Posted on 09/24/2003 9:40:29 AM PDT by Vindiciae Contra TyrannoSCOTUS
What Color Is A Conservative? By JC Watts
How does an African American man raised in a family of Democrats on the poor side of the tracks in little Eufaula, Oklahoma, become a conservative and the first to hold a Republican Party leadership position in the history of the U.S. Congress?
In What Color Is a Conservative?, J. C. Watts, Jr., shares the remarkable story of his life and the controversy of his independent views. The fifth of six children, Watts was raised by parents who taught him the value of faith, family, hard work, and personal responsibility. As Eufaula and the nation struggled to integrate, Watts saw his father and uncle take on the local establishment to end segregation in his hometown, and he made history on his own as one of the first two black children to integrate the town's allwhite elementary school.
But it was J. C.'s outstanding football talent that earned him a scholarship and a quarterback spot on Coach Barry Switzer's legendary Oklahoma Sooners. He went on to lead the team to backtoback conference championships and Orange Bowl titles. After graduation, Watts opted to play in the Canadian Football League when the NFL refused to let him play his strength -- quarterback.
After his football career ended, J. C.'s interest in politics began to grow, but he would take a different path. "Like most African Americans," he says, "I was raised in the most partisan of households -- 100 percent Democrat. In fact, every black I knew was a Democrat."
Upon hearing Republicans such as Don Nickles and Jack Kemp espouse the same values as those of his father, he began to consider leaving the Democratic Party. It wasn't easy: "The ties that bind African Americans to the Democrat Party are strong, and I would argue are often based more on geography or tradition than ideology." But change he did, and soon his name was on the ballot. In 1994, as a candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives, he won Oklahoma's mostly white 4th District. That victory brought him national attention as the first black Republican elected to Congress from a southern state since Reconstruction.
During his eight years in Washington, J. C. Watts has not been a typical politician. And in What Color Is a Conservative?, he shows why, taking on what he considers negative forces and entrenched ideas in both parties. While he stands proudly with the GOP, Watts knows that a lot has to change. "The party of Lincoln has in many ways forgotten its roots," he writes. Meanwhile, the Democrats have cheapened the tone of public discourse, choosing character assassination over constructive dialogue, partisanship over unity.
Then there are those who have "driven a wedge between my politics and my people." Watts challenges the nation's traditional black leaders to reject race baiting, black orthodoxy, and victimhood. He protests that when African Americans "stray too far from black orthodoxy, we are punished and isolated in a warped kind of ideological apartheid."
In a life defined by straight talk, J. C. Watts isn't afraid to tackle hotbutton issues, his vision for America's future, and his controversial decision to retire from Congress. Inspiring, provocative, and an inside look at the workings of Washington,What Color Is a Conservative? may ruffle a few feathers on the left and the right, but that's exactly what J. C. Watts, Jr., thinks is good for America,
Also watch out for Bob Graham's seat.
Conservative Watchdog Launches Senate Run
Put 'em both on the Judiciary Committee, and watch the RATS squirm.
Q
What's your view of the Michigan affirmative-action case that the Supreme Court is considering? If you were a university admissions officer with a free hand, what criteria would you use?A
I believe affirmative action should be about creating opportunities for all people. I do believe in diversity of color and think it adds value to society. God is a God of diversity. He is the author of our skin color and He made us yellow, brown, black, and white.I have no problem with using race as a factor, but giving race 20 points and academics eight points seems to me to be a bit out of balance.
I have felt the sting of being left out because of my skin color and I wouldn't want any child to have to feel that hurt. So, therefore, let's not create or encourage a system that a white kid or black kid has to walk away a loser, feeling like he lost based on skin color.
If a white kid, a black kid, or a Hispanic kid stays in school, gets good grades, and wants to continue their education beyond high school, that opportunity should be available.
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