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Black Politics 2.0
Black Politics 2.0
Status of Black Politics Prior to and During the Political Advent of
President Barack Obama
ByGary James
Copyright © 2014 Gary James. All rights reserved.
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ISBN: 978-1-68181-818-4
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION viiPREFACE xiiiFOREWORD xixACKNOWLEDGEMENTS xxiiiDEDICATION xxvCHAPTER ONE Where Are We Politically? 1CHAPTER TWO Where Are We Going Politically? 30CHAPTER THREE Minority Politics & Political
Juxtapositions 53CHAPTER FOUR Proliferation of Indigenous
Civil Rights Activism 81CHAPTER FIVE Black Political Leadership
Conundrum 100CHAPTER SIX Black Power & Civil Rights
Political Movements 122CHAPTER SEVEN Conventional Political
Wisdom & Electoral Politics 141
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CHAPTER EIGHT Strategic Political Applications & Initiatives 168
CHAPTER NINE Grassroots Politics Going Forward 193CHAPTER TEN Stuff Happens . . . But the
Struggle Continues 227
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INTRODUCTION
Among the legacies that embody the tumultuous and victorious 1960s, the civil rights movement by way of the
enactment of the Civil Rights and Voting Rights legislation of 1964 and 1965, respectively, constitutes the center piece. Th is dynamic period in the context of social and political civil rights advances is generally portrayed in romantic terms that are woven into revisionist historical narratives that oft en overlook or override essential political truths and the political facts on the ground. In the balance, politically correct sound-bites and popular hyperbole pervades the political discourse.
Th e civil rights movement is perceived in the popular imagination as a broad based coalition of diverse communities, races, religions, united to abolish racial segregation and racial discrimination against African Americans, particularly in the southern states. Th e rich contemporary history leading up to, during, and following the legislative and statutory victories of the modern civil rights movement abounds in various treatments, specifi cations, and applications. Th e civil rights political leadership archetype has become the standard for acceptable black political leadership heretofore…
Th e emergence of the civil rights political movement began to capture the imagination of the black community around the country in the 1950s following the Brown vs. Board of Education decision, putting an end to segregation in education, among other events. And with the benefi t of white liberal, progressive
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and left ist political operatives in the Democratic Party, blacks and whites, among others, infi ltrated the party and ultimately wrested control of the party from the conservative wing, popularly referred to as the dixi-crats… In the framework of the successes associated with civil rights and voting rights victories, the contemporary black political leadership had its advent. As black infi ltration of the party proliferated in both the south and north, the notion of black political leadership became a fascinating idea as political consciousness caught fi re among the younger generation.
Th e youth continent in the civil rights movement was emerging with divergent views to the non-violent imperative, as the student and community activists engaged the unfolding political process. Th is manifestation was particularly acute in the inner city and urban centers in the northeast and west coast, as Malcolm X, the Black Nationalist leader, inspired a militant and revolutionary political youth component. With the emergence of the popular political refrain, “black power,” a political schism developed between the established political black bulls and the emerging political black bucks, popularly referred to as the “generation gap” during this period. At the end of the day, the juxtaposition between the “responsible Negroes” and the “black militants” was resolved by way of black political operations and extrajudicial political assassinations that eliminated black militants and “black power.”
Th e “responsible Negro” leadership became the archetype for acceptable black political leadership going forward… Hence, the black civil rights political leadership orthodoxy was the benefi ciary of the protracted nefarious covert, dark and shady political operation that ultimately neutralized, marginalized, and in some instances eliminated, black political militants, revolutionaries, and other organic and grassroots political leadership. Th erefore the black American community at large inherited the civil rights black political leadership archetype
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as the standard by which black politics and leadership has been defi ned in 20th century politics in the African American community.
