I disagree that AG Holder's comment about being a black man was a racist comment. IMO, his comment is being taken out of context.
The adjective "racist", by definition, is: having or showing the belief that a particular race is superior to another.
Personally, I don't see anything wrong with him referring to himself by his ethnicity, as long as his ethnicity-identity doesn't interfere with his sworn oath to uphold the duties of his office. Until & unless he demonstrates that he's incapable of upholding his sworn oath, I think calling for his resignation is an extreme overreaction.
He was born in the Bronx, NY in 1951. The Civil Rights Movement was in full swing during his formative years. As a black man, he's experienced discrimination and racial profiling during his lifetime. Should he pretend that discrimination and racial profiling don't exist? Should he pretend that he's not black, because he's the US Attorney General?
In context, I interpreted his comment "I am the Attorney General of the United States. But I am also a black man" to mean that he empathizes with the very real issue of discrimination and racial profiling that still occurs in cities & towns across this nation, and I think he was also saying that we've come a long way as a nation, but there's still work to do.
His comment in context:
Excerpts of Attorney General Eric Holder’s Remarks at a Community College
Florissant Valley Community College ~ Wednesday, August 20, 2014
“The eyes of the nation and the world are watching Ferguson right now. The world is watching because the issues raised by the shooting of Michael Brown predate this incident. This is something that has a history to it and the history simmers beneath the surface in more communities than just Ferguson.
“We have seen a great deal of progress over the years. But we also see problems and these problems stem from mistrust and mutual suspicion.
“I just had the opportunity to sit down with some wonderful young people and to hear them talk about the mistrust they have at a young age. These are young people and already they are concerned about potential interactions they might have with the police.
“I understand that mistrust. I am the Attorney General of the United States. But I am also a black man. I can remember being stopped on the New Jersey turnpike on two occasions and accused of speeding. Pulled over…“Let me search your car”…Go through the trunk of my car, look under the seats and all this kind of stuff. I remember how humiliating that was and how angry I was and the impact it had on me.
“I think about my time in Georgetown – a nice neighborhood of Washington – and I am running to a picture movie at about 8 o’clock at night. I am running with my cousin. Police car comes driving up, flashes his lights, yells “Where you going? Hold it!” I say “Woah, I’m going to a movie.” Now my cousin started mouthing off. I’m like, “This is not where we want to go. Keep quiet.” I’m angry and upset. We negotiate the whole thing and we walk to our movie. At the time that he stopped me, I was a federal prosecutor. I wasn’t a kid. I was a federal prosecutor. I worked at the United States Department of Justice. So I’ve confronted this myself.”
“We are starting here a good dialogue. But the reality is the dialogue is not enough. We need concrete action to change things in this country. That’s what I have been trying to do. That’s what the President has been trying to do. We have a very active Civil Rights Division. I am proud of what these men and women have done. As they write about the legacy of the Obama administration, a lot of it is going to be about what the Civil Rights Division has done.
“So this interaction must occur. This dialogue is important. But it can’t simply be that we have a conversation that begins based on what happens on August 9, and ends sometime in December, and nothing happens. As I was just telling these young people, change is possible. The same kid who got stopped on the New Jersey freeway is now the Attorney General of the United States. This country is capable of change. But change doesn’t happen by itself.
“So let’s start here. Let’s do the work today.”
http://www.justice.gov/iso/opa/ag/speeches/2014/ag-speech-140820.html
I'm not afraid of a black man in power who calls himself a black man. IMO, folks who get upset about it and say "But what if a white man said the same thing???" - My answer: ethnically speaking, white folks (such as myself) have occupied & do occupy the position of the historical & current majority. Ethnically and historically speaking, it would be unnecessary to say "I am the Attorney General of the United States, but I'm also a white man" because it would be meaningless in terms of any racial adversity one would have overcome on the road to success.
When true ethnic equality is finally achieved, and when ethnic diversity in the workplace is truly actualized, I believe that no one will feel threatened by a black man in power who calls himself a black man (or anyone of color - man or woman, for that matter).