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Northam: "I'm not going anywhere". Calls slaves, "indentured servants"

Acadia

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The level of hubris is inexplicable. Northam is refusing to leave and in an attempt to kick off his 3-year apology and redemption tour, he sat down with Gayle King-a black woman- and discussed Virginia's history of "indentured servitude".

Ralph Northam interview: Virginia governor tells Gayle King "I'm not going anywhere" in face of calls to resign - CBS News

GOV. RALPH NORTHAM: Well it has been a difficult week. And you know if you look at Virginia's history we are now at the 400 year anniversary, just 90 miles from here in 1619. The first indentured servants from Africa landed on our shores in Old Point Comfort what we call now Fort Monroe and while--

GAYLE KING: Also known as slavery.

GAYLE KING: And why you think you still deserve this job and so many people are calling for you to step down?

GOV. RALPH NORTHAM: Well again we- we have worked very hard. We've had a good first year. And and I'm a leader. I've been in some very difficult situations. Life and death situations taking care of sick children. And right now--

GAYLE KING: Because you're a doctor, yes?

GOV. RALPH NORTHAM: --right now, Virginia needs someone that can heal. There's no better person to do that than a doctor. Virginia also needs someone who is strong, who has empathy, who has courage and who has a moral compass. And that's why I'm not going anywhere. I have learned from this. I have a lot more to learn. But we're in a unique opportunity now. Again the 400 year anniversary of the history whether it be good or bad in Virginia to really make some impactful changes--
 
Indentured servitude and slavery were two different things. You would think someone in the kind of trouble he is in would be more careful in his word choice.
 
Indentured servitude and slavery were two different things. You would think someone in the kind of trouble he is in would be more careful in his word choice.

I love Gayle King's response.
 
Indentured servitude and slavery were two different things. You would think someone in the kind of trouble he is in would be more careful in his word choice.

i agree.
 
Indentured servitude and slavery were two different things. You would think someone in the kind of trouble he is in would be more careful in his word choice.

Technically he was correct, the original Africans brought over in 1619 were indentured servants and were later freed.

Edit: Slavery didn't begin until a couple decades after.
 
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Northam just keeps shoving his foot deeper down his own throat. He has become a terrible embarrassment to my adopted home state of Virginia.
 
Indentured servitude and slavery were two different things. You would think someone in the kind of trouble he is in would be more careful in his word choice.

That ship sailed quite a while ago. ;)
 
Technically he was correct, the original Africans brought over in 1619 were indentured servants and were later freed.

Edit: Slavery didn't begin until a couple decades after.

Northam didn't seem to realize that distinction because when the reported said "also known as slavery" he replied "yes". He can't afford to be lackadaisical in his word choice right now.
 
Technically he was correct, the original Africans brought over in 1619 were indentured servants and were later freed.

Edit: Slavery didn't begin until a couple decades after.

Yeah, that was my first thought. He was actually right there. Not that it really mattered; God knows what he thought his point was with that.
 
Northam: "I'm not going anywhere". Calls slaves, "indentured servants"

OMG! Talk about putting lipstick on a pig! The man actually referred to slavery as "indentured servitude." WTH was he thinking?

Colonial America had both, and the two statuses were not at all identical. Under indentured servitude, one's term of servitude lawfully and in both effect and substance ended when one's debt (hence the word "indenture") had, by one's labor or otherwise, been paid. Enslaved individuals, on the other hand, saw their term of servitude end only upon (1) their death, (2) their master's emancipatory magnanimity, or (3) their successfully absconding.

Where I was previously of a mind to give Northam a chance to demonstrate he's not still governed in part by provincial views and poor judgement, I see now that he remains thus hobbled. He needs to go.


ETA/Clarification:
The distinction between indentured servitude and slavery is middle school to 9th grade fodder.

That said, the original Blacks who first came to VA with their wealthy masters were technically indentured servants; however, that status soon ended for Blacks with the passage of slave laws.
 
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Northam didn't seem to realize that distinction because when the reported said "also known as slavery" he replied "yes". He can't afford to be lackadaisical in his word choice right now.

I think he likely agreed because he knew the optics of him arguing with a black woman over how slavery began would make his situation worse. From a political standpoint he was probably right to simply agree rather than point out she was incorrect.
 
OMG! Talk about putting lipstick on a pig! The man actually referred to slavery as "indentured servitude." WTH was he thinking?

Colonial America had both, and the two statuses were not at all identical. Under indentured servitude, one's term of servitude lawfully and in both effect and substance ended when one's debt (hence the word "indenture") had, by one's labor or otherwise, been paid. Enslaved individuals, on the other hand, saw their term of servitude end only upon (1) their death, (2) their master's emancipatory magnanimity, or (3) their successfully absconding.

If you read his comments, you would realize he didn't refer to slavery as indentured servitude. It was Gayle King that conflated the two.
 
OMG! Talk about putting lipstick on a pig! The man actually referred to slavery as "indentured servitude." WTH was he thinking?

He didn't. Gayle King did.
 
When does he have his obligatory sit down with Sharpton?
 
Indentured servitude and slavery were two different things. You would think someone in the kind of trouble he is in would be more careful in his word choice.

Not being careful in his word choice is what got him where he stands now.
 