Th ere is a constellation of political perspectives that off er a kaleidoscope of subjective narratives suggesting this or that, relative to the essential nature of the modern civil rights movement. Without characterizing or minimizing the plethora of historical perspectives, this writer is competent to off er a point of view based on personal experience as a professional community organizer from 1966 to 1971, on the staff of the National Welfare Rights Organization (NWRO) under the leadership of Dr. George Wiley. Accordingly, I am an expert witness to the dynamic advent of grassroots political activism inspired by events that animated the 1950s, such as Brown v. Board of Education, the church bombing in Birmingham Alabama, and the murder of Emit Till. Ultimately, elements in the black community in general and youth in particular, intersected with an emerging political juxtaposition in the Democratic Party. Specifi cally, liberal, progressive, and left ist forces within the Democratic Party were seeking to wrest control of the party from conservative forces. Consequently, the essential political impetus of the civil rights initiative was an internal struggle for control of the party and the liberal, progressive and left ist wing of the Democratic Party prevailed over the conservative wing of the party. Th e political eff ervescence percolating in the black community was channeled to the partisan political objectives that the “progressive” and liberal wings of the party advocated and promoted. Hence, African American political leadership was circumscribed to the political paradigm of the Democratic Party.
Th e political advent of President Barack Obama represents a hallmark for America in general, and the African American community in particular. On both scorecards, the advent and following confi rmation by way of Obama’s reelection, boarders on the miraculous to many. New vistas of possibilities and potential
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that came with the victory of the fi rst African American to the president of the United States, are untold and far reaching… As it relates to the state of black political leadership the success of Senator Obama in wresting the Democratic Party nomination from the presumptive nominee, Senator Hilary Clinton, Obama’s strategic and tactical electoral and political skills defi ed the conventional political wisdom. Obama’s political strategy and tactics exploited the political weaknesses of the black civil rights leadership orthodoxy for now and evermore… Aft er he won the party’s presidential nomination, the civil rights leadership orthodoxy and the African American political leadership, elected and unelected, had no choice but to jump on board the political train as it began to roll out of the station. Interestingly enough as President Obama is in the sunset of his administration many are convinced that history will be generous in its comparative overview of his administration. Without question, the political advent of President Barack Obama generated a sense of pride among African Americans that may have an enduring quality. On the other hand, the dysfunctional state of black political leadership in general continues to be a political spectacle, sophomoric and unsophisticated. Th e state of black political leadership is apparently stuck in the quicksand and limitations of politics 101.
In hindsight, the civil rights movement of the 19th century off ers an interesting political analogue to our 20th century modern civil rights movement. Th e obvious similarity is the partisan nature of both political exercises. Whereas the modern civil rights movement was a political gambit from the progressive wing of the Democratic Party to wrest control from the southern based conservative wing of the party, the 19th century civil rights movement was the political brainchild of what is now known as the Republican Party, which comes out of the Abolitionist (anti-slavery) movement. In the political wake of both periods, history records unprecedented achievements
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in electoral politics, business, and civic activity. But the forward movement was negatively impacted by a general retrenchment and ambivalence toward enforcing civil rights for African Americans. Consequently, the second decade of the 21st century fi nds the African American community in need of a new political paradigm going forward.
A critical assessment and analysis of the status quo of black political leadership and follow-ship is in order because at the end of the day we the people are responsible and will continue to absorb and carry the burden. How we do electoral and community politics as follow-ship and leadership going forward is a legitimate question for all to ponder… If hindsight is 20/20 then there are lessons to be learned by a thorough examination of the civil rights achievements during the 19th and 20th centuries respectfully, to help formulate political wisdom relevant and suitable to moving the black American community from point A to point B in the 21st century… Black Politics 2.0 has engaged this process and off ers a polemical initiative in order to promote and advance this exercise. Without question, there is need for a broad based political discourse relative to the road ahead for the African American community. We hope that our modest overview and contribution concerning the relative political state of the black American community, such as presented herein, is inspiring to the extent that you engage the discourse…
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PREFACE
The colorful and historic journey of former enslaved Africans to emancipation, civil rights and political ascendancy in
the United States of America remains an engaging exercise, despite the victorious undertakings that distinguish the 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries. Woven into the three centuries of linear advancement which characterizes what is popularly termed the “African American” experience in the electoral politics of this Constitutional Republic vis-à-vis the Democratic and Republican Parties, is a rich and consequential legacy. While 19th century African American electoral politics was primarily played out in the party of President Lincoln, by way of the Republican Party, and 20th century black electoral politics took place in the Democrat Party orbit, black electoral politics of the 21st century is not yet in the hands of the jury, as we engage the 2nd decade of the new millennia.
