Is it racist to not cede space on overcrowded New York City sidewalks?

New York Times reporter Greg Howard, writing in the paper’s “Race/Related” newsletter, penned an essay singling out white women for not moving out of his way.

He writes that in his seven years of living in the city, “most people walk courteously — but that white women, at least when I’m in their path, do not.”

Howard goes on to note that whether they’re looking at their phones or with a group of friends in conversation, white women “almost always continue straight, forcing me to one side without changing their course.”

“Why only and specifically white women? Do they refuse to acknowledge me because they’ve been taught that they should fear black men, and that any acknowledgment of black men can invite danger?" — Greg Howard, New York Times

At times when he’s had to step off the sidewalk into the road, the writer turns “furious” because he “feels small.”

The Times reporter – who notes that he has had white women as friends and lovers – concludes by pondering the possible reasons why he’s had these experiences.

“Why only and specifically white women? Do they refuse to acknowledge me because they’ve been taught that they should fear black men, and that any acknowledgment of black men can invite danger? Do they refuse to acknowledge me because to alter their route would be to show their fear? Do they not see me? Can they not see me?”

Dan Gainor, vice president for business and culture at the Media Research Center, blasted the Times reporter for bias.

“Can you imagine The New York Times running an essay where a white woman complains about how African-American men are rude and then blames it on race? The paper and the author would be skewered,” Gainor said. “The left's new default is that white people are doing wrong at every turn -- even walking down the street.”

If a conservative had written that Times piece, Gainor added, they would be branded as a racist.

“The Times promotes the typical liberal standard," he said. "Everything left is right and everything right is wrong.”