Chief U.S. District Judge Richard Cebull on Wednesday admitted to sending a racially charged email about President Barack Obama from his courthouse chambers.
Cebull, of Billings, was nominated by former President George W. Bush and received his commission in 2001 and has served as chief judge for the District of Montana since 2008.
The subject line of the email, which Cebull sent from his official courthouse email address on Feb. 20 at 3:42 p.m., reads: “A MOM’S MEMORY.”
The forwarded text reads as follow:
“Normally I don’t send or forward a lot of these, but even by my standards, it was a bit touching. I want all of my friends to feel what I felt when I read this. Hope it touches your heart like it did mine.
“A little boy said to his mother; ‘Mommy, how come I’m black and you’re white?'” the email joke reads. “His mother replied, ‘Don’t even go there Barack! From what I can remember about that party, you’re lucky you don’t bark!'”
Cebull admitted Wednesday to sending the email to seven recipients, including his personal email address.
The judge acknowledged that the content of the email was racist, but said he does not consider himself racist. He said the email was intended to be a private communication.
I fail to see the racism, unless blacks are the only group to perform sex from that particular position. I think it is oversensitivity to anything remotely disparaging to Obama. You can't argue racism with a black person. They always have the upper hand in that discussion.
Larry, you're missing the point. This is a person who is entrusted at a VERY high level in our country to be fair and impartial to all people. He often has the life of people in his hands. This judge MUST be held to a standard much higher than that of the average person. This joke between you and your friends in private is good for a harmless laugh. This joke emanating from the WORK chambers of a Federal judge shows racial insensitivity. I agree that the joke doesn't seem terribly racist or offensive, but it should never have been associated with the judge.
On your point about arguing racism with a black person — In America everyone except white Anglo-Saxon males have an upper hand in an argument about prejudice and bigotry. That class of people includes blacks, Hispanics, Indians, Asians, women, the mentally and physically disabled, and everything in-between. Deal with it. If you're frustrated or jealous, move to Japan (or China, or India, or Egypt, or any number of other countries) and revel in the discrimination. You too can be a victim.