Th e political advent of President Barack Obama, without question, represents a milestone in American electoral politics, and a quantum leap in the context of African American political and social ascendancy. Interestingly enough, the fact that America elected its fi rst African American President does not translate into political power and leverage within the black community. As a matter of fact, Senator Obama was nominated as the Democratic Party presidential standard bearer without the support of the African American political leadership orthodoxy, elected and unelected. Virtually all of the black political
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leadership, including the traditional civil rights contingent, overwhelmingly endorsed and supported the nomination of Senator Hilary Clinton during the party primary. Senator Barack Obama, the ultimate Presidential nominee, continued to defy the conventional political wisdom following his nomination victory and didn’t kiss the political ring of the black leadership orthodoxy, as he took his campaign directly to the people who turned out in record numbers for his election and re-election. As President Obama serves out his second term, it is clear to most that his presidency will likely be distinguished along with other great chief executives of the American experiment. However, the success of Barack Obama’s presidency will not translate into real-time political power and leverage for the African American community at large, moving forward.
Th e civil rights period in the 19th century occurred following the civil war and “Reconstruction,” a term that describes the imposition of federal troops in target states in order to enforce the civil rights of African Americans. During the period of Reconstruction, African Americans were disproportionally registered in the Republican Party which was founded in 1854 and comprised of Abolitionist (anti-slavery) forces of America’s political spectrum. Consequently, popular political history records unprecedented achievements by blacks in business (Black Wall Street) and electoral politics that dwarf the contemporary electoral political achievements of black Americans during the modern civil rights period.
But the Republican Party leadership ultimately became ambivalent about enforcing black civil rights which were enforced by imposing Federal Troops (Reconstruction) in target states. Th erefore, Republicans bargained with Democrats and removed the troops, putting an end to the period of Reconstruction in favor of maintaining a Republican President in the name of Rutherford B. Hayes as the trade-off , and this was the basis of a nefarious political compromise. Accordingly, the disputed
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presidential election of 1876 deserves research and examination. Be that as it may, reactionary conservative Democrats in the name of white supremacy by way of terror, violence, the imposition of a draconian black code, and the resultant Jim Crow laws, put the fear of God in African Americans and their white supporters and benefactors, on a wholesale basis. Moreover, “race” based segregation became the general circumstance for black folk in general who were relegated to domestic work for women, menial and marginal employment for black men. In this context, the infamous triumvirate, the KKK, maintained order and control.
When the modern civil rights movement began in the mid-1950s following Brown vs. Board of Education, African Americans were, in general, content to be “Negroes” and referred to themselves as such, by and large. In this context, black folk in general exhibited a psychological defi ciency relative to white folk in particular, and in relation to the larger society. While there are many legislative and statutory victories and achievements of the modern civil rights movement, there is a tendency to exaggerate, overstate and romanticize the civil right leadership and the true nature of this political movement. As an expert witness and a professional community organizer in the movement from 1966 to 1971, I am competent to defi ne the political nature of the civil rights movement at its core. Th e essential nature of the civil rights movement was, from my perspective, the political juxtaposition within the Democratic Party between the progressive wing and the conservative wing of the party. Th e southern conservative wing of the Democratic Party controlled the politics on the ground in key states and the national agenda, since the demise of the period of Reconstruction.
Following dynamic political events in the mid-1950s, the progressive elements in the Democratic Party captured the emerging political imagination of black youth to work along with white youth and political operatives to gain voting rights, civil rights, and equal access to public facilities. Th is broad
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political coalition was comprised of various political ideologies, which resided under the political umbrella of the Democratic Party in the context of progressives, left ists, liberals, Marxists and revolutionaries, among others. African Americans, and their emerging grassroots politics, were the timely and consequential addition to this “progressive” political movement. By way of colorful and charismatic individuals and personalities, black folk and their follow-ship made major contributions to the success of the civil rights movement.
Black Americans became the arrowhead of the modern civil rights movement which included other issue concepts like integration, affi rmative action and the rights of political minorities. Although various defi nitions and descriptions of the civil rights movement abound, the fact remains that the essential political dynamic that animated the civil rights movement was the internal struggle between the progressive and conservative forces of the Democratic Party. It was essentially an internal political struggle dynamic that was the impetus of the civil rights movement. Obviously, the progressive forces prevailed. Th e conservative wing of the Democratic Party referred to as “blue dogs” and the other conservatives migrated to the Republican Party and ultimately reversed the progressive and diverse nature of the GOP into a social conservative political bastion.
