( CNN ) -- Bashing Cliven Bundy for his remarks regarding race is like LeBron James dunking on a 5-foot rim : Pointless . And the same is true for Los Angeles Clippers owner Don Sterling , if you believe that he made the remarks attributed to him by TMZ and Deadspin . As President Barack Obama said , `` when ignorant folks want to advertise their ignorance , you do n't really have to do anything , you just let them talk . '' Still talking about the talk of the ignorant is fun . After all , few things are more entertaining than well-executed memes and a hashtag in front of stupidity . The problem is that while men such as Bundy and Sterling may be racist , they are not the face of racism . Not today 's version . But we 'll place that yoke on their shoulders anyway because it 's easy , like James dunking on a kiddie rim . Some conservatives will quickly pedal away from the Bundys and the Ted Nugents of the world , insisting that they are not like those rodeo clowns . They do n't have a racist bone in their body because they would never make such outlandish statements . But then they turn around and marvel at how `` well-spoken '' or `` articulate '' a black person is and think nothing of it . Politicians of all stripes will publicly denounce the offensive things that Bundy says but continue to construct policies that cater to his sensibilities . Today , racism is n't a crazy old white man with a dead calf on his shoulders proclaiming he 's `` unracist . '' No , it 's elected officials such as U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin saying inner-city men are `` not even thinking about working or learning the value and the culture of work '' and then feigning shock that people saw a racist element to his statements . Bundy and Sterling are just the lightning rods of the moment . Not too long ago , Paula Deen was the social pariah . Meanwhile , Racism 2.0 is busily working in the shadows , gerrymandering away voting rights and creating legislation that makes pre-emptively shooting dead a young black man who makes you nervous synonymous with standing one 's ground . The longer the media allow ignorant relics like Bundy to continue to hog the spotlight -- and the public points at him as the face of conservative racism -- the longer the current incarnation can go unchecked . That does n't mean Bundy 's fight with the government should be ignored . That does n't mean Sterling 's alleged remarks -- and well-documented past of discrimination -- should be overlooked . Only that their views -- and thus , importance -- should be kept in perspective . For mispronouncing Rosa Parks ' name pales in comparison to the politics of courting a racist electorate . It pales in comparison to the lack of compassion for the five children who were shot Easter Sunday at a park on the south side of Chicago or the characterization of poor people as takers . During the height of the recession , according to an analysis in The American Prospect , 33 states increased spending on prisons while decreasing spending on education , and we 're to believe the disproportionate number of minorities in jail is a coincidence ? So , yeah , yuk it up at Bundy 's expense . Keep tweeting # boycottClippers if it makes you feel better ( though I 'd be more prone to use my 140 characters to ask why the NAACP thought Sterling was a good candidate for a lifetime achievement award ) . But do n't make such people out to be anything more than what they are -- the few remaining voices of oppression from years past . Today racism has a different look . A different sound . A different voice -- though the song is still the same .
Granderson : Bashing Cliven Bundy 's remarks is easy , but he 's not face of today 's racism . He says politicians denounce remarks even as they push or abide de facto racist policies . He says gerrymandering , stand-your-ground laws , voter ID laws all are Racism 2.0 . Granderson : I'm a black man