“This glorification of States Rights Doctrine—the right of secession, and the honoring of men who represented that cause, fosters in the Republic, the spirit of Rebellion and will ultimately result in the handing down to generations unborn a legacy of t Continue reading NO TAXES FOR CONFEDERATE MYTHS
Tag Archives: race
LET’S MAKE RACISM UNACCEPTABLE
The Washington Post recently published a story (READ IT HERE) that took place where I live , Randolph County, North Carolina. It features local people but it is actually about President Donald Trump’s support of racism. Similar stories can be found in towns, cities and rural areas
all across America. For reasons unknown to me, the writer picked the story of the Trogdon family and our community to make her point: overt racist activities are on the rise; and the President of the United States has encouraged it. Continue reading LET’S MAKE RACISM UNACCEPTABLE
Follow Dr King out of Trump’s shithole
President Trump’s remarks about “Shithole” nations and his desire for more immigration from (white) Northern Europe are a perfect contrast to our January 15 national day of recognition for Dr. Martin Luther King Junior – born January 15, 1929. Except for an assassin’s bullet, he might have celebrated his 89th birthday today. Instead he was killed before reaching the age of forty.
Click below to hear singer-songwriter Patty Griffin’s reflection on Dr King’s final speech and what his final prayer might have been before he died
Dr. King is rightly remembered as a principal leader of the civil rights movement that brought legal equality for Americans of African descent, at least on paper. The struggle to fully achieve the promise of equality under the law continues to this day.
Today, I think it is important to remember that in his final years, Dr King had expanded his mission and ministry to encompass two additional concerns: He supported and expanded the peace movement that sought to bring American troops home from our military incursions into the affairs of other nations, principally Vietnam. The second new subject was economic justice. He saw, even in the 1960s, the concentration of extreme wealth among a few privileged Americans while laborers were unable to support families. On the day that he was killed, he was in Memphis to support the demands of sanitation workers for improved wages and working conditions.
Dr King was not abandoning his civil rights mission. He was expanding it. The war affected everyone, regardless of race, through unnecessary killing and through the waste of economic resources that could have been used to improve American lives. Economic inequality and injustice to working Americans affected minorities disproportionately but it was abundantly clear that a permanent, generation-spanning economic underclass existed in every race. Insulting labels from that era such as “poor white trash” and “nigger” have not lost or changed their meaning in the half century since Dr King’s death. They still refer to people who have had few opportunities for economic and educational advancement. They are the victims of an economy and a nation that has no need for their limited skills and little motivation help them find opportunities. How different, really, are the problems of the white Appalachian coal miner, the rural southern black, and the small town and urban workers of all races who lost jobs to automation?
Dr King saw clearly that we can all succeed together by creating opportunities for personal and economic growth through education and social safety net programs. How ironic is it that Norway (the nation from which President Trump would like to have more immigration) has done what Dr King suggested? Proponents of creating those programs here in the US are often derisively called “socialists”. It is precisely because of those socialist programs that very few people want to leave Norway. People like it there. Not only do they share their wealth, they have more to share. In Norway, the average economic output per person is $70, 392 compared to $57,436 for Americans. What a surprise! A nation that strives to provide opportunities for everyone is more productive than one which ignores the needs of its poorest citizens.
Americans have responded to our problems by forming a circular firing squad – shooting (sometimes literally) at each other rather than lifting each other up, as Dr King would have taught. Now we have elected a President and a Republican congressional majority who have cut taxes on corporations at a time when corporate profits are at record highs; cut taxes on the wealthiest Americans at a time when they already own a greater share of our national wealth than at any time on record; and will borrow money that we all have to repay in order to fund their gifts to the wealthy. They also plan to drastically increase military spending for the longest and arguably least justified wars in American history.
Unfortunately, I must agree with President Trump that there is indeed a “shithole”. He and the Republican congress are pushing us into it. We’ll have to climb out using the remaining resources that they haven’t wasted. We can do that if we will quit blaming the victims of poverty for their condition and begin focusing our efforts on creating opportunity for every American to achieve her or his full potential. Success in that endeavor will be the measure of a great nation.