As the fi nal days of President Obama’s administration approaches, it is fair to question whether electoral politics in the black community will advance beyond politics 101. History will ultimately speak to the quality and standard of Obama’s stewardship of America in relation to other presidents of the United States, his peers. But black politics going forward is beyond the legacy of President Obama, as it resides with the black political leadership and follow-ship hence forth. It will be interesting to see how traditional black political leadership contingents, such as the civil rights orthodoxy, elected offi cials, the black church, community based and grassroots political
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activists/organizations address the leadership quotient and challenge to advance the objective of political leverage and ascendancy in the 21st century. Will the lessons from the 19th century civil rights period and lessons from the 20th century civil rights period be learned and applied? Will the assets and liabilities associated with political party politics vis-à-vis the Republican and Democrat Party respectively, be evaluated strategically and applied to the road ahead in black politics? Will black leadership and follow-ship reevaluate conventional political wisdom and formulate the required adjustments that can achieve political leverage and ascendancy for the community at large? It remains to be seen to what extent these questions, among others, become the subject of a broad based political discourse and conversation in the black community.
Electoral politics and the political party system is a tool chest of instruments and elements that have the potential to facilitate the movement of a community from point A to point B. In order to animate the forward moving process, a suffi cient knowledge of the respective elements, instruments, etc. is required. Coupled with strategic organization and deployment within the context of the political party system, strategically organizing and deploying a “critical mass” (a comparatively small number of people) can successfully challenge and become consequential factors in how politics is done at the local, state, and national levels. Th is is the internal dynamic that has been historically played out in the Democratic and Republican Parties over the centuries. But before the black community can become a political factor in American party politics and achieve political ascendency, the role of money and business in advancing a political agenda must be more thoroughly understood, in addition to more sophisticated and strategic organizing at the community based level.
During the political high points for black Americans in the 19th and 20th centuries, the importance of the number of votes ruled the day. However, the cucumbers (money) that fi nanced
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the civil rights movement came from outside of the African American community. But the civil rights advances could not be sustained because the black vote was not strategically organized and deployed beyond the partisan political paradigm. Moreover, there was no economic or fi nancing component to underwrite politics in the black community. Political freedom and electoral politics at the power acquisition level is not free, and others cannot be expected to fi nance the political advantage of your community. As a consequence, black elected offi cials are eff ectively lost to the community because they must rely on external forces in order to sustain their career as an elected offi cial. Th erefore, black political leadership is personality driven, and celebrities, entertainment fi gures, and designated leaders are the go-to people that symbolize acceptable black leadership. As such, the political voices and the legitimate aspirations of black folk at large remain muzzled.
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FOREWORD
Some fi nd it diffi cult to acknowledge that we are in the middle of the second decade of the new millennia and America is
defi nitively in the post-civil rights period. In addition to this political fact of life, the civil rights leadership orthodoxy, elected and unelected, continues to enjoy their politically privileged position.
Since the late 1960s, the civil rights political leadership has been the benefactor of the political juxtaposition between the “responsible” black political leadership who advocate civil rights, and the “militants,” “radicals,” and “revolutionaries” who advocate “black political power.” Th e perceived juxtaposition between civil rights advocates and black power advocates was personifi ed in the 1960s by Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the civil rights leader, and Malcolm X, the black power and human rights leader.
Although both the civil rights and black power grassroots political movements were organic developments in the black community and were equally reviled and maligned by the FBI and political powers that be, the civil rights leadership was reluctantly favored over the black power advocates. Th e latter were politically isolated, maligned, marginalized, and in some instances eviscerated.
Concomitantly, the “responsible” elected political leaders and unelected civil rights orthodoxy monopolized the political activist vacuum. And with the political nod of the majority community,
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civil rights political tactics, strategies and leadership became the sine qua non for entry into the ranks of acceptable black political leadership. Th e black community inherited this leadership such as it is, but the elected and unelected political leadership has been hard pressed to remain relevant over the past fi ve decades. Interestingly enough, the political skills and aptitude of Senator Barack Obama exposed the weaknesses of the conventional black political leadership and he navigated around them.
It remains to be seen to what extent the conventional black political leadership will be relevant to political ascendancy of the black community in the 21st century. Currently the black community is the political weakling as compared to other “minority” communities in America, despite its longevity, overwhelming numbers, and the various civil rights victories that characterized the 1960s. Given the status quo, it is hard to imagine the current black political leadership, such as it is, can engineer a politically strategic course of action that is capable of achieving the desired political outcome for the majority of black Americans beyond a partisan construct, and the popular rhetoric of jobs, jobs, jobs.
