Deval Patrick: ‘Racism Is Deeply Ingrained in the American Tradition and History’

Sunday on MSNBC, former Gov. Deval Patrick (D-MA) called racism was “deeply ingrained in the American tradition and history,” while discussing the reaction to the death of George Floyd.

Patrick said, “I think racism is deeply ingrained in the American tradition and history. And I think it’s important for us to understand that it can and must be surmounted. And I say that not just as an African-American, but as an American. It is ingrained in the American experiment that we can achieve and must achieve equality and opportunity and fair play. Those are our organizing principles. The bitter irony for so many of us is that that has been a fleeting rhetorical notion for so many African-Americans. The issue I think is even more pronounced today if you will, because the feeling of being left out and left back that African-Americans have been experiencing for generations, more and more white Americans are experiencing as well. ”

He added, “Sadly, I think one of the key features of the elections we’re facing right now —understanding that the election is just a threshold‚— is that more than the character of the candidates, it is really the character of the country that we’re voting on right now. And whether, as we make that change, and I hope very much that we will, and I’m working to do so, we will then drive the next administration for action on these and so many fronts that get us to a more just and prosperous nation for everybody.”

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