Enough is enough: the Director General of the OMPP responds to a racist letter

[ad_1]

We get a lot of criticism at OMCP. But a racist letter we received recently cannot go unanswered.

As I’m sure most people would assume, we get a lot of criticism at OMCP.

Sometimes it’s constructive: we need to use better grammar; we need to add more detail to our stories; or we made a mistake.

Sometimes it is opinion: we are too much to the left because we are talking to the Liberals; or we are too right because we are talking to the Conservatives.

And that’s all OK. We are not perfect. We try to be precise all the time. We aim to be impartial. At WTOP, we are happy to hear from you. It makes us better negative, positive and intermediate.

Then there is the communication which really bothers me. The kind that is racist. The kind that picks me up. Makes me angry. The kind that can’t go unanswered.

Take a look at this letter we received recently:

This letter was sent to the WTO national security correspondent, JJ Green. JJ has been doing excellent work in this critical area for over a decade at OMCP. He is an award-winning journalist who is highly respected in the halls of the Pentagon, in Langley and beyond. We are very fortunate that he is working with us. It makes us better and helps our region to be more informed.

But JJ is more than a great reporter for me. He is my friend. I have known him for over 30 years. We met while playing basketball in the 80’s. We started working together at OMCP in the 90’s. We’ve been through a lot together and I only have respect for one of the people. smarter and more caring I know.

It’s JJ Green.

On his own and at his own pace, JJ also creates and produces the weekly podcast “Colors: A Dialogue on Race in America”. Since his debut just over a year ago, he and his co-host Chris Core have done a terrific job of carefully examining race relations. They did it in a balanced, thoughtful and insightful manner.

To me, that’s why this person from “Bowie 1504” is writing to us. Like many, they immediately attack and discredit what they don’t understand instead of taking the time to listen and learn first.

JJ is black. And I am white. It shouldn’t matter, right? But obviously that is the case with the person who wrote this letter. My goal with my response to this is to expose this kind of racial intolerance and ignorance in the hope of putting more and more of it behind us for good.

To the former OMCP fan who wrote us this letter, your words are proof that this country still has work to do. Please know that letters like this will not slow us down. In fact, they make us redouble our efforts. JJ’s efforts reached that person. They struck a chord. Good. We hope that means we are making an impact.

“Colors” and many other podcasts, articles, books and speeches resonate more than ever, which gives me hope. It is high time to move to a better place when it comes to racing.

I am committed to leading WTOP and Federal News Network to this more diverse, equitable and inclusive place, and to use our platforms to make a difference where it really matters in our community.

Hope you are with me to get to this place too.

Joel Oxley is Senior Vice President and Managing Director of the WTO and the Federal News Network. Oxley has been Managing Director since 1998.

Like WTOP on Facebook and follow @WTOP on Twitter to start a conversation about this and other articles.

Get the latest news and daily headlines delivered to your inbox by signing up here.

WTO 2021. All rights reserved. This website is not intended for users located in the European Economic Area.

[ad_2]