Perhaps African Americans will learn great political lessons from the success of President Barack Obama, who was astute enough to appreciate the political liabilities and shortcomings of the conventional black political leadership and chart a winning strategy and course of action based on his own vision. Th e present political confusion and dysfunction that is animating black political and celebrity leadership is vitriolic, vituperative and fratricidal, and is aided by the popular media. Hopefully this unfolding kafuffl e will ultimately be cathartic, inspirational, and pave the way for constructive and corrective actions across the political spectrum.
Needless to say, the journey forward is an arduous process and has a learning curve that is fraught with political booby traps, fi nancing imperatives, and challenges seen and unseen.
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Th e organizing process needs to occur at the local grassroots level guided by strategic planning with achievable short-range and long-range objectives. Th e application must be generational in terms of addressing the now and then, and must include an economic component for sustainability. Th e process will be disrupted from time to time by personal and domestic scenarios and challenges, but profound lessons can be learned as you experience adversity by remembering that blessings sometime come in elaborate disguises of dread, misfortune, and the vicissitudes of life. However, the struggle must continue.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I am pleased to acknowledge Yugo Pittman, the editor of this work and other projects on the drawing board. A consummate
professional in various disciplines, Yugo’s work strengthens my confi dence in the literary quality of my work. Th erefore, I have asked him for his assistance in editing the second edition of my three earlier books, ERACISM, EPIPHANY and TRANSFER DAY, respectively. In addition to the second editions, my 5th book, MAGNUM OPUS, will be released in 2015. Th is publication explores the parallel histories of Judeo-Christianity in the East and West. Christianity in the East is popularly known as Orthodox Christianity and Christianity in the West takes the form of the Catholic and Protestant Churches. My 6th literary project will be my 1st novel and it is in the historical Christian mystery genre entitled, “Abyssinia Connection.” Heads-up Yugo, this is a constructive notice.
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DEDICATION
This work is dedicated to you my beloved grandchildren, Stephon, Cecilia and Zachary. It is oft en said that if you want
to hide something from black people, you should put it in a book! My general observation as a senior citizen is that this assertion is true. I am absolutely certain of this truth because I have hidden some things in this book and others that I have authored. But please know that I didn’t hide them from you to play a game or to keep important information away from you. I hid some wisdom because that information is only valuable to the curious mind, seeker of important and sublime ideas, observations, assessments and analysis. Th erefore, you must make reading, research, and perhaps writing, a habit that will compliment and provide an added value to your life and role in the world. I want you to read all of my books. Remember, Grandpa will always love all of you.
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CHAPTER ONE
Where Are We Politically?
Cadre, your analysis and assessment of black politics in particular and American politics in general is very
interesting, but your views are essentially esoteric and beyond the practical reach of the prevailing black community’s conventional political wisdom! Th erefore my brother, while I agree with the theoretical and rhetorical narrative of your political concepts, I can’t see how your defi nition and application of the political process can animate or positively impact electoral politics in the black community. But now that president Obama’s reelection campaign was successful, will you agree with me that politics in America is now race neutral, and that President Barack Obama is perhaps the greatest African American leader that there ever was? Th at his candidacy and campaign is proof that the Democratic Party is the political friend of Black America, as compared to the Republican Party’s political disposition? “Well, you just said a mouthful man. I guess that you are feeling pretty chipper Spike, since the president pulled off what in my view was essentially an electoral foregone conclusion. But apart from the particulars of the mouthful that you just mentioned in your questions to me, your conclusion that the advent of president Obama demonstrates that American politics is becoming race neutral or post racial is a misguided judgment, in my view. Apparently the only thing that we can agree on is that there needs
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to be a broad-based political discourse in the black American community regarding the direction of community and electoral politics going forward. I think that this conversation represents a very good beginning that enables both of us to share our insights, perspectives, and points of view which will no doubt be educational for both of us. But, I would like to say from the outset that my political analysis and assessment of the Obama political era is based on an examination of the state of politics in the black community prior to the advent of candidate Barack Obama.
