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July 29, 2004

Sharpton's History

According to AP, Al Sharpton claims that the reason African-Americans are Democrats is because:

...after the nation failed to deliver on Civil War-era promises of "40 acres and mule" to freed slaves, "we didn't get the mule so we decided we'd ride this donkey as far as it would take us."
This a blood libel -- it was the Republicans that tried to get that "40 acres and a mule", not the pro-slavery Democratic Party

During the Reconstruction era, the freed slaves had much of the political power in the former Confederacy, supported by the Federal occupation. The Democrat Party not only opposed this, but their Southern members supported the "insurgents" (read KKK) that terrorised the black population and prevented full Democracy in the South for nearly 100 years. Eventually, after the close election of 1876, the Democrats prevailed and African-Americans were resubjugated.

Actually, the parallels here to Iraq and the anti-Bush Democrats are many, and Senator Byrd of West Virginia is pretty much the poster boy for this, being both anti-war and a former Klansman.

What is doubly annoying about this is that AP's reporter either doesn't know history or was unwilling to challenge such an august member of his own party.

Posted by Kevin Murphy at July 29, 2004 12:36 AM | TrackBack
Comments

Actually part of the reason for the Democratic loyalty is because President Johnson claimed credit for the Civil Rights Act, even though he opposed it when he was in the Senate. I believe there is a private quote of his out there...something like, "This will have those n****s voting Democrat for years." Doesn't it just make you feel warm and fuzzy all over??

Posted by: Dude at July 29, 2004 03:40 PM

Never mind that all but four Republicans supported the Public Acommodations Act of 1964, and every Southern Democrat opposed it. Including the former Klansman from West Virginia.

Posted by: Kevin Murphy at July 29, 2004 05:30 PM