White House Senior Advisor Valerie Jarrett defended President Obama’s decision to use the n-word during a podcast interview over the weekend, suggesting that Obama was “glad” that he said it.
Jarrett was in the garage on Friday where Mark Mahon’s WTF podcast was taped, as Obama had a lengthy conversation about racism in America.
“It was a really important point for people to hear. I think he’s glad that he said it,” Jarrett told Politico. “And he is encouraged that people were able to hear his broader message.”
“Racism. We’re not cured of it,” Obama said. “It’s not just a matter of it not being polite to say n****r in public, that’s not the measure of whether racism still exists or not.”
Jarrett pushed back against critics of the president, suggesting that Obama’s use of the word was suitable in a discussion about racism by the first black president.
Obama’s election, she explained, wasn’t a sign that racism was over in America either.
“I don’t think simply by electing an African-American the president of the United States, you expect with a magic wand for generations of discrimination or racism to suddenly be erased,” she explained.
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