The level of hubris is inexplicable. Northam is refusing to leave and in an attempt to kick off his 3-year apology and redemption tour, he sat down with Gayle King-a black woman- and discussed Virginia's history of "indentured servitude".

Ralph Northam interview: Virginia governor tells Gayle King "I'm not going anywhere" in face of calls to resign - CBS News

GOV. RALPH NORTHAM: Well it has been a difficult week. And you know if you look at Virginia's history we are now at the 400 year anniversary, just 90 miles from here in 1619. The first indentured servants from Africa landed on our shores in Old Point Comfort what we call now Fort Monroe and while--

GAYLE KING: Also known as slavery.

GAYLE KING: And why you think you still deserve this job and so many people are calling for you to step down?

GOV. RALPH NORTHAM: Well again we- we have worked very hard. We've had a good first year. And and I'm a leader. I've been in some very difficult situations. Life and death situations taking care of sick children. And right now--

GAYLE KING: Because you're a doctor, yes?

GOV. RALPH NORTHAM: --right now, Virginia needs someone that can heal. There's no better person to do that than a doctor. Virginia also needs someone who is strong, who has empathy, who has courage and who has a moral compass. And that's why I'm not going anywhere. I have learned from this. I have a lot more to learn. But we're in a unique opportunity now. Again the 400 year anniversary of the history whether it be good or bad in Virginia to really make some impactful changes--

The only people who really care about this are the Dems. So the question is...will this convoluted rhetoric satisfy them? I think it will. Especially since the Dems are willing to throw the Lt. Gov. to the dogs. Fairfax is the sacrificial lamb to mollify the angered Dems.
 
The only people who really care about this are the Dems. So the question is...will this convoluted rhetoric satisfy them? I think it will. Especially since the Dems are willing to throw the Lt. Gov. to the dogs. Fairfax is the sacrificial lamb to mollify the angered Dems.

Ya gotta hand it to the Dems. They're going to save the 2 white guys and send the black guy down the river.
I actually have hope for VA turning blue again!
 
This is amazing. A Republican in identical circumstances would already be working at McDonald's.
 
BTW, I'm so hoping for a the full Kavanaugh treatment of Fairfax, complete with Handmaid's Tale harpies and Alyssa Milano giving Fairfax the death ray stare.
 
The only people who really care about this are the Dems. So the question is...will this convoluted rhetoric satisfy them? I think it will. Especially since the Dems are willing to throw the Lt. Gov. to the dogs. Fairfax is the sacrificial lamb to mollify the angered Dems.

In all fairness, there's a huge difference between appearing in blackface and sexual assault. If only one goes, it has to be Fairfax.
 
He didn't. Gayle King did.

If you read his comments, you would realize he didn't refer to slavery as indentured servitude. It was Gayle King that conflated the two.

I didn't read his comments. I listened to and watched him utter them in the video.

Northam referred to Blacks who arrived in 1619 as "indentured servants." Ms. King interjected, "Also known as slavery." (Poor diction because people weren't known as "slavery," they were known as "slaves.") The governor immediately responded verbally and nodded, "Yes."

Northam's "yes" indicated he acceded to and accepted the legitimacy of the so-called (by you) conflation as being equivalent to his original diction, "indentured servants." Northam didn't have to do that. He could have, by stating something having to do with VA's slavery laws not having been enacted until 1661, clarified and highlighted the context of his "indentured servitude" classification, but he didn't.
 
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BTW, I'm so hoping for a the full Kavanaugh treatment of Fairfax, complete with Handmaid's Tale harpies and Alyssa Milano giving Fairfax the death ray stare.

We can only dream of such things. We know they only care about this stuff when the "other guys" are supposed to have done it.
 
Slavery and indentured servitude were not the same but it hardly matters what he said. The question is whether he's staying or going.
 
I didn't read his comments. I listened to and watched him utter them in the video.

Northam referred to Blacks who arrived in 1619 as "indentured servants." Ms. King said "also known as slavery." (Poor diction because people weren't known as "slavery," they were known as "slaves.") The governor immediately responded verbally and nodded, "Yes."

Northam's "yes" indicated he acceded to and accepted the legitimacy of the so-called (by you) conflation as being equivalent to his original diction, "indentured servants." Northam didn't have to do that. He could have, by stating something having to do with VA's slavery laws not having been enacted until 1661, clarified and highlighted the context of his "indentured servitude" classification, but he didn't.

How well do you think it would have went if he were to correct her response rather than simply let it go? The last thing he wanted after the blackface debacle was an argument on the origins of slavery with a black woman broadcasted on national TV.
 
Northam didn't seem to realize that distinction because when the reported said "also known as slavery" he replied "yes". He can't afford to be lackadaisical in his word choice right now.

Not being careful in his word choice is what got him where he stands now.

Not being careful in his costumes too.

Northam might be correct about his use of the words, "indentured servitude", but what will the general public hear? The vast majority who've heard no such thing. They'll believe he just made another mistake by downplaying slavery which will lower his approval rating even more (it sank 41 points in two days already).

...Where I was previously of a mind to give Northam a chance to demonstrate he's not still governed in part by provincial views and poor judgement, I see now that he remains thus hobbled. He needs to go.

I don't believe it's Northam's decision to make. If the Dem politicians refuse to work or corroperate with him, which every one I've heard say, he'll be forced out.
 
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