How Dare these people think for themselves

[sirs]

Black conservative tea party backers take heat
Apr 6, 2010
By VALERIE BAUMAN

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - They've been called Oreos, traitors and Uncle Toms, and are used to having to defend their values. Now black conservatives are really taking heat for their involvement in the mostly white tea party movement?and for having the audacity to oppose the policies of the nation's first black president.

"I've been told I hate myself. I've been called an Uncle Tom. I've been told I'm a spook at the door," said Timothy F. Johnson, chairman of the Frederick Douglass Foundation, a group of black conservatives who support free market principles and limited government.

"Black Republicans find themselves always having to prove who they are. Because the assumption is the Republican Party is for whites and the Democratic Party is for blacks," he said.

Johnson and other black conservatives say they were drawn to the tea party movement because of what they consider its commonsense fiscal values of controlled spending, less taxes and smaller government. The fact that they're black?or that most tea partyers are white?should have nothing to do with it, they say.

"You have to be honest and true to yourself. What am I supposed to do, vote Democratic just to be popular? Just to fit in?" asked Clifton Bazar, a 45-year-old New Jersey freelance photographer and conservative blogger.

Opponents have branded the tea party as a group of racists hiding behind economic concerns?and reports that some tea partyers were lobbing racist slurs at black congressmen during last month's heated health care vote give them ammunition.

But these black conservatives don't consider racism representative of the movement as a whole?or race a reason to support it.

Angela McGlowan, a black congressional candidate from Mississippi, said her tea party involvement is "not about a black or white issue."

"It's not even about Republican or Democrat, from my standpoint," she told The Associated Press. "All of us are taxed too much."

Still, she's in the minority. As a nascent grassroots movement with no registration or formal structure, there are no racial demographics available for the tea party movement; it's believed to include only a small number of blacks and Hispanics.

Some black conservatives credit President Barack Obama's election?and their distaste for his policies?with inspiring them and motivating dozens of black Republicans to plan political runs in November.

For black candidates like McGlowan, tea party events are a way to reach out to voters of all races with her conservative message.

"I'm so proud to be a part of this movement! I want to tell you that a lot of people underestimate you guys," the former national political commentator for Fox News told the cheering crowd at a tea party rally in Nashville, Tenn., in February.

Tea party voters represent a new model for these black conservatives?away from the black, liberal Democratic base located primarily in cities, and toward a black and white conservative base that extends into the suburbs.

Black voters have overwhelmingly backed Democratic candidates, support that has only grown in recent years. In 2004, presidential candidate Sen. John Kerry won 88 percent of the black vote; four years later, 95 percent of black voters cast ballots for Obama.

Black conservatives don't want to have to apologize for their divergent views.

"I've gotten the statement, 'How can you not support the brother?'" said David Webb, an organizer of New York City's Tea Party 365, Inc. movement and a conservative radio personality.

Since Obama's election, Webb said some black conservatives have even resorted to hiding their political views.

"I know of people who would play the (liberal) role publicly, but have their private opinions," he said. "They don't agree with the policy but they have to work, live and exist in the community ... Why can't we speak openly and honestly if we disagree?"

Among the 37 black Republicans running for U.S. House and Senate seats in November is Charles Lollar of Maryland's 5th District.

A tea party supporter running against House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., Lollar says he's finding support in unexpected places.

The 38-year-old U.S. Marine Corps reservist recently walked into a bar in southern Maryland decorated with a Confederate flag. It gave his wife Rosha pause.

"I said, 'You know what, honey? Many, many of our Southern citizens came together under that flag for the purpose of keeping their family and their state together,'" Lollar recalled. "The flag is not what you're to fear. It's the stupidity behind the flag that is a problem. I don't think we'll find that in here. Let's go ahead in."

Once inside, they were treated to a pig roast, a motorcycle rally?and presented with $5,000 in contributions for his campaign.

McGlowan, one of three GOP candidates in north Mississippi's 1st District primary, seeks a seat held since 2008 by Democrat Travis Childers. The National Republican Congressional Committee has supported Alan Nunnelee, chairman of the state Senate Appropriations Committee, who is also pursuing tea party voters.

McGlowan believes the tea party movement has been unfairly portrayed as monolithically white, male and middle-aged, though she acknowledged blacks and Hispanics are a minority at most events.

Racist protest signs at some tea party rallies and recent reports by U.S. Reps. John Lewis, D-Ga., and Barney Frank, D-Mass., that tea partyers shouted racial and anti-gay slurs at them have raised allegations of racism in the tea party movement.

Black members of the movement say it is not inherently racist, and some question the reported slurs. "You would think?something that offensive?you would think someone got video of it," Bazar, the conservative blogger, said.

"Just because you have one nut case, it doesn't automatically equate that you've got an organization that espouses (racism) as a sane belief," Johnson said.

Hilary Shelton, director of the Washington bureau of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, suggested a bit of caution.

