No other ethnic political apparatus in this country is so firmly in the pocket of one party as African-Americans and the Democratic Party. Â For decades, Democrats have pandered to African-Americans at election time, then forgot their promises a day later. Â And yet, we keep coming back, waiting for more empty promises.
The Black Press is complicit in this abusive relationship. Â Let’s look at one recent example. Â In the run-up to the 2010 elections in Illinois, no black media outlet completely ignored every Republican primary. Â All of them. Â The mainstream press, on the other hand, weighed in on both the Democratic and Republican primaries. Â Justifiably outraged by this, Republican nominee for the Congressional seat currently held by Jesse Jackson, Jr penned this open letter to the Illinois Black media:
Dear Editor –
I am the GOP nominee for Congress in IL-2. I am conservative. I also happen to be an African-American, and resident of the Chicagoland area. The reason I am writing to you today is because your publication primarily serves the Black community. I am a faithful reader, but have noticed an intentional/unintentional neglect to Republican members of our community.
Your endorsements this week did not include the Republican Party at all! However, the Chicago Sun-Times and Tribune both endorsed Democratic and Republican primaries. This created grave concern about your commitment to objective reporting, and to the real needs and diversity of opinion among African-Americans. I find it particularly challenging to reconcile how no Republican candidate is worthy of your endorsement. It gives the impression of partisanship.
I know it is assumed that all Blacks are Democrats and to be Black means you have to be a Democrat, but these assumptions are egregiously false. Black history is full of prominent Republicans, including Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., whose birthday we just celebrated. Dr. King’s niece, Althea King, is a prominent Republican today, and a conservative activist in New York City.
As “minorities†we have always called for diversity and tolerance, yet within Black press there is no tolerance for Black Republicans and no willingness to embrace Black political diversity. My question is why not? Why are our press releases, letters to the editor, community events, and campaigns ignored? Is it not the responsibility of Black press to keep the Black community informed of what and who is impacting their lives?
I appeal to you to be more inclusive, more objective, and less partial. We have Republican candidates running for U.S. Senate, U.S. House of Representatives, and Cook County Sheriff who are members of the Black community. Yet, there has been no mention of any of our candidacies.
Our backgrounds include Reverend, Alderman, Officer, working with youth, and community organizing with President Barack Obama. We are not outsiders. We ask that we not be treated as such.
Very Respectfully,
Rev. Isaac C. Hayes
GOP Nominee for U.S. Congress, IL-2
As I’ve said before, the Republicans do not have the best record in the civil rights arena. Â But, a cursory examination of the Democrats policies show that they have their own problems. Â It’s time for African-Americans to stop putting our entire political future in the hands of the Democratic party.
To the Black media, I say, give our people the means by which we can educate ourselves on all of the issues. Â From every perspective. Provide fair coverage to Democratic AND Republican candidates. Â maybe the republicans won’t convince African-Americans to vote for them. Â Maybe they will. Â But at the end of the day, our people deserve the right to make their own choice.
The Civil War and the Civil Rights movements were about giving our people the right to self-determination. Â Live up to that vision by giving us all the information we need to wisely choose our leaders.
Why should the black media pay attention to Republicans when blacks automatically vote 95% for Democrats. Also, why should people in Chicago pay attention to the irrelevant local Republicans. The real elections in Chicago are the Democratic primaries.
Whining about how blacks do not need to want to pay attention to Republicans in pointless and a waste of time.
The progressive Republicans should have realized by now that blacks despise all Republicans whether they are progressive or not and that blacks will always be the most loyal Democratic voters.
“Republicans do not have the best record in the civil rights arena.”
REALLY? Can you make a statement like that and then not back it up with any facts? Republicans: Supported Civil Rights Republicans: Supported abolishing Jim Crow Laws Republicans: Party started by LINCOLN and abolishinests. REPUBLICANS: MLK SR and JR. While DEMOCRATS have done nothing but give handouts to blacks and tell “negoes” they’re not good enough to take care of themselves. It is the DEMOCRAT policies and handouts that have had the most serious effect on BLACKS in the most negative of ways.
