Though a libertarian at heart, All That Remains frontman Phil Labonte is supportive of US president Barack Obama on at least one point, his views on racism. Speaking recently on the WTF Podcast with Marc Maron, Obama delved into racism in the U.S., offering:
“It is incontrovertible that race relations have improved significantly during my lifetime and yours, and that opportunities have opened up, and that attitudes have changed. That is a fact.
What is also true is that the legacy of slavery, Jim Crow, discrimination in almost every institution of our lives, you know, that casts a long shadow and that’s still part of our DNA that’s passed on. We’re not cured of it. Racism, we are not cured of it, clearly.
And it’s not just a matter of it not being polite to say ‘nigger’ in public. That’s not the measure of whether racism still exists or not. It’s not just a matter of overt discrimination, societies don’t overnight completely erase everything that happened 2 to 300 years prior.”
Labonte spoke up on the matter via his Facebook, offering:
“If you get offended by hearing the word nigger from a black man in a discussion about race in America you’re not grown up enough to be a part of that discussion. I agree with everything the president said.”
