Posted on 08/23/2015 4:42:56 PM PDT by E. Pluribus Unum
A writer over at The Washington Post has a bold new proposal he believes can heal the American racial divide: empower blacks by making their votes count more than those of other races.
“Racial reconciliation is impossible without some kind of broad-based, systemic reparations,” writes Theodore R. Johnson, a former White House fellow and current Ph.D candidate in law and policy at Northeastern University. “But if a pecuniary answer can’t fix the structural disadvantage — and it can’t — what can?”
The answer, Johnson argues, is simple: weighted voting, where black votes count for more than white ones. Specifically, Johnson suggests giving each black person five-thirds of a vote, to reverse the old three-fifths compromise written into the U.S. Constitution.
As Johnson gleefully notes, counting black votes more than others would significantly alter many elections in the U.S. In the 2012 election, several Southern states with high black populations, such as Mississippi and Georgia, would have swung over to Barack Obama’s column, and their recent Senate races would have been decided in Democrats’ favor as well.
Johnson justifies his argument by saying it’s the only way to solve the “structural disadvantages” faced by blacks.
“A five-thirds compromise would imbue African Americans with a larger political voice that could be used to fight the structural discrimination expressed in housing, education, criminal justice and employment,” he says. “Allowing black votes to count for 167 percent of everyone else’s would mean that 30 million African American votes would count as 50 million, substituting super-votes for the implausible idea of cash payments.” With black voters so massively empowered, politicians will have no choice to but to put black priorities first if they hope to remain in office.
Johnson pays lip service to the important democratic principle of “one man, one vote,” but then dismisses it on grounds that the term is “unclear,” by pointing to a Supreme Court case that has nothing to do with the topic of explicitly giving one racial group super-votes.
Having taken care of his justification of the policy itself, Johnson goes into detail about how it should be constructed. He says it only needs to last for a set period of time (he proposes 24 years), and he also proposes taking inspiration from the Bureau of Indian Affairs for handling the thorny topic of who counts as black and who doesn’t.
To conclude, Johnson forthrightly says that only reverse racism will be sufficient to achieve the goal of racial justice.
“Of course, weighted-vote reparations are only slightly more politically feasible than a multi-trillion-dollar payout,” he says. “But we have to consider novel approaches to racial reconciliation … if we are serious about ridding the nation of barriers to opportunity and overcoming the racial discrimination woven into America’s fabric. If racism is the culprit, then dismantling it requires the same tools that constructed it.”
Not long winded, but you gave a more detailed explanation. Thank you for adding the details.
This is why we have 2A
If they try this,there will be lead in the air.
We already have weighted voting...one citizen, one vote.
The dhimmicraps have stolen the last couple of presidential elections by way of voter fraud, and now this a$$clown wants to tilt the playing field even more?
BS.
President Trump will let pipsqueaks like this Ph D candidate know what he thinks of their stupid ideas. He’s really starting to grow on me, the more I think of the Left’s heads exploding on election night next year.
The goal is: reparations.
There is story after story regarding giving funds to black people .. as if that will solve the whole problem. The left never changes .. this is just more “throwing money” at a problem, because they refuse to acknowledge that it’s the LEFT who started this mess for “black supremacy” and now they don’t know how to get out of it.
Their only solution is to rob supposed “white people” to make the blacks happy. It will never work.
current Ph.D candidate in law and policy at Northeastern University.
Reconstruction gave us the KKK. How do you think THIS would work out for race relations?
I would gladly die going out in a blaze of glory should this be tried.
Civil war ii just inches closer.
Idiots who think they are geniuses cannot be helped.
They already vote twice, in urban areas.
If blacks didn’t abort 50% of their population they would not need all this BS consideration.
Northeastern: Save yourself embarrassment. Do not give this clown a degree. I understand you had to admit him to keep the federal money coming in but he will only cause you much bad publicity in the future.
First of all, he doesn’t know the difference between reverse and Inverse of a fraction. 5/3 is not the reverse of 3/5.
Second, as you are aware, but apparently your doctoral student isn’t, the 3/5 rule is contained in the 13th Amendment, not in the Constitution itself.
Keep it dry and buy more.
Heavy metals are the key to a good future; brass, copper, and lead.
Great idea ! But how, pray tell, does one define ‘blackness’ or Afro-American ? Maybe if you have a rap sheet, a parole officer, have served hard time or are currently in prison, haven’t held a job ever, your family has been on welfare for 4 generations, can’t read or write, have a drug addiction problem, play college or professional basketball or football, think BO is a great President and Hillary would be a great President ? So very many ways to qualify.
I need to punch this guy’s face until my knuckles bleed. A lot.
Teddy Johnson is another Obama communist. This racist drivel is proof the Democrats are far more racist than Republicans.
democrats have been counting black votes at a higher value than whites for years through election fraud.
Theodore Roosevelt Johnson, III is an opinion columnist, speaker, 2011-2012 White House Fellow, and military officer. He writes and speaks on issues of race and politics. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics from Hampton University and a Master’s degree with an International Relations concentration from Harvard University. In 2014, he began doctoral studies at Northeastern University. He is a proud member of the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. Theodore has honorably served as a naval officer for over 15 years. As a Commander in the United States Navy and cybersecurity expert, he has lived and traveled to every corner of the world, taken part in national security operations, and been part of international humanitarian assistance efforts following natural disasters. His opinion writings are his own and do not necessarily represent the positions of the United States government. His professional writings, however, have become official Navy publications and published in military journals. His research in Africa, South America, and Europe led to formulation of international engagement planning in use today by Navy units worldwide. http://www.theodorerjohnson.com/
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