"I'm sure the reason that (black conservatives) are involved is that from an ideological perspective, they agree," said Shelton. "But when those kinds of things happen, it is very important to be careful of the company that you keep."


The audacity

[kimba1]

again such short memories.
blacks have always been conservative,it`s just that the republican party hasn`t been supportive in recent times to garner that many vote from them.

over all most folks are conservative in action & lifestyle but in politics it diverges due to a misguided belief on how strong party loyalty is

[sirs]

It doesn't help when non-support of reverse discrimination, such as Affirmative Action is portrayed as "racist".  Nor when you have Democrat commercials claiming that vote Republican and watch another Black church be burned.  Nor when any disagreement with what the NAACP or so called "Black Leadership" mandate, that again one is deemed a racist for that disagrement.

[BT]

blacks have always been conservative,it`s just that the republican party hasn`t been supportive in recent times to garner that many vote from them.

Bullshit.

What the GOP hasn't done is pander to the group based on race.

What they do is treat them like white people.

or Asians

or any other demographic that isn't hung up on identity politics.

[Kramer]

I though the first black president was supposed to end all this racial stuff -- seems worse.

[sirs]

blacks have always been conservative,it`s just that the republican party hasn`t been supportive in recent times to garner that many vote from them.

Bullshit.  What the GOP hasn't done is pander to the group based on race.

Precisely

[kimba1]

Bullshit.

What the GOP hasn't done is pander to the group based on race.

What they do is treat them like white people.

I mis spoke
when I said recent times I meant 50`s 60`s

nowadays they`re on thier own on what`s racism is.

I already brought up I got no idea racism is since it`s definately not solely on race from the looks of it.

[BT]

I mis spoke
when I said recent times I meant 50`s 60`s

You still misspeak. The only way civil rights legislation got through in the 50's and 60's was because of the GOP.


And Brown vs Board of Education which ended segregated schools happened on the Warren Court, an Eisenhower Appointee.

[sirs]

BT is again correct.  Civil Rights would NOT have passed on a pure party line vote, in the 60's.  A greater majority of the GOP supported it, than did the Dems

[kimba1]

then what did the GOP do to lose support?

whats the turning point?

[sirs]

Democrats (with the help of the MSM) able to portray ANYTHING that doesn't support governmental assist to minority groups as "racist".  Doesn't matter the fiscal or constitutional limitations or the legitimate disagreements that could be rationally debated.....nope, GOP was simply one big racist glob.  and if you don't believe that, you must be a racist.  Just ask Tee

[sirs]

White NBC Reporter Confronts Black Man at Tea Party Rally: 'Have You Ever Felt Uncomfortable?'
By: Brent Baker
April 16, 2010 01:02 ET

?There aren't a lot of African-American men at these events,? NBC News reporter Kelly O'Donnell, a white woman, told Darryl Postell, a black man at a Tea Party rally held Thursday in Washington, DC, pressing him, in an exchange she chose to include in her NBC Nightly News story, to address her prejudiced assumptions: ?Have you ever felt uncomfortable?? Postell rejected her loaded premise that race must divide Americans: ?No, no, these are my people, Americans.?

O'Donnell's story noted ?skepticism over how the Tea Party is judged and labeled,? letting an attendee assert: ?We're not racists, we're not any of the above that people claim us to be. We're ordinary citizens that love our country, and we're fighting for it.? O'Donnell soon wondered if it all may peter out, asking a man in the crowd: ?Do you think this has enough energy to really last to November and to make a difference??

Over on ABC, Jonathan Karl highlighted how ?many of them blamed us, the news media.? A woman demanded: ?We want honesty from you. We want fair time from you. We want you, the media, to represent all the people, not just a certain portion of the people.?

Karl, however, only fueled that skepticism toward the media as he focused on ?disagreement among the Tea Partiers themselves,? showing a poster that had images of both President Obama and Hitler: ?This woman thought a fellow Tea Partier's poster went way too far.? Karl did at least allow the woman to point out such a poster was the exception: ?If you look around, though, there are literally thousands of signs that say nothing about Hitler, say all about how we're going to get even in November.?

The CBS Evening News, which led Wednesday night with a Tea Party story (?CBS Gives Tea Partiers Top Billing, But Sees 'Inconsistency' in the FNC-Watching, White Gun Owners?), didn't touch the topic on Thursday night.

The MRC's Brad Wilmouth corrected the closed-captioning against the video to provide these transcripts of the Thursday, April 15 stories:

NBC Nightly News:
BRIAN WILLIAMS: In this country, April 15, it's Tax Day, or tax extension day for some. For others, this was Tea Party day. All across this country, Americans gathered in parks and plazas and in Washington, D.C., to show their government they're fed up with the way things are going. Our own Kelly O'Donnell is with us from the National Mall tonight. Kelly, good evening.