Th e examination of black politics prior to the advent of Obama off ers a political context that enabled Obama’s emergence as a presidential aspirant. As you pointed out Spike, there is a popular political notion that President Obama represents a prototype for black American politics going into the 21st century. I am enthusiastically looking forward to having a constructive and creative conversation with you and your colleagues concerning the political road ahead for the black American community and electoral politics. But as pointed out, I want to review the general political context in which he emerged in 2004, to his election in 2008. So let me open our dialogue by calling your attention to a piece that was published on a popular Harlem based blog on September 24, 2007 with the headline: Black Mules & Black Rinos (Republicans in name only) cut off New Generation Leadership at Grassroots. Th is piece provides a general overview, analysis, and assessment pertinent to the dynamics of politics in the black community and America at large. It generally makes the point that contemporary black political leadership has produced no political off spring and may not have the capacity to do so for any number of reasons.
We need to review the state of black American political leadership, community and electoral politics in order to appreciate the context that preceded Obama in terms of the general political facts on the ground. Check it out bro:
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Arguably one of the most signifi cant hybrids in human history is the one between horses and donkeys vis-à-vis the mule. Breeding a male donkey with a female horse results in a mule, breeding a female horse with a male donkey produces a hinny (mule). Off spring from either cross, although fully developed as males or females are virtually sterile. Th erefore a line of horses and a line of domestic asses must be maintained in order to perpetuate mule production. Th e mule has greater endurance, is stronger and less excitable than a horse. Depending on the need, diff erent horses are used to produce fi ne riding mules, heavy draft animals or medium-sized pack mules, as the case may be. In Medieval Europe, when horses were bred large to carry armored knights, mules were the preferred riding animal of gentlemen and clergy.
In 1495, Christopher Columbus brought 4 jacks and 2 horses to the “New World”. Th ey would produce mules for the conquistadors and facilitated expeditions onto the American mainland. Ten years aft er the conquest of the Aztecs, the fi rst shipment of 12 horses and 3 jacks arrived from Cuba to begin breeding mules in Mexico. Female mules were preferred as riding animals, while the males were used more as pack animals along trails that tied the Spanish Empire together. Mules were used in the silver mines. Along the frontier each Spanish outpost had to breed its own supply of mules, and each hacienda or mission maintained at least 1 stud jack. On the Iberian Peninsula, Catalonia and Andalusia each developed a large breed of ass, putting Spain in the forefront of the mule breeding industry. Exportation of Spanish jacks was prohibited until 1813. However, the King of Spain presented George Washington with a large black jack in 1785. Th is animal, called the “Royal Gift ” is considered the father of the mule industry in the United States.
Mules were once used to pull fi refi ghting equipment and were oft en employed by armies to pull artillery and to remove the wounded from the battlefi eld. Th e 20 mule team that hauled
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borax from Death Valley has become part of American legend. Indeed, some western towns were originally laid out with extremely wide streets in order to allow the mule teams to turn around. Popular mule breeding centers in the United States developed in Tennessee, Kentucky and Missouri, to provide work animals for the cotton fi elds of the “Old South.” Aft er the American Civil War and the development of tenant farming throughout the South, the mule continued as the major draft animal in American agriculture. “40 acres and a mule” was all one needed for self-suffi ciency. However, the importance of the mule declined rapidly in the 1940s and 1950s as gasoline-driven tractors became widespread and mules all but disappeared from the American agricultural scene.
A curious political correlation between the creation and application of the utilitarian hybrid (mule) and the “orthodox” black civil rights leadership occurred to this writer. Both the “Royal Gift ” (black jack gift to President George Washington is said to be responsible for the American mule industry) and the black “orthodox” civil rights leadership have interesting parallels relative to the advancement and achievements of American culture, not to mention their hybrid nature. Th e mule and 19th century Black America enjoyed a most unique symbiosis and synergistic relationship. Just as the 20th century witnessed the decline of the mule in the agricultural industry due to the advent of the internal combustion engine, the black civil rights orthodoxy has apparently outlived its practical application in relation to the political, economic, and social needs of 21st century black America.
Beneath the surface however, there is an even more intriguing correlation between mules and the inherited leadership that constitutes the black civil rights orthodoxy. Interestingly enough, the “orthodox” black civil rights leadership also appear sterile and unable to produce political progeny, hence they may have gone the way of the dinosaurs. Consequently, the black political
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leadership “donkeys” are in fact political “mules,” with a similar pedigree. As a practical political matter, Rev. Al Sharpton, former candidate for the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination in 2004, having been mentored by the “movement,” may represent the last generation of “orthodox” black civil rights leadership. Th ere is no coherent civil rights agenda being advanced by the respective echelons of the traditional political leadership to move the black American community at large from point A to point B. Th ere is no discernible new generation of black civil rights leadership in place to move the black community forward into the 21st century.
