In an interview with NBC on Thursday, Alabama native and former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice pushed back on assertions that race relations are worse currently than in recent American history, including during times of segregation and civil rights conflicts.
NBC News’ Sheinelle Jones said, “There are people who will say it feels worse now when we’re talking about race.”
Rice then interrupted the still-speaking Jones, shaking her head.
“It sure doesn’t feel worse than when I grew up in Jim Crow Alabama, OK,” Rice said. “So, let’s drop this notion that we’re worse [with] race relations today than we were in the past.”
“Really? That means we’ve made no progress,” she continued. “Really?”
Rice explained that there is so much more progress to be made, but when politicians and media outlets use racial scare tactics, moving forward is tough going.
“I think the hyperbole about how much worse it is isn’t doing us any good,” she advised. “We still — this country’s never going to be color blind. We had the racial original sin of slavery. It’s still with us.”
At that point, Jones asked her about the notion that the state of American racial issues are “top-down” with President Donald Trump and “the words that he speaks.”
This led to Rice again shutting down the premise, shaking her head and saying, “Oh, oh, come on, alright.”
“I would be the first to say we need to watch our language about race,” Rice emphasized. “We need to watch that we don’t use dog whistles to people who — but when we start saying, ‘It’s worse today.’ No, they’re not.”
WATCH: Condoleezza Rice shuts down NBC reporter Sheinelle Jones’ claim that race relations are worse under President Trump. pic.twitter.com/HhuhcUlfgN
— NewsBusters (@newsbusters) June 21, 2019
Sean Ross is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @sean_yhn
Don’t miss out! Subscribe today to have Alabama’s leading headlines delivered to your inbox.