PBS White House correspondent Yamiche Alcindor accused U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams, who is black, of racism for employing terms commonly used in his own family during Thursday’s White House press briefing.
“You’ve said that African-Americans and Latinos should avoid alcohol, drugs, and tobacco. You also said don’t do it for your own wallet, do it for ‘Big Mama’ and ‘Pop Pop,” Yamiche said before Adams cut in to add, “Grand-daddy too.”
“There are some people online that are already offended by that language and the idea you’re saying behaviors might be leading to these high death rates… Could you I guess have a response for people who might be offended by the language that you used?” Yamiche finished.
US Surgeon General Jerome Adams says black, Latino & other people of color should "avoid alcohol, tobacco and drugs." "We need you to step up," he says.
Some will find this language offensive after Adams stressed that behavior was not the issue for why more black ppl are dying.
— Yamiche Alcindor (@Yamiche) April 10, 2020
Adams responded by noting he had been meeting with leaders of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and the National Medical Association and determined that the government needed “targeted outreach to the African-American community.”
“I used the language that is used in my family,” Adams said. “I have a Puerto Rican brother-in-law. I call my grand-daddy, ‘Grand-daddy.’ I have relatives who call their grandparents ‘Big Mama.’ So that was not meant to be offensive. That’s the language that we use, and that I use and we need to continue to target our outreach to those communities.”
https://twitter.com/jason_howerton/status/1248694511238295554?s=20
Thursday’s accusation was just Alcindor’s latest attempt to charge White House officials with employing racist terms amid the crisis over the Wuhan coronavirus.
In late March, Alcindor repeated the exhausted claim that identifying the novel Wuhan coronavirus with where it originated as racist, a topic that had already been addressed in the same briefing.
“There are some, at least one White House official who used the term ‘KungFlu’ referring to the fact that this virus started in China. Is that acceptable? Is it wrong?” Alcindor asked without ever naming the person she was referring to.
“No, not at all,” Trump said. “It comes from China.”
PBS Reporter Yamiche Alcindor: At least one White House official used the term Kung Flu…
Trump: Say the term again.
Alcindor: A person at the White House used the term Kung Flu…
Trump: Just the term.
Alcindor: My question is…
Trump: Kung flu?
Alcindor: Kung Flu. pic.twitter.com/6nRxdyQnUd
— August Takala (@RudyTakala) March 18, 2020
It’s worth asking whether Alcindor will also criticize former President Barack Obama for using similar language in 2016.
https://twitter.com/BecketAdams/status/1248706367915020288?s=20
Meanwhile, Alcindor spared no time to complain about the president being asked in Wednesday’s press briefing about Netflix’s “Tiger King,” which is the number one show on a top streaming platform, and become a cultural sensation as many Americans are consuming more entertainment during the pandemic.
Reminder: We are in a damn pandemic. https://t.co/pLdebAXJT0
— Yamiche Alcindor (@Yamiche) April 8, 2020
In fact, Alcindor has a long history of providing partisan commentary over objective reporting at the White House.
Alcindor launched into a sparring match with the president over ventilator needs just two weeks ago and was one of many reporters to deceptively edit a quote from Trump addressing the nation’s governors making it sound as if the administration was abandoning the states. Among the government-funded reporter’s other misdeeds claimed in the name of independent journalism, Alcindor earned praise for her endless perpetuating of the Russian collusion hoax and charged Trump’s visit to troops in Iraq with being a political rally.
While the list of examples to showcase Alcindor’s partisanship is practically endless, her favorite line of attack appears to be attacking anyone who disagrees with her as racist. In 2018, Alcindor accused those who support government policies in the national interest as being racist.
President Trump to @Yamiche: "That's a racist question." pic.twitter.com/4bgrMjQFZk
— CSPAN (@cspan) November 7, 2018
