Blacks have a dirty little secret when it comes to nannies

December 31, 2006
BY MARY MITCHELL Sun-Times Columnist

There's nothing more sobering than a slap in the face. And middle-class black folks who are searching for nannies to care for their middle-class black children are getting that slap.

Last week, the New York Times reported that middle-class blacks were having a hard time finding nannies.

Apparently, African Americans who have realized the American dream are stymied in their attempts to find au pairs and nannies willing to care for their children.

According to a New York Times article entitled: "Nanny Hunt Can Be 'Slap in Face' for Blacks," that appeared on Tuesday, Dec. 26, well-heeled blacks are having a hard time finding someone who is willing to care for their children.

Excerpt from the NYT article:

"Very rarely will an African-American woman work for an African-American boss," said Pat Cascio, the owner of Morningside Nannies in Houston and the president of the International Nanny Association. "Many of the African-American nannies who make up 40 percent of her work force fear t hat people of their own color will be "uppity and demanding," said Ms. Cascio, who is white. After interviews, she said, those nannies "will call us and say, 'Why didn't you tell me'" the family is black?

I've received a lot of lovely Christmas cards this year, but nothing as special as the one sent to me by the Oliver Family.

After months of reaading the unkind things some of you have to say about each other because of race, it was great to see that for some people, race truly does not matter.

Recently, the editorial staff of Tufts University's The Primary Source, "Tufts Journal of Conservative Thought" came under fire and was forced to apologize for a racially-offensive carol included in its annual Christmas carols edition.

The carol was titled: "O Come All Ye Black Folk" (Sung to the tune of "O Come All Ye Faithful") and apparently was an attempt to use satire to attack affirmative action. The authors dredged up incredibly offensive stereotypes about African-Americans at Tufts. In the process, they made a good case for African-Americans who claim conservative is just another word for racist.

Why are so many people saying that U.S. Senator Barack Obama could become the first black president ?
If by that they mean that he would become the first African-American president--meaning his father was from Kenya and his mother from Kansas--it would make sense.

But I don't think that's what people mean.