African-Americans as inferior to you, you are a racist—plain and simple, but you are still in America and you still have the freedom of speech to do so. You should not want to do something like that, but you still can, just as people have the right to reprimand you for it. If you wear white paint for the same reason, you are just as much of a racist. If you are white and hate white people, if you are black and hate black people, if you are Asian and hate Asian people, so on and so forth, you are a racist.
Be angry if someone hates you for the color of your skin, but what is the point of feeling anger towards someone who idolizes you for it?
Everyone has the right to think what they want and say what they want, and this is one of the trades that was made with Britain when our Forefathers drafted the Constitution: the people of America will have the right to say as they please and no one can take that from them.
If you are not a true advocate for freedom of speech, then perhaps you should put down the newspaper.