Real Christmas Light
In a conversation about the state of our world, a friend asked what my subject would be for a “Christmas column”. My immediate reaction was cynicism. It seemed unfitting to celebrate Christmas in a world where borders matter more than starving refugees, where the wealthy get a tax cut paid for with borrowed money, and where self-professed Christians in movements like Aryan Nation Church of Jesus Christ and Westboro Baptist Church preach racism and intolerance in Jesus’ name.
A day passed by before it occurred to me that Jesus was born, lived and was crucified in a world not so different from our own. His teaching, preaching and example were about living in a flawed, unfair and sometimes hostile world. What better time and place to celebrate his birth, life and sacrifice than here and now, in our own darkness? The light that he brought to his world can brighten our own.
The land where Jesus lived was ruled by the most powerful military force of its time, the Roman Empire. They allowed significant local autonomy as long people paid taxes to the empire and didn’t attempt insurrection. Regional government was based on Jewish religious laws under Roman supervision. Political and financial power were often abused. The temple tax, owed by everyone, enriched the high priests. It also paid temple employees including musicians, janitors, decorators, guards and those who sold animals for sacrifice. They sustained the mystique of the temple and the belief that High Priests could influence God through rituals. Little tax money trickled down to the poor.
There were a lot of itinerant preacher/teacher/rabbis in Jesus’ time. People were angry, especially in rural areas where taxes were collected to support Rome and Jerusalem while poverty reigned locally. Jesus directed his ministry to the poor, the working class, the disenfranchised, and much of the time he simply ignored Rome and Jerusalem. He recruited fishermen, laborers, and other common people as followers.
Stories of his work include miracles to benefit the sick and poor. The lepers who were healed were outcasts under Jewish law. The prostitutes (identified as “sinners”) with whom he reportedly dined at a tax collector’s invitation are thought to have been hired as after-dinner entertainment – women who had only their bodies to sell.
Jesus did far more than heal and feed people. He taught a better way of living that became a movement. It was based on two principles – love God, and love your neighbor as yourself. Today people sometimes debate what “God” and “neighbor” mean. Nevertheless, Jesus’ teaching is so clear that we can apply it to our 21st century lives.
It’s almost as important to recognize what Jesus didn’t do as what he did. Did Jesus ever pray for rain in the desert, military defeat of the Roman invaders or other intervention in daily life? He taught others to pray for enough food to get through the day, forgiveness of sins and recognition of temptation – nothing more. He never tried to enforce his values through civil laws. People were free to follow or not. He never asked for contributions to build a cathedral, a megachurch or even a small one. Nor did he urge placing a monument to the Ten Commandments at every courthouse.
Jesus cared about individuals but he also spoke to and about government when he overturned the money changers’ tables where the poor were legally cheated by a government sanctioned religion. He engaged in civil disobedience to save the life of a woman caught in the act of adultery. The prescribed penalty was for her to be stoned to death. Jesus halted the stoning with this challenge, “Let anyone who is without sin cast the first stone.”
Who was this man who changed our world so much? Once, when he was asked, he replied with a question of his own, “Who do you say that I am?” Do you say he is Son of God, Messiah and Savior? Or is he a teacher whose powerful ideas will, if we follow them, allow us to live peaceably together?
Regardless of our 21st century answer to his question, his birth, his life and his sacrifice are worthy of celebration. By applying his teaching today we can bring light to a dark world.
Are we willing?
Permission for use of this Hugh Haynie cartoon was granted by the Special Collections Research Center, Swem Library, College of William and Mary
BEWARE OF NOISY BULLIES
Most of the time we Americans are not even aware of our freedom. It surrounds us in seemingly endless supply, like the air that we breathe. But if there’s no air to breathe we quickly become uncomfortable and do something about it. If we see another person choking, we try to help him breathe. Just as we defend our right to breathe, we should defend each other’s freedom.
Non-conformity is sometimes admirable, but it has consequences. Others are free to disapprove, dislike, and not associate with you. That’s their right. Unless you are protected by a union or employment contract, most states allow private employers to fire you or refuse to hire you for expressing views that they don’t like. There are circumstances where that makes sense. An employer might have a policy that prohibits wearing lapel pins supporting political parties, candidates, or causes at work. Its purpose might be to keep everyone’s attention focused on producing good work rather than the distraction or offense to customers that might accompany the pins.
