Bob CollinsCharles Ramsey, the Clevelander who dropped his Big Mac and rescued the three kidnapped girls from a house in his neighborhood, was appropriately treated with worship for not looking the other way.
For example:
Charles Ramsey goes from nobody to America’s hero neighbor when he rescues three trapped Cleveland women (Daily News)
Charles Ramsey: Ohio “hero” and Internet sensation (CBS News)
McDonald’s tells Cleveland hero ‘they’ll be in touch’ as he gives another unforgettable interview about the abduction rescue (Daily Mail)
Charles Ramsey hailed as hero for role in helping Amanda Berry escape (Guardian)
Is this truly an admiration for a hero? Let the debate begin!
Slate says today that the viral nature of Ramsey’s interviews reflects “a persistent, if unconscious, desire to see black people perform.”
Even before the genuinely heroic Ramsey came along, some viewers had expressed concern that the laughter directed at people like Sweet Brown plays into the most basic stereotyping of blacks as simple-minded ramblers living in the “ghetto,” socially out of step with the rest of educated America. Black or white, seeing Clark and Dodson merely as funny instances of random poor people talking nonsense is disrespectful at best. And shushing away the question of race seems like wishful thinking.