KELLY O'DONNELL: Good evening, Brian. For the Tea Party movement, this is something of a political holiday, using Tax Day to make their case. They don't like where the country is headed. They don't like the size of government, and more than one was willing to tell me they don't like the media. But they all do want to be heard. Going right to the source, Tea Partiers rallied in Washington, the very place their movement wants to change.

TOM TERRY, TEA PARTY ACTIVIST: Five years ago, I would never have been here. Now, I feel a responsibility to stand up and at least with these other folks here, and say someone listen.

O'DONNELL: Wading through the crowd, there are at least two different kinds of issues ? all the political distrust. Is it frustration, anger?

LINDSAY FLOWER, TEA PARTY ACTIVIST: Total frustration, total frustration with a health care plan that does nothing to reduce costs.

O'DONNELL: And skepticism over how the Tea Party is judged and labeled.

SHIRLEY FORD, TEA PARTY ACTIVIST: We're not racists, we're not any of the above that people claim us to be. We're ordinary citizens that love our country, and we're fighting for it.

UNIDENTIFIED MAN: I've lost count how many Tea Parties I've been to.

O'DONNELL: With rallies across the country today, the Tea Party mobilized a year ago in opposition to health care reform, government spending and taxes.

O'DONNELL, TO MAN: There aren't a lot of African-American men at these events.

DARRYL POSTELL, LAUGHING: Right.

O'DONNELL: Have you ever felt uncomfortable?

POSTELL: No, no, these are my people, Americans.

O'DONNELL: A new CBS News/New York Times poll finds 18 percent of Americans say they support the movement. Within that group most are white men over 45, better educated and wealthier than the general public.

O'DONNELL: Do you think this has enough energy to really last to November and to make a difference?

RICK WILLMORE, TEA PARTY ACTIVIST: Yes. Oh, yes.

O'DONNELL: Why?

WILLMORE: Because it's the people. It's not a party. It's the people. The people are angry and they're organized.

O'DONNELL: Rallies like these were held all over the country today, from Denver to Chicago, Wisconsin to Alabama. And in the poll and conversations I had today, Tea Partiers say they don't want to see this movement become a formal third party, but do hope they can influence elections.


ABC's World News:
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: We're going to turn to politics now, and the political storm this tax filing day. Members of the Tea Party movement have zeroed in on April 15, calling attention to what they say are sky high taxes and a bloated government. Tea Party rallies were held in several cities today, the biggest one in Washington, and Jon Karl was right in the middle of it.

JONATHAN KARL: Meet the Tea Partiers: a nurse from Pennsylvania with her daughter, an American Airlines pilot from Texas with his son, a property manager from Atlanta. I mean, why are you here? What's the one issue that-

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN #1: Why am I here? Because I work hard. It's my money. I want my money to go where I want it to go.

KARL: They came to Washington, angry about President Obama's policies, to be sure, but also angry at the way they've been portrayed.

UNIDENTIFIED MAN #1: We've been called racist. We've been called everything.

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN #2: Don't even, we've been called a lot of things we're not.

UNIDENTIFIED MAN #1: The only thing we want is Obama to be more cautious with our money and not be wasteful. That's it. It doesn't make us racist.

KARL: Many of them blamed us, the news media.

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN #3: You know what, back off, back off.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE VOICE: Where is the angry mob?

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN #3: Give us some space. We don't want to talk to you.

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN #4: We want honesty from you. We want fair time from you. We want you, the media, to represent all the people, not just a certain portion of the people.

KARL: No shortage of passion here ? from the Tea Party critics, too.

UNIDENTIFIED MAN #2: But don't come out here and say that you're speaking for all Americans when you don't.

KARL: Is that what you guys are saying, that you represent all Americans?

UNIDENTIFIED MAN #3: We represent a majority of Americans. It's not Obama. It's not, it's against Bush, as well. These people were mad at Bush, which is why-

UNIDENTIFIED MAN #2: The sign here says "Impeach Obama." The sign here says "Repeal ObamaCare." You can't tell me that this is not against President Obama.

KARL: There was disagreement among the Tea Partiers themselves. This woman thought a fellow Tea Partier's poster went way too far.

UNIDENTIFIED MAN #4: I wasn't degrading him at all. I was just saying that-

KARL: Well, now, wait a minute. By comparing somebody to Adolf Hitler, you're degrading him.

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN #5: Well, that's my point. And that's what I said. If you look around, though, there are literally thousands of signs that say nothing about Hitler, say all about how we're going to get even in November.

KARL: Here at another Tea Party rally in Washington, D.C., a group of activists is going to unveil the Contract from America, outlining the movement's top 10 demands. One of those demands, George, is to do away with the entire federal tax code and replace it with one no longer than 4,543 words long. That's the length of the U.S. Constitution.

STEPHANOPOULOS: Okay, echoes of 1994 and the Contract for America. Jon Karl, thanks very much.


Nothing to see here....move along