Some in the black community argue that civil rights techniques, political tactics, and rhetoric are not suffi cient to enforce or sustain the legislative and statutory advancements achieved during that era. Equally insuffi cient is their capacity to cover new political ground in the context of the emerging black American demographic. Th e political leadership bares considerable responsibility for the fact that African Americans are the weakest politically among virtually all political minorities despite the comparatively disproportional high number of black elected offi cials and longevity of blacks in America.
Th e voter turnout in the relatively recent Connecticut Democratic primary, pitting incumbent Senator Joe Lieberman against political neophyte Ned Lamont, is an example of illusionary black politics. Party offi cials were absolutely ecstatic about the “overwhelming” and unprecedented voter turnout and attributed the hotly contested primary to the anti-Iraq war sentiment within the Democratic Party. Th e fact that voter plurality in Connecticut was only forty-two percent speaks volumes relative to the legitimacy of the state party leadership and the apathy among the state’s constituents. Anti-war candidate, Ned Lamont, enjoyed support from the entire complement of black “orthodox” civil rights leaders and elected offi cials who were prominently displayed and deployed in his campaign
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off ensive. Th ere was not one traditional black political leader to support or endorse Joe Lieberman.
Th e lone black politician to support Lieberman was the newly elected new generation leader, the Honorable Cory Booker, Mayor of Newark, New Jersey. Corey was of course derided by the civil rights orthodoxy for not walking in lockstep. Nevertheless, the two U.S. Senatorial candidates virtually split the black vote. If you follow the logic of “political correctness” relative to the delivery of the black vote in Connecticut, new generation political leader Mayor Cory Booker ran a dead heat with the combined eff orts of Reverends Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson, Congresswoman Maxine Waters, and the Congressional Black Caucus. Despite diminishing electoral returns, pervasive voter apathy, and overwhelming numbers of unregistered voters, the black political establishment has yet to solidify its tenuous partisan advantage with aggressive voter education and registration eff orts.
On the contrary, the national black political establishment defends its monolithic provincial approach to political ascendancy against all opposing points of view. Th e ferocity of the pack dog mentality with political attacks against competing points of view to some extent takes the form of political fratricide. Th e recent attacks against professor, comedian, philanthropist and neo-political activist Bill Cosby, is an example of the prevailing political pack dog mentality. Perhaps the late author Harold Cruse described the black American dilemma best in his profound expose published in the late 1960s entitled “Th e Crisis of the Negro Intellectual.” You need only replace the word Negro with Black or African American and the same crisis scenario remains here in the fi rst decade of the 21st century. Too many black professors and intellectuals in prominent positions simply profess, but know not. We need only take a cursory look at the recent literary works of Professors Michael Erick Dyson and the late Ron Walters for confi rmation. Professor Ron Walters, who
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came to public prominence as a political operative in the 1984 and 1988 presidential campaigns of Rev. Jesse Jackson, became one of the gurus of “progressive” black politics and a member of the civil rights leadership establishment. In his book “Freedom Is Not Enough” Walters continued to promote the vagaries of social justice, racial entitlement, victimization, and partisan white paternalism.
Alton Chase said, “Freedom is enough if we take full responsibility for ourselves, children and community. “Black folk need to be more sophisticated about how to maximize the power derived from the electoral process. Instead, we continue to buy into the political salvation rhetoric preached by the one-legged politician or political leader.” Chase continued, “But freedom is not enough if you are still pursuing the entitlement of “40 acres and a mule” and engaged in modern day victimization and reparation politics.” When the famous Bill Cosby defi ed the protocol of “political correctness” by publicly admonishing black parents for the anti-social behavior, etc. of their children and decried the disproportionate number of out of wedlock births among black youth, he was roundly criticized by the gatekeepers of plantation politics. Th e black civil rights orthodoxy led the invidious political assault against Cosby followed by character assassination pop-shots by media opportunists with apparent personal motives. Th e fl amboyant and popular black popular-culturist and rhetorician Professor and Rev. Michael Eric Dyson has monopolized the anti-Bill Cosby political fallout by authoring a book entitled, “Is Bill Cosby Right? Or, has Th e Black Middle Class Lost Its Mind?” According to Rev. Dyson, “For most of his career, Bill Cosby has avoided race with religious zeal.” Well known TV Journalist Juan Williams who worked for National Public Radio (NPR) has, in a direct response to Rev. Dyson’s book, authored a book entitled “Enough” that off ers an eloquent and insightful polemic that questions the premise of Dyson’s political assault on Cosby. Williams’ book sparked a long
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overdue broad-based political, economic, and social discourse in the black community.