With those thoughts in mind, let’s look at the case of Colin Kaepernick, the NFL, and President Donald Trump. The controversy began more than a year ago when Kaepernick, a quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers, didn’t stand for the national anthem. He had done the same thing before two previous games, but the press didn’t take notice. On the third occasion, he was asked about it and he gave an extensive post-game interview.
Kaepernick made it clear that he believes America is not living up to our ideals. He contended that racial inequality is still institutionalized and that abuse of African-Americans by police is often tolerated by our government. He said he would resume standing for the anthem when those concerns were addressed. He emphasized that he meant no insult to our flag, anthem or service members; pointing out instead that he wants our government practices to live up to the values that our military defends.
Colin Kaepernick acknowledged that he could be fired for his actions: Q: “Do you think you might get cut for this?” Kaepernick: “I don’t know. But if I do, I know I did what’s right and I can live with that at the end of the day.” He was cut from the team, accepted that fact, and continued working on issues that he thought were important. To at least some small degree, he was achieving his goal of encouraging conversations across racial lines about inequality.
The conversation exploded when President Trump, behaving as if he was elected Bully-in-Chief rather than President, insulted Kaepernick and other NFL players who had adopted his form of quiet protest, calling them “sons of bitches” and telling NFL owners to fire them or watch their businesses “go to hell”. Trump lied when he claimed that the protests were against our military and our flag. Kaepernick and other protesters had made it clear from the beginning that the protests were about perceived racial injustice. Trump ignored concerns about racial equality and changed the subject to patriotism. When a President of the United States lies some of his loyal base will believe whatever he says. Others in Trump’s party may simply stay quiet – exactly the kind of inaction that Kaepernick is protesting.
Our President has behaved as a shameless bully and liar, dividing us into factions and urging his supporters to impose their will on others through the power of government and employers. It’s dangerous to our constitutional democracy when our President uses his power to try to silence others. At the core of American freedoms is the right to be a nonconformist – to believe, speak, and live according to your own conscience. Whether I agree with Colin Kaepernick or not, it is my duty as an American to defend his right to speak and to demand an apology from President Trump for his lies and his language.
The President’s actions bring this adage to mind. “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men should do nothing.” We Americans need to move ahead with serious conversations about race relations. It appears that we’ll have to do that in the face of presidential opposition rather than with constructive presidential leadership. That, perhaps, is why so many NFL players and owners have linked arms – showing the way to honest conversation and teamwork – and standing up to the biggest bully on the block.
LEST WE FORGET
“Lest we forget” – That inscription is carved into the stone foundation upon which a bronze Confederate soldier stands, fully armed, at the entrance to the public building where my County Commissioners meet. A century and a half after the Civil War, it’s time to free this young man, probably a draftee forced to fight for the long defunct Confederate States of America. And it’s time
to move ahead in creating the future of the United States of America. “Lest we forget”, the outcome of the Civil war was preservation of the Union, our nation, and it’s flag to which we pledge allegiance. The failed purposes of the Confederacy included breaking that Union – treason.
Some argue that we can’t (or shouldn’t) change history. Certainly they are correct that facts and events of history are what they are. We fought a long and bloody civil war. Its events are well documented. The statue was placed to honor the memory of Randolph County veterans who served the Confederacy. Those are facts of history that we couldn’t change even if we wanted to.
There’s more to our history than a list of events and dates. The war arose from a conflicting sense of right and wrong – values – regarding slavery, economics and national unity. Today our decisions about whom and what our government will officially honor are based on the values of today’s Americans. Change is part of our history, as it is for every nation and civilization.
When Rome became a Christian empire, it replaced the statues of Greco-Roman Gods with statues of saints and old-testament figures. They didn’t change the facts of their history or the mythology of Roman Gods. They did change who was honored in public buildings.
When Germany lost World War II, the Allies took down many Nazi era statues and symbols. The Germans removed the rest from places of honor but they relocated some and re-interpreted their history. German schoolchildren are required to visit museums and learn the horrors of Nazi rule – lest they forget.
The slogan “Lest we forget” comes from a Rudyard Kipling poem about the military conquests of the British Empire. Its original meaning in the poem is similar to the maxim “Those who do not learn history are doomed to repeat it.” We should keep that meaning in mind today.