Superdestroyer… THAT IS EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENED IN GERMANY IN THE 1930′S! People with opposing views were dismissed and those with opposing viewpoints were SHUT OUT. That’s wrong and YOU are perpetuating it. More and more blacks are waking up every day and saying “what the hell has the Democrat party done to us?” When asked the same question as I asked in the beginning of my statement to provide examples of “Republicans not having the best record in the civil rights arena…” they can’t provide any, and when they do they loose the debate based on facts.
Jules,
Blacks know exactly what the Democrats have done for them. The Democrats have supported quotas, set asides, affirmative action, 8a contracting, separate and unequal college admissions, diversity hiring, the elimination of testing at work, and made it easier for their children to get into college.
In the short run, the Democrats have taxed whites and given the money to blacks. The idea that the Republican Party can overcome that is foolish. Unless progressive Republicans are ready to throw the white middle class under the bus to pander to blacks, appealing to blacks in a waste of time and resources. Anything short of blatant pandering will just cause blacks to say that Republicans are racist.
@ Jules-
It’s hard to respond in the middle of a post. So, please at least give yourself a chance to finish your post before accusing me of not providing any facts when asked.
And I don’t want to bash my party, but I do want to face the realty of our history wrt civil rights/relations with the black community:
While you are correct that many Republicans did, in fact support the historic civil rights legislation of the 1960s, we undercut that progress, by welcoming with open arms many of the people who opposed it as Democrats. Jesse Helms, Strom Thurmond and countless others moved to the Republican Party from the Republican Party when they saw they could manipulate a Party desperate for votes in the wake of the Goldwater defeat in ‘64. We made the Democrats’ Civil Rights problems our own when we welcomed them into the Party. The Party of moderation lost its way on civil rights in a desperate move to remain relevant. We ended up being against MLK Day, and against efforts to force the South Africans to give up apartheid. We used African Americans as scare-tactic symbols of welfare and crime.
Now, I will say that a lot of that is ancient history. In the past twenty years we’ve had successive Republican administrations who’ve appointed more and more African-Americans. President Bush appointed more African-Americans to high office than any Democrat up to Barack Obama. Newt Gingrich was very active in finding ways to help poor African-Americans bridge the Digital Divide. And, of course, the Party now has an African-American chairman.
I really think the Party has put the period of the Southern Strategy behind us. But we cannot ignore that mistake or we are doomed to repeat it.
@Superdestoyer:
I’m black. Dennis Sanders who wites on this site is black. Richard Shorter and Richard Ivory who occasionally post on this site are black. The Chairman of the Republican Party is black. You’re talking nonsense.
Travis,
A few moderate republicans who are black do not offset the overwhelmingly and automatic support that blacks give the Democratic Party. When 98% of blacks are voting for President Obama while they are also voting for Marion Berry, Kwame Kilpatrick, or Maxine Waters means they could not care less about Republican candidates, Republicans policies, or Republican campaigns.
The Republicans should put their efforts into getting the upper middle class whites back instead of trying to pander to blacks.
Superdestroyer (Is that A Star Wars Reference, BTW?):
No, we certainly don’t make up for the overwhelming support African-Americans tend to give Democrats. If only that were the case.
The people you listed are symptoms of a situation in which Democrats have completely locked Republicans out of the system (with Republican help) in many metropolitan areas and created what amounts to single-party systems. They’re not unlike the Party machines of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Republicans don’t need to pander to Black folks. We’re not stupid people. What Republicans have to do is not be afraid to show up in black communities. We need to recruit candidates for local offices from these communities and throw our support behind them in order to break up the monopolies the Democrats have on these offices.
Look at Isaac Hayes (the candidate referenced above, not the 70s soul singer)in Chicago. He’s a conservative African-American minister running against one of the most entrenched, best known names in the Democratic party, Jesse Jackson, Jr. Republicans from across the country need to donate to and volunteer for his campaign. That’s not pandering, that’s just paying a black community in Chicago the same attention given a rural district in New York.
I don’t disagree, however, that more effort needs to be done to bring upper middle class whites (and black people) into the Party.
Thanks for being engaged!