When Barack Obama was still running for president, Harry Reid predicted he had a good chance of winning because he was "light skinned" and did not speak with "A Negro dialect." What's untrue about that?
The color prejudice Reid talked about is a fact of life - not just in white America, but black America too. In the searing new movie "Precious," the very dark skinned African-American star is explicit about the kind of boyfriend she wants, "light skinned with good hair". No one is threatening to boycott that movie or denounce its very prominent African-American producers, Tyler Perry and Oprah Winfrey, for their honest portrayal of color prejudice in the black community. Poor Reid just can't get a break.
But then, everybody understands the rules. When race is discussed, it's long been recognized that different standards apply. Blacks have more latitude to spout politically incorrect utterances about blacks. Latinos can do the same about Latinos, and it’s OK for Jews to talk about Jews and gays about gays.
But back to Harry Reid for a moment. Enough is enough. President Obama has said he was not offended by Reid's comments. No one else should be either.
Ginger Rutland writes for The Sacramento Bee opinion pages.