Here in North Carolina, the majority of citizens voted against secession. In Randolph County, the reported vote was 2579 against secession and only 45 in favor! They did not want to dissolve the Union or join the Confederacy. But in order to preserve slavery, the basis of their wealth, legislators seceded from the union and joined the Confederacy – overruling the will of voters.
Then the Confederacy created a military draft. North Carolina provided more soldiers than any other Confederate state. North Carolina’s Governor, Zebulon Vance called the conflict “a rich man’s war and a poor man’s fight”. There were so many draft resisters and deserters in Randolph County that the Confederacy imposed martial law. If our statue represents a Randolph County soldier, there’s a good chance that he was a draftee, not a volunteer.
Surely there were many Tarheel soldiers who fought courageously for the Confederacy, as German soldiers did for the Third Reich. Today’s values judge that their sacrifices were on the wrong side of history – in support of slavery and in absolute opposition to the proposition that “…all men are created equal.” Confederate statues and battle flags are part of our history but they don’t belong in places of honor financed and maintained by the governments of free people.
Blood has again been shed over white supremacy, and it should come as no surprise to see Confederate battle flags waved by people shouting Nazi slogans such as “blood and soil”. White supremacy ideology was suppressed but now its advocates parade on our streets carrying clubs reminiscent of the axe handles distributed by racist governor Lester Maddox of Georgia. Our President’s election campaign was eerily similar to George Wallace’s nationalist/racist campaigns in 1964 and 1968. Both railed against polite (politically correct) conversation and both helped unleash pent-up racist rage.
We may never be totally rid of supremacists, but our government should not honor their ideas with statues, license plates and flags. Lest we forget, issuing license plates with Confederate battle flags and honoring Confederate heroes on public property is honoring both white supremacy and treason against the United States.
WE CAN CHOOSE HOPE OVER DESPAIR
“There are people whose lives are so hard they break.” Those are the words of Eileen Crimmins, a professor at the University of Southern California. She wasn’t talking about Syrian refugees or undocumented immigrants. She was talking about a large subgroup of white American citizens.
The average life expectancy of white Americans age 25-54 declined between 1999 and 2014 because of a rapid rise in premature deaths from drug overdoses, suicides, and cirrhosis associated with alcohol consumption. The death rate from drug overdoses among 25 -34 year old whites was five times higher in 2014 than in 1999. It tripled among 35 – 44 year olds. By 2014, the overdose death rate among whites was double the rate for blacks or Hispanics. Although whites still live longer, the black-white gap closed considerably because of the premature white deaths.
The rising death rates are heavily concentrated among whites without college degrees. Rural areas and small towns of the Southeast, Southwest, and the Midwestern “rustbelt” have been especially hard hit.
Why are so many white Americans killing themselves with drugs, alcohol and guns? (Almost half of all American suicides are by gun.) The most common hypothesis among researchers is that these are “deaths of despair” among Americans who no longer have hope for a satisfactory future.
Economists, sociologists, psychologists and public health researchers are only beginning to study and understand this troubling trend. It’s clear that the problems of poverty, lack of jobs with good wages, and lack of education have existed at higher rates among black Americans than among whites for all of our history but it’s the white Americans who are killing themselves with drugs, alcohol and guns. Why?
One hypothesis is that this large group of white Americans have been taught to expect that, like their parents, they could support a family and live middle-class lives with a high school education. They counted on factory work, and semi-skilled labor to pay for necessities and a few luxuries. Those expectations have been shattered. They blame corporations, immigrants, government, and public policy (such as trade treaties) for their plight. They also point a finger at themselves and far too many turn to drugs, alcohol, and suicide as avenues of escape.
The white labor class may be suffering so much despair because they are just now experiencing what the black labor class, unprotected by labor unions and discriminated against by employers, have known from childhood. They can’t pay their way into the middle class. In many cases their marriages have failed and their families have shattered under the stress of economic pressures. Many lack the literacy skills, time and money to pursue better opportunities. They see little hope for themselves and their communities.
Our economy will use the least expensive combination of machines, computers, and people to produce goods and services. Then it will sell those goods and services in exchange for more money and repeat the process. In that environment, it is up to each individual to find a way to succeed. Otherwise, the economy will find you to be expendable.
