Carol Swain, Vanderbilt University Professor, Comes Under Heavy Criticism for Backing Film that Calls Racism a Myth

Vanderbilt University professor Carol Swain, a black scholar who is known for her conservative positions on race and immigration, has been accused by the Southern Poverty Law Center of being an apologist for white supremacists and posted a blog commentary critiquing the documentary, "A Conversation About Race," which stated that the complimentary comments made by Swain lent the film some credence. Swain, a professor of law and political science, responded by posting a blog commentary on the Huffington Post and told the Tennessean in an interview that she feels she is being attacked by the SPLC. How can anyone in their right minds deny that there is no racism in this country? Mark Potock, the director of SPLC, said that the goal of the Hatewatch blog posts about the film was to "spare Swain the embarrassment of continuing to endorse the work of a man who has referred to black people, including the president, as monkeys."

According to the Tennessean, the film opens with a clip of then presidential candidate Barack Obama's speech on race, followed by comments from Craig Bodeker, the filmmaker. He said, "I agree with Senator Obama... I can't think of another issue facing our country that is more timely or more important today that the issue of racism." He also added, "I also can't think of another issue that is more artificial, manufactured and manipulated.  It's used as a tool of intimidation like a hammer against Caucasian whites." This is undoubtedly a hit among white supremacists and Carol Swain has played right into their hands as a good ole Auntie Tom. To the white supremacists this is a so-called defense of their sick beliefs. The documentary is basically a 58-minute documentary aimed at proving the thesis that racism is a hoax invented to oppress whites.

It is troubling that Carol Swain is quoted as saying the film is "Outstanding... Meticulously done... I highly recommend this film." Geez, what would make a scholar such as Ms. Swain embrace such an obvious slap to the millions of blacks who lost their lives through blatant racism? It is shocking that this woman could embrace such an obvious falsehood. She said that the interview is a valuable tool that could be used in classrooms to initiate a conversation on race that includes the perspective of what may be a growing number of white people, according to the Tennessean. Excuse me, but chattel slavery, Jim Crow and segregation are made up occurrences in the United States of America.

It would seem that Ms. Swain is an apologist for white supremacists and their favorite stool pigeon. She states that "The new white nationalism that I fear I see... is not about groups.  It's about white people, individuals, thinking that they are under threat and they they have to ban together to protect themselves. My fear is that unless we create forums for people to safely and openly express themselves, then you are going to drive more young people into these extreme groups." What is scary is that this woman is in a university lecture hall imparting her knowledge to students. There is no other way for me to describe her words but to simply say this is a travesty and a shame that someone so educated could come up with such crap.

Photo credit: Carol Swain, The Tennessean