Cornel West Calls President Obama A "Global George Zimmerman"

Professor and author Cornel West, along with past collaborator Tavis Smiley, has been a vocal critic of President Barack Obama. In the aftermath of the George Zimmerman verdict and the president's recent remarks on racism, Dr. West aimed sharp barbs at Obama and referred to him as a “global George Zimmerman.” Dr. West was a guest on Amy Goodman's Democracy Now program to address Obama's unplanned media briefing last week and the Zimmerman acquittal. In his usual fashion, the Union Theological Seminary professor did not mince words with his perception of Obama's thoughts on race and other matters. 

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From Democracy Now: 
       I think we have to acknowledge that President Obama has very little moral authority at this point, because we know anybody who tries to rationalize the killing of innocent peoples, a criminal—George Zimmerman is a criminal—but President Obama is a global George Zimmerman, because he tries to rationalize the killing of innocent children, 221 so far, in the name of self-defense, so that there's actually parallels here.

 Dr. West goes on mention several countries such as Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia in response to Goodman's questions of where the president has committed such an act. Dr. West checked Obama again after acknowledging the President stepping forward on the Trayvon Martin case and even called the gesture “beautiful.” However, Dr. West feels that Obama should have addressed the “new Jim Crow” after five years in office. Tavis Smiley called the president's speech “weak as pre-sweetened Kool-Aid” last week, which got the media figure a sound roasting on Twitter.