Blame is irrelevant. The important question is, “What future will we choose to create?” The replacement of human work with automation and artificial intelligence has barely begun and no one knows how rapidly it will accelerate. A report by PWC, an international consulting firm, says that 38% of American jobs are at high risk of replacement by automation in the next 15 years.
We shouldn’t even try to stop the trend, but we do need to prepare for it. Public education must be redesigned to prepare every student for life-long learning at the college level. Parents and communities must encourage and support it because jobs with good wages will require continuous learning at that level. Even if manufacturing returns to the US, the old jobs will not accompany it. There will be far more automation and the new jobs will require skills that few of us have today. In addition, minimum wage, healthcare, and other public policies must be sufficient to support viable families.
As we envision our futures, it’s good to remember Jackson Browne’s line, “You can dream but you can never go back the way you came.” We can create a good future, but it won’t be the same as our past. We must not sacrifice another generation of Americans by preparing them for a future that won’t exist. Instead, we should prepare them for hope and success.
References for further reading:
Commonwealth fund brief on white mortality trends
A CHRISTMAS NEWSLETTER
Instead of a Christmas column from me, I tried to imagine a message from someone far wiser.
Dear American Friends:
I’ve noticed that many of you send newsy letters about your families as part of your celebration of my birthday. This year I decided to try it myself by writing to all of you. Christians often call me Father, Son, or Holy Ghost – three different ways to see me. Today I’m writing as Son.
It’s been a disappointing year for Dad and me. H.G., my spirit partner, is sad because so few of you welcome her into your thinking and conversations. Many of you don’t seem to hear her.
Your wars in the Middle East have killed about four million people in the last 25 years. Most of them are Dad’s Muslim children. He loves them as much as he loves you and he wants you to quit killing each other.
You’ve been writing “In God we trust” on your buildings. Dad’s not impressed. If you trusted him, you’d be taking his advice about which things are most important. I explained that to you once when I said that all of Dad’s laws are based on just two things. Love him; and love your neighbor as yourself. Everything that his prophets said, the laws they gave, and all that I taught comes from those two instructions. Love God. Love your neighbor as yourself. I know that’s sometimes difficult for you to do but it isn’t complicated.
Did you notice that when I lived on your planet, I tried to be a respectful friend of people regardless of their station in life or whether they agreed with me? I enjoyed time with Roman soldiers that invaded my country, tax collectors, prostitutes, and lepers. I ignored nationality and welcomed whoever came to me. When I saw injustice, I spoke up about it. Think about that when you’re deciding whether to deport people who came into your nation hungry, needy, and looking for work. You must love and respect people of all races and cultures, whether straight or LGBTQ. There are no exceptions to “love your neighbor”.
Back at the beginning of time, Dad put you in charge. In one of the books that your ancestors wrote about him, they called it “having dominion” over the whole earth. You sometimes call it “free will”. Dad lets you make your own decisions and then he lets you live with the consequences – good ones and bad ones.
You’ve learned a lot from your science. You can produce food, shelter, clothing and other things that you need. You know how to cure some of the illnesses that killed your ancestors. Those are great things and you should be proud of what you’ve achieved. You should apply my “love your neighbor” teaching to those things too. You have brothers and sisters who are starving. Here in your wealthy nation you often reserve your nearly miraculous health care for those who have money or insurance.
You’ve written your laws so that individuals and businesses get to own knowledge. Anyone who wants to use the knowledge to save a life has to pay whoever owns the knowledge. Such greed makes some of you angry at others. You need to do something about that.
You’re making a mess of the planet that Dad gave you. It’s getting warmer and you’re about to flood a lot of it. You already know that from your science but you’re not doing much about it. Is that because it would cost money? But won’t it cost more when the floods come? And wouldn’t the work to clean up the planet create jobs for people who don’t have a way to support themselves today?
Even though Dad and I are sad and disappointed we still want to help. When I tried really hard about 2000 years ago, people like you crucified me for my trouble. We’re not going to do that again, but Dad did send H.G. to help you find your way. Listen to her. Look inside yourself. She’s there and if you pay close attention to her you’ll discover how to love your neighbor; and then you will know what to do.
Thanks for reading this. Dad, H.G. and I will be thinking of you and wishing you a Happy 2017.
Your friend,
Jesus
What to do on the morning after?
