And Paul Robeson?

TRIGGER WARNING:  In which I say we shouldn't pick on the late Kate Smith.

For John, BLUF:  Kate Smith was on the television when I got home from grade school each day, when the Army-McCarthy or the Kefauver Committee hearings weren't.  I recall no racism.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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If We Cancel Kate Smith, We Must Cancel The New York Yankees

Here is the sub-headline:

The Yankees have banished Kate Smith to the dustbin for singing silly songs.  Let's banish the Yankees for their decades of racism.

From The Federalist, by Mr David Marcus, 23 April 2019.

Here is the lede plus five:

It was announced this week that both the New York Yankees and the Philadelphia Flyers would stop using their traditional recorded version of Kate Smith singing “God Bless America” during their games.  This happened after it surfaced that Smith had performed songs now considered racist during her hey day in the 1930s.  The Flyers, with whom Smith is more closely aligned as the good luck charm for their 1974 Stanley Cup run, even removed a statue of her from the Philadelphia sports complex.

In a brilliant monologue, sports commentator Jason Whitlock broke down the absurdity of these moves.  The whole video is worth watching. Among other things, Whitlock points out that the song “That’s Why The Darkies Were Born,” recorded by Smith in the 1930s, was satire that was also performed by black civil rights legend Paul Robeson.  I hope Robeson, one of the most important black figures of the 20th century, won’t have to meet this same fate.

We need to be careful that in creating this new world we don't forget who we are and where we came from.

Just saying.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff