AOL News has a new home! The Huffington Post.
Click here to visit the new home of Politics Daily!Hot on HuffPost:
House Committee Advances Immigration Bill Over Dem Objections
Dem Rep: 'However Inarticulate, I Think Miss Utah Was On To Something'
Why NPR Was Wrong to Fire Juan Williams
Williams, of course, made the tactical mistake of admitting that -- right or wrong -- he sometimes has fears about Muslims on airplanes.
As Williams said to O'Reilly:
In 2009, Attorney General Eric Holder said that when it comes to race, the America is "essentially a nation of cowards."I think, look, political correctness can lead to some kind of paralysis where you don't address reality. I mean, look, Bill, I'm not a bigot. You know the kind of books I've written about the civil rights movement in this country. But when I get on the plane, I got to tell you, if I see people who are in Muslim garb and I think, you know, they are identifying themselves first and foremost as Muslims, I get worried. I get nervous.
He was right. Whether it's discussing race or religion, it seems being a coward is the safest and most prudent decision one can make. Clearly, having an honest discussion is fraught with danger. Williams, after all, was fired by NPR for admitting to an emotion that, let's be frank, many Americans share.
Why does this matter? Williams put it well: "political correctness can lead to some kind of paralysis where you don't address reality." Simply put, as long as people are afraid of being real, we are unlikely to solve our problems.
But even if one were to concede that Williams attitude and comments were inappropriate, is firing him the right response?
As others have suggested, NPR should have instead invited him on one of its programs to debate and discuss his fears. Something positive might have come from that, but just as Whoopi Goldberg and Joy Behar chose to storm of the set of "The View" during a recent appearance by O'Reilly, the politically correct guide to debate often involves cutting off discussion, not encouraging more of it.
It's also important to note that Williams' comments are being selectively edited. Watching the full clip in context demonstrates that his remarks were much more nuanced than they might first appear.
Watch the full clip. In fact, Williams actually spent much of his time advocating for tolerance:
Our New Approach to Comments
Add a Comment
Juan Williams is a good guy, a person whose insight I have respected. NPR "acted stupidly", they were wrong.
October 22 2010 at 4:51 PM Report abuse Permalink +1 rate up rate down ReplyThis superb article illustrates the great liberal crisis in America via the unjustified censorship and firing of Juan Williams by NPR. So much of our American dilemma is concisely depicted in this collective report that this may be the best news article that I have read this year. Nearly all of our current major issues are rooted in the facts presented in this text and the O’Reilly video clip. This is an opportunity for America to acknowledge the great failure of the far-left liberal “agenda” and to cease our cowardliness. Race, religion, freedom are issues to be discussed freely without qualifications. A standing ovation for Lewis and the O’Reilly guests is in order!
October 22 2010 at 9:56 AM Report abuse Permalink +2 rate up rate down ReplyShould CNN have fired Rick Sanchez?
October 21 2010 at 10:28 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyThe Board of Directors of NPR need to take the high ground here and admit they made a mistake by firing the CEO. Juan Williams is neither a bigot nor racist. NPR's image and reputation is at stake -- the management of NPR should recognize that. Failure to take appropriate corrective action will only serve as proof that they are out of touch with the "public" they are supposed to represent.
October 21 2010 at 8:53 PM Report abuse Permalink +5 rate up rate down ReplyExecutives Weiss and Schiller of NPR have failed in their duty to exercise wisdom in assuring a range of opinions may be examined without political censorship. i am deeply disappointed and feel the wrong job was lost here.
October 21 2010 at 7:38 PM Report abuse Permalink +5 rate up rate down ReplySo did Obama...
October 21 2010 at 7:00 PM Report abuse Permalink +5 rate up rate down ReplyI find it totally wrong for them to have fired him over the phone. Is that the new thing? Call someone up and fire them? Totally inappropriate. I get the feeling that NPR may have been thinking about letting him go all along and this was the catalyst. What better reason?
October 21 2010 at 5:16 PM Report abuse Permalink +3 rate up rate down ReplyWhat happened to freedom of speech?
October 21 2010 at 4:29 PM Report abuse Permalink +8 rate up rate down ReplyLiberals dont believe in it.
October 21 2010 at 8:20 PM Report abuse Permalink +7 rate up rate down ReplyIf people truly looked deep within themselves he/she would have to admit to certain fears. This includes profiling of people, all people. As far as Juan Williams is concerned, I valued the fact that he gave an honest opinion for what he believed. I am more toward the Conservative views, but I have a great deal of respect for Mr. Williams. Perhaps NPR should have listened to the entire discussion. Mr. Williams , I thank you for your many insights, and will continue to listen to you...
October 21 2010 at 3:53 PM Report abuse Permalink +7 rate up rate down ReplyWell, NPR did a pretty cowardly thing last week banning their employees from attending the Stewart/Colbert event in DC. They pandered to the left this week because they pandered to the right last week. Two wrongs don't make a right, people.
October 21 2010 at 2:42 PM Report abuse Permalink +2 rate up rate down Reply
Follow Politics Daily
From Matt Lewis, a Fond Farewell to Politics Daily
Newt Gingrich for President? Don't Underestimate Him
'Citizen Newt' Could Boost Gingrich's Image In 2012
Tea Party Candidate Jamie Radtke Hopes to Beat George Allen in Virginia
Chris Christie, Scott Walker: Bold Now, They Were Once the 'Moderate' Choice
POPULAR
- Kathryn Rogers: 6 Things to Know About Rush Limbaugh's Bride-To-Be
- Soraya M., Stoned to Death for Being an "Inconvenient Wife''
- World's Best City for Men? New York City No. 1 in Survey
- Is LASIK Eye Surgery Safe? FDA Scientist Regrets Saying 'Yes'
- Meet Marc Mezvinsky, Chelsea Clinton's Fiancé
- 21 Songs of 21st Century Politics
- The Five Most Racist Obama Cartoons?
News From Our Partners
- Five easy steps for becoming a rape apologist
- How Obamacare shortchanges low-wage workers
- Hackers replace Brazil World Cup website with protest footage
- Billion-dollar bioterror detection program under new scrutiny
- GOP’s war on women has a new face: Marsha Blackburn
- More Stories »
- Obama to Push Big Nuke Cuts in Big Berlin Speech
- House Passes 20-Week Abortion Ban
- 8M Immigrants Would Gain Legal Status in Reform: CBO
- Latest Claim in Abortion Fight: Fetuses Masturbate
- Ailing GOP Needs a Religious Reformer
- More Stories »
- The House's cold war over the IRS scandal just turned hot
- Washington has an Edward Snowden problem
- Michael Hastings, remembered
- How immigration reform could save taxpayers nearly $1 trillion
- Is the debate over sexual abuse in the military really a 'war on men'?
- More Stories »
- Judith Levy, Ed. : Penelope Is In -- 19 June 2013
- Richard Fulmer : Why I Used to Support the Death Penalty and Why I No Longer Do
- D.C. McAllister : Guess Who’s Most Likely to Unfriend Because of Politics?
- BigDumbJerk : We're All Meter Maids Now
- John Yoo : The Scalia-Thomas Divide on Arizona
- More Stories »
Top News
More News
More on Aol
Local News
More Blog/Sites
Sites and Services
HuffPost Politics
36 Comments