Paula Deen Defended Southern Attitude Towards Race In Fall 2012 (VIDEO)

On Friday afternoon the Food Network announced that it was dropping Paula Deen from its network after 14 years on air after the National Enquirer reported (and The Huffington Post confirmed) that the chef had aired a series of arguably racist comments while being deposed for a lawsuit. But the deposition wasn't the first time that Paula Deen has voiced questionable views on race.

Last fall I visited the New York Times headquarters to see Paula Deen talk with Times reporter Kim Severson on a variety of topics. When I wrote it up I focused mostly on her comments about her diabetes because Deen's endorsement of the diabetes drug Victoza was still hot news. But I also briefly mentioned a strange segment of the talk in which she talked about Southern attitudes toward race. Today all this talk of her recent racist comments spurred me to revisit the video of the TimesTalk. It's really shocking stuff. Watch the video at the top of this entry for our race related highlights.

Severson first broaches the topic of race relations after showing a clip from Deen's appearance on Who Do You Think You Are in which she visits a large plantation a distant ancestor of hers named Billy had owned. (Along with 30 slaves.) That prompts Deen to talk about the Civil War and the Antebellum South.

Though she ultimately says that the abolition of slavery was a terrific change she also takes some time to defend the practice. She says back then black folk were such integral part of our lives they were like our family and for that reason we didn't see ourselves as being prejudiced. (The first person plural here raises the question did Paula Deen herself live in the Antebellum South Is she a vampire ) It's also worth noting that she takes care not to refer to slaves as slaves. She generally calls them these people or workers.

And her defense of contemporary race relations is just as bizarre. She thinks the race relations in the South are good... pretty good. OK. It will take a long time for it to completely be gone. If it'll ever be gone. Fine. But here's where it starts to get weird. We're all prejudiced against one thing or another she continues. I think black people feel the same prejudice that white people feel. Hmm...

By far the strangest most awkward moment of the whole talk however is when she talks about a black employee of hers named Hollis Johnson. She says that he's become very dear to her in the 18 years she's known him which is plenty sweet. But then she says points to the jet colored backdrop behind her and says he's black as this board. She proceeds to call out to him in the audience and ask him to come on stage telling him We can't see you in front of that dark board The audience roars with laughter. Severson shocked says Welcome to New York. And Paula characteristically responds Welcome to the South.

Or the South as Paula Deen sees it at least. Which from now on will be on view in her cookbooks and the soon to open Paula Deen Museum but not on the Food Network.

You can watch the whole TimesTalk here or listen to a podcast of it here if our clips whetted your appetite. Most of the discussion of race is between 44 00 and 50 00.

Also on HuffPost

Loading Slideshow Morning Of June 19 National Enquirer Reports On Racist Statements

On the heels of Paula Deen's a href http //www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/19/paula deen racist comments n word caught on video_n_3467287.html target _blank finishing butters announcement/a the National Enquirer claims that it has obtained video of Paula Deen a href http //www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/19/paula deen racist comments n word caught on video_n_3467287.html target _blank making racist statements/a.

Afternoon Of June 19 HuffPost Obtains Paula Deen's Deposition

And confirms a href http //www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/19/paula deen racist comments n word caught on video_n_3467287.html target _blank remarks/a.

Afternoon Of June 19 PaulasBestDishes Trends On Twitter

Mixing a href http //www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/19/paulas best dishes twitter reactions allegations of racism_n_3467877.html target _blank recipes with racism/a.

Evening Of June 19 Food Network Monitors The Situation

And a href http //www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/20/paula deen food network_n_3471453.html target _blank releases a statement/a.

Afternoon Of June 20 Questions About Her Future Surface

Is her career a href http //www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/21/paula deen racist comments_n_3477536.html target _blank doomed/a

Evening Of June 20 Deen Gets Skewered On 'Daily Show'

a href http //www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/21/daily show paula deen_n_3477924.html target _blank Type II racism/a y'all.

Morning Of June 21 Deen Bails On The Today Show

The program was a href http //www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/21/paula deen today show_n_3477825.html target _blank supposed to have the exclusive/a.

Morning Of June 21 Matt Lauer Was Not Happy

Nor was a href http //www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/21/today show paula deen cancellation matt lauer_n_3478187.html target _blank Al Roker/a.

Afternoon Of June 21 Deen Issues THREE Different Apologies

Things got a little a href http //www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/21/paula deen apology_n_3479279.html target _blank messy and sad/a.

Late Afternoon Of June 21 Food Network Drops Paula Deen

Her contract was a href http //www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/21/paula deen fired food network cancels show after racism scandal_n_3480517.html utm_hp_ref food123 target _blank set to expire/a.

Evening Of June 21 Paula Deen Fans Erupt On Food Network Page

They are a href http //www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/21/food network facebook_n_3480903.html utm_hp_ref food123 target _blank not happy/a.

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