Fox’s Racial Comment Sparks Controversy

President Vicente Fox found himself in a controversy after comparing Mexicans’ work ethic to that of African Americans.

“There’s no doubt that the Mexican men and women -- full of dignity, willpower and a capacity for work -- are doing the work that not even blacks want to do in the United States,” Fox said Friday at a meeting of the Texas-Mexico Frozen Food Council in Puerto Vallarta.

The Mexican newspaper Milenio cited Fox’s “racist comment” in a small front-page headline, and the newspaper Reforma called the president’s words “controversial.”

The Rev. Jesse Jackson told CNN that the comment was “unnecessary and inappropriate.”