Posted on 04/18/2003 8:18:52 AM PDT by Trueblackman
The substandard performance of African American Republicans
I will tell you now that I am no real big fan of Michael Jackson, but one song that sticks in my head as an African American Republican is “the man in the mirror.” Some would ask me “Why would I select this song?” because it is my fault as an African American Republican that the Republican Party cannot get any traction in the African American Community.
Since becoming active in the Republican Party back in 1994 it has been my believe that given time more and more African Americans would follow my lead and leave the Democrat Party after many years of being simply taken for granted, but when I look at the current crop of African American Republicans consulting the party and I can see why over 90% of African American continue to remain Democrats.
These African American Republicans are simply out for themselves and use the party to boost their own standing. I bet if you where to ask 3 of them where Martin Luther King and Alabama Avenues in Washington DC (Ward 8)are located they could not even tell you. Martin Luther King and Alabama Avenues is located in one of the worst ghetto areas of Washington DC and since the mid 1970’s has seen nothing, but economic blight, sky high drug usage, and the plague of black on black crime. These same African American Republican remain stupid to the fact that President Ronald Reagan adopted Martin Luther King Elementary School back in the 1980’s.
The performance of African American Republicans can be attested to the fact, if we were actively involved in real recruitment in these same ghettos we would find that the average Democrat Voter in Ward 8 shares some of the same conservative values of our party. African American Democrat Voter in Ward 8 tend to be 55+-year-old and tending conservative Christian female, but she is still a Democrat because in her mind voting for a Republican is like voting for the “Devil” himself.
One thing that Democrats and their black allied groups such as NAACP Rainbow/PUSH are able to do so well is to get out the same female voter on Election Day. The day of election “walk around money is passed out” and young adults are employed from her neighborhood to go out and knock on the door of Miss Jenkins, to make sure she gets on the church bus to go to the polls and vote. While African American Republicans hide out on Election Day, watching election results and doing fan dances because the shadow puppet African American Republican Candidate that ran in this election cycle received 5% more of the vote than in the last election cycle, while still gets crushed by 90%.
As African American and Republicans we allow leftwing groups such as PUSH and ANSWER to come into our community and peddle fear and disinformation thru mouthpiece such as Jesse Jackson and John Conyers, while promoting the socialist agenda of their leftist donors.
African American Republicans in Washington DC, remained silent when the rabid socialist laureate Amiri Baraka slandered National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice as “a skeeza”(a street term for a prostitute) to the applause and ovation of almost 100 African Americans at the historical Coppin State College in Baltimore Maryland, while African American Republicans took all types of heat because of a poor choice of words by Senator Trent Lott.
How do we recruit other African Americans as Republicans, when we don’t defend those already in our party?
African Americans Republicans also need to take task our African Americans Democrat Counterparts and call their policies out as the failure they are. These Democrats use terms such as “progressive” to get elected, while covering up for their hunger of big government socialism. There is nothing progessive about their agenda since it remain devoid of substance for the last 37+ years.
The time has long passes for African American Republicans active and not reactive. The fact that J.C Watts was the only African American Republican elected to national federal office in 1994 during the Republican Revolution is a sad fact. African. Every other African American Republican Candidate in the years following Watt’s Victory was completely made into a fool by rabid leftwing Democrats and crushed on Election Day. The leftwing media use to love to point in interviews that Watts remained the “only” African American Republican in the Congress during his terms.
In closing would like to say “I am sick and tired of wearing 3 shoes because of the substandard performance of wine drinking and cheese eating African American Republicans and you need not be a genius to figure out where the 3rd shoe is!”
You've got to point out the conspiracy of the rich folks that run the DemocRat party. They're so rich that a little tax raise here or there against themselves means nothing compared to the power they get. Increased power brings in more than enough money to compensate for the tax increases they vote on themselves.
African-Americans can smell a real conspiracy a mile away. Unfortunately, they can't smell a real one that has lasted generations. White DemocRats keep power by sucking up to the black commmunity.
