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“
The
National Republican Party denied Tennessee the opportunity to prove
that it could move from the dark days of racism.”
Former
House Speaker Tip O’Neil said that all politics are local,
and to a
great degree that is true. In the last senatorial election, the state
of Tennessee was poised to make history for every
segment of
its society – rich and poor; working people; professionals;
religious and business leaders; and young people seeking to believe
in the process – every slice of our society that makes us
what we
are.
During
a primary that bruised both parties, Tennessee’s voters
selected
two candidates, who met their criteria for leadership, to carry their
party’s banner into the general election: Congressman Harold
Ford,
Jr. of Memphis, and Robert Corker, former mayor of Chattanooga.
The
state was poised to make history. And I don’t mean by
electing
Harold Ford, Jr. I mean the state could have made history by having a
campaign for one of the most important offices in our nation based on
the issues, leadership, vision, capacity, experience, and history of
public service.
From
small towns to big cities, the candidates shared their views and
their visions for Tennessee and this nation with people from every
walk of life. From small cafes and donut shops to the large churches
and mass meetings, from town hall meetings to statewide debates, the
candidates went out and spoke with the people of Tennessee about the
issues. In each campaign, there were seniors who had never
participated before. There were young people who had said they would
never participate again, but became excited by what they saw
happening right there in Tennessee.
“The
ad dredged up old hatreds.”
Anyone
who believes Mehlman and Bush, and thinks that things have changed,
need look no further than the Republican National Committee’s
anti-Ford Playboy ad – one so sleazy, so
distasteful, so
well-designed to dredge up the old hatreds so prevalent in the South.
Clearly, it was dirty business as usual for them.
The
fact that Harold Ford, Jr. lost the election is not the issue that
leaves me troubled. It is the fact that Tennessee lost an opportunity
to elect an individual to high office based on the issues most
important to Tennesseans, whether that individual was Robert Corker
or Harold Ford, Jr.
Unfortunately,
I must thank Ken Mehlman and the Republican National Committee for
creatively reminding us that at the highest level of their party,
racism is alive and well and just waiting for the opportunity to be
used.
William
Lucy is International Secretary-Treasurer of AFSCME and President of
the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists (CBTU).
| LISTEN TO THE LATEST
BLACK AGENDA RADIO
COMMENTARIES |
November 15, 2006
America is willing to
spend millions on monuments to Dr. King.
But we spend next to nothing on solving the problems of poverty and
want that defined his legacy.
CLICK
HERE TO
LISTEN TO
Millions on Monuments,
Pennies on People
by GLEN
FORD
|
November 15, 2006
The HBO documentary
"Hacking Democracy reveals that voting machines and the programs that
run them can not only ADD votes, but SUBTRACT them too.
CLICK
HERE TO LISTEN
to Subtracting the Vote
by BRUCE DIXON
CLICK
HERE TO WATCH THE HBO FILM
HACKING DEMOCRACY
CLICK
HERE TO VISIT THE HACKING DEMOCRACY WEBSITE with a wealth of
interviews and additional materials.
|
November 8, 2006
What is facism?
What would
home-grown American facism look like, and how
close is it right now?
CLICK HERE
TO LISTEN TO
American
Facism
by GLEN
FORD
|
November 8, 2006
The so-called war on
terror is a
palpable fraud. It is enemy propaganda that leaves
us no choice but to vote for the politicians who
can scare us the most. This is a contest Democrats
cannot win and should not play. And we must not
let them.
CLICK
HERE TO LISTEN
to Ending
the So-Called
"War on Terror"
by BRUCE DIXON
|
November 1, 2006
AMERICAN GENOCIDE
When Columbus invaded America there
were more than 15 million native Americans in what
is now the U.S. By 1890 there were 300,000, a 97%
death rate. Our nation sits on the bones on one of
the greatest genocides in human history.
CLICK HERE
TO LISTEN TO
THE ALL-AMERICAN
GENOCIDE
by GLEN FORD
|
November 1, 2006
WHERE IS THE BLACK
CHURCH ON
IRAQ?
African Americans
overwhelmingly
oppose the war in IRaq, and have done so since its
beginning. 650,000 Iraqis are now dead, compared
to less than 3,000 Americans, a ratio of 200 to 1.
Why then, do we allow black preachers in black
churches to pray every Sunday ONLY for the
Americans in harm's way and not for the other
99% of the dead, who are Iraqis?.
CLICK
HERE TO LISTEN
to WHERE IS THE BLACK
CHURCH ON
IRAQ
by BRUCE DIXON
|
October 25, 2006
MYTH OF THE MELTING POT
White Americans
frequently
celebrate the US as a Melting Pot. The phrase is
actually taken from an early 20th century play
that lauds the US as a melting pot for it called
the races of Europe alone, transforming them
into what we now call white Americans.
CLICK HERE
TO LISTEN TO
MYTH OF THE MELTING POT
by GLEN FORD
|
October 25, 2006
WAR IS THE HEALTH OF
THE STATE
America's
leaders
need war, like vampires need blood. Even if it's
war on a noun.
In fact, in an era where
politicians create and exploit fear to stay in
power, the so-called war on terror is an
invaluable political tool, something they cannot
do without.
CLICK
HERE TO LISTEN
to WAR IS THE HEALTH OF
THE STATE
by
BRUCE DIXON
|
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