I mentioned this in the comments section at another blog, and I thought it was worth pointing out here, too...

There's been a lot of praise and recognition for Sean Penn, who (ostensibly) donated his time and labor to the rescue effort in New Orleans. You can read about his glorious efforts here and here and here and here and here, for instance.

Like I said, Penn ostensibly tried to rescue some Katrina victims. What he did in reality was go to New Orleans with his personal photographer and his entourage of Hollywood cronies for a photo-op, where he helped out by sinking one of the rescue boats.

Macy Gray is a darn good R&B vocalist (her song "I Try" is one of my favorites), who went to the Astrodome and spent her time handing out clothing and toiletries, just like anybody else would do. She didn't take a photographer, she didn't play it up for attention, she just got in there and did what she could do.

I haven't seen Macy's efforts mentioned much, at least not in comparison to the praise for Penn's botched attempt to steal the spotlight. Articles about Macy donating her time are typically brief "human interest" stories. Articles that praise Penn typically portray him as some kind of savior.

Could that be because, as a black woman, Macy doesn't do much to advance the cause of white liberals?

Hmmmmmmmm?

Oh, it couldn't be... white liberals are incapable of that kind of subtle racism, aren't they??