We need to increase the visibility of the sensible voices in the African community - Watts, Rice, Keyes,yourself.
How can that be done?
There are, in my opinion, many institutional barriers to progress, but such barriers are rarely the now-discredited institutions like the Klan. All the barriers these days seem to be on the side that claims to be "solving" problems. So the work ahead will be especially difficult, because it involves changing the mindset of those who imagine they are "doing good," when in reality they are the problem.
Well.
You know, there are a lot of self-interested people in all colors and parties. Politicians become politicians, except for the Extremely Saintly, because they love attention and power. It's not unnatural.
Think you put those goalposts too high.
Common sense tells us that many Blacks share conservative values, and if you look at the problems that face so many Black neighborhoods-- high crime, unwed births, deterioration of family structures, poor academic performance, etc.-- then it is obvious that the solutions lie in restoring the values championed by Republicans, not in more government programs.
Who is going to be the Martin Luther King, Jr. of the 21st Century? Who will be the leader that targets the true villians and shows the path to economic independence and achievement of the American Dream?
He went there and campaigned hard, and more importantly, people knew him and trusted him.
Part of the problem, Kevin, is that too many expect us to hold the standard for the entire country, laudable goal, though that may be.
At the same time, those in the lofty perches cannot stand without support from beneath. The notion of conservative blacks in high offices is wonderful, indeed. But without the supporting cast in local and state office, it becomes difficult to expand that base.
I agree with you - there are black conservatives who are out for themselves singularly. Yet the vast majority of us are in the trenches every day. We provide the day-to-day visibility; we stand in line at the bank and at the grocery stores; we show that conservative blacks are just as concerned about good schools and safe streets as everyone else. We show that we are not the "evil, advantageous ones" who would "sell our very souls" to some etherial "devil."
Standing on the national stage is good. We need to have that. But we need those on the local and regional levels as well. Our presence provides that. It shows people around us that there is a reason for being. It shows that we all have something to say and to contribute.
If you want on (or off) of my black conservative ping list, please let me know via FREEPmail. (And no, you don't have to be black to be on the list!)
Extra warning: this is a high-volume ping list.
Too high? Not really. Those who would undermine any efforts would certainly need to be addressed in some fashion. The "tough love" suggested could be the wake-up call needed...
Most blacks are heavily concentrated in so called "minority" districts, which were originally advocated by the Dems to create safe seats...The GOP one-upped them, when they realized that by putting all the blacks, who overwhelmingly vote Dem into one district, they would make the ajoining districts safer for Republicans. Thus, BOTH parties benefit from the system....Until the SC throws out these districts, it's going to be harder for a black Republican to win in a black district, ( he'd have to win over 50%+ of the black Dems..which is a hard row to hoe)....rather, a conservative black Republican would have a much beter chance of winning in a conservative district, either mult-racial or even predominantly white. So, seems to me that this would be a better way to allocate those election resources, and grow the candidates. At the same time, we can't ignore the mostly black districts....because if we can peel away even 5-10% of the votes to the GOP ticket..it could make a HUGE difference in statewide totals, and thus a senate seat or an electoral college vote could be swung to our side...
Also, remember that the incumbents of any strike has such a huge advantage in House races....it's hard to effect the change you're seeking...but it's coming.....actually, as the CBC becomes more senior in the Dem caucus, and more ossified, and moves farther to the left...it'll be easier for conservative black Republicans to distinguish themselves, move tothe middle ground, and win a few seats..
BTW..a few weeks ago..I commented on one of your threads, where your voiced a similar complaint....I asked you when were you running for congress...I said I'd come done and work for free on your campaing, I'm sure many otheres here would help.....what's your CD? I didn't get an answer..I figured you missed my reply, as you no doubt get so many..
PPS...I'm pinging you on an essay I posted yesterday..I speaks in part to this issue...I'd welcome your comments......regards..and a happy holiday..
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