Th e breadth of the abounding discourse seems to focus on the transitional needs of black American politics to address the short and long-range crisis may be cathartic. Traditional civil rights leaders are currently hard pressed to justify staying the course of civil rights as a viable strategy to move black folk at large from point A to point B. Some call for a third civil rights movement in black America, while others say a third civil rights movement is a bad idea and wholly insuffi cient. Th e political inertia of the black political establishment, with the cooperation of their partisan paternal masters, is making every eff ort to silence independent black political thinkers. Th e attack on Cosby, whose contribution to the advancement of black folk speaks for itself, is an example of how blacks that think outside of the political box are maligned and politically “black” listed. But the attack on Cosby is an act of political desperation and a rear guard action to forestall what is politically inevitable vis-à-vis a changing of the black political leadership paradigm. Th e increasing shortcomings of the traditional black civil rights leadership, continues to generate voter apathy that has resulted in a pervasive political denial and paranoia.
Prior to the Bill Cosby political controversy among black folk, public TV talk show host and rising political “leader” Tavis Smiley, was being accused by some in the civil rights leadership of attempting to pull off a political coup, when he published “Th e Covenant With Black America,” following one of his nationally televised annual forums on the state of Black America. In the introduction to the book Smiley writes, “Why a Covenant with Black America? In short, because . . . without organization, black folk will never be able to take, keep, or hold onto anything, much less the hard-fought gains that we have struggled to achieve. Our interest with this document was to create a national plan of action to address the primary concerns of African Americans
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today. Once we are organized and mobilized, we can create the world we want for generations to come. Th e Covenant is required reading for any person, party, or powerbroker who seeks to be supported politically, socially or economically by the masses of black people in the coming years.”
On the local level in New York City, the political fratricide continues, constricting if not imploding the black Democratic Party leadership leviathan. In Brooklyn’s 10th CD, incumbent Congressman Ed Towns was in a three-way race with two former political allies, City Councilman Charles Barron, and former Assemblyman Roger Green. Tragically, of the 400,000 registered voters in the 10th CD, only 10 percent of the voters turned out in the general election. Hence, the three candidates were contesting over who will get the lion’s share of 10,000 votes while the 390,000 other registered voters are out of the electoral pool. Th e political fratricide is destructive in Brooklyn’s 11th CD, a so-called black congressional seat, the result of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Th e three black candidates, Mr. Chris Owens, Ms. Yvette Clarke, and Mr. Carl Andrews, split the black vote that could have enabled the white candidate David Yassky to win the so-called “minority” seat.
In Harlem, the political turf of the “old” guard, the term-limited City Councilman Bill Perkins was facing a primary battle with a Latino, Ruben Vargas, for the open State Senate seat vacated by Senator David Paterson, as he ran for Lieutenant Governor on the ticket of Attorney General Elliot Spitzer. Th ere was great political speculation that should Mr. Vargas prevail in his primary race, there would be a domino eff ect that could lead to a Latino successor to the Harlem Congressional seat of the Honorable Charles Rangel.
Apparently, the perceived political donkeys may in fact be variations of the hybrid mule, unable to produce off spring to carry the political agenda beyond the civil rights and racial paradigm of victimization, and entitlement. But the black political crisis is
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compounded because the RINOs (Republicans In Name Only) have not practiced and abided by the rich legacy that brought them into being, in 1854. Th e anti-social RINOs have distinguished themselves by devouring new and young political sprouts at the grassroots. And in conjunction with the political imperative of these white RINOs, the black RINOs are clandestinely allocated turf strong holds to help manage the “reservation” and the status quo political scenario. By political design, the black Republicans cannot be competitive in Brooklyn’s 10th and 11th CDs, and the GOP party leadership (white) will certainly negotiate short and long-term power relationship issues beneath the surface, as usual.
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