The day after the election will be the first day of the rest of our lives. What should we expect of our elected officials? Will we help or undermine each other and elected leaders? If individuals, families and communities listen to each other’s ideas and agree on how to move forward together, we can invigorate the idea of “commonwealth”, a society that is organized to benefit all. Everybody wins. If, on the other hand, winners kick losers while they’re down in order to maintain dominance and if losers do all they can to stop winners from implementing their ideas then the republic will decline. Everybody loses.
It’s happened in great societies throughout history and it’s especially clear in the Bible’s Old Testament. When those in power dominate and abuse the powerless, everybody loses and the society fails. When the principle of commonwealth guides decisions, the society blossoms.
Poverty, income inequality and homelessness are at crisis levels in many places. Rural America has depended on agriculture and manufacturing to provide family incomes and property tax revenue for local governments. Both of those economic sectors now produce more goods with fewer people than ever before. At the same time that rural employment opportunities paying middle class wages have become scarce, the tax revenues of rural communities have stagnated. Budgets for public education, safety, and human services are under severe stress at a time when they are critical to redevelopment of communities. The plight of rural America has much in common with high poverty neighborhoods of urban America. Low incomes and insufficient resources have similar effects in both places.
Will legislatures reconsider how public services are funded and which tax revenues are available at local, state and federal levels? Will high poverty areas have funding for education, high-speed internet, water, sewer, quality of life, health and other priorities at a level that is proportionate to wealthy areas? If not, will their future be inter-generational poverty and emigration of successful residents to more desirable areas? Will legislators work at solving the underlying problems or will they pit urban vs rural and white vs black vs Hispanic for partisan gain?
What about the sanctity of human life? Will we expect our congress, legislatures and executives to behave as if “all lives matter”? Does someone who wants a gun have the right to own an assault rifle designed for mass killing? Does a woman have the right to remove a fetus from her body? In which decisions should government have a role?
Conflicts between personal and constitutional values will not be fully resolved but can we make progress for the common good? Could we agree to reduce the demand for abortion by providing free birth control, better access to pre-natal care, simple and inexpensive adoption procedures, and by solving our income inequality problems? Will we expect legislators to find ways to preserve gun ownership for self-defense and recreation while getting weapons designed for mass killing out of circulation and screening gun purchasers to rule out suspected terrorists and known criminals? Or will we reward leaders for continuing to insult each other?
The Republican controlled Senate has refused to consider President Obama’s nominee to the Supreme Court. They hope to win the Presidential election and get a conservative-leaning nominee. Senators Richard Burr and Ted Cruz have made the radical statement that if Hillary Clinton is elected, they will refuse to confirm nominees and let the court shrink. That abrogation of a senator’s constitutional responsibility would invite similar behavior from Democrats toward a Republican president. Will we insist that senators fulfill their constitutional duties?
Differences of race, wealth, religion and philosophy divide us on a long list of issues: immigration, transpacific partnership, climate change, war, taxes, LBGTQ rights, health care, and more.
We’re not all going to miraculously agree after the election. Continued success for our republic will require two things of us. First, we must look honestly at facts. Second, we must engage each other in ongoing conversation (listening more than arguing) about the principle of commonwealth – making decisions and laws that create opportunity and peace for all of us.
Our legislators are capable of that, but they will do it only if they know that we voters expect it, demand it, and that we’re doing it ourselves.
We can start on November 9.
Should we stand for our national anthem?
After months of complaints from the political right about PC limitations on speech and discussion, it is ironic that those same right wingers see a national scandal in Colin Kaepernick’s refusal to stand for our national anthem. Like Muhammad Ali and Olympic Athletes of 1968, he is using his celebrity status to bring attention to what many see as American racism.
Kaepernick’s voice is but one in a crescendo criticizing the “land of the free”. Leaders from African American and Latino communities have politely spoken their minds on voting rights, law enforcement, criminal justice, public education and income inequality. Not much happened. If quiet and polite voices are ineffective, louder ones are to be expected. Whether it is an NAACP Chapter, a Latino Coalition, Black Lives Matter, the American Civil Liberties Union or some other organization, their list of unaddressed concerns is long.
Since passage of civil rights laws in the 1960s, many Americans, believe that we live in a post-racial society. We don’t. Our problems extend to the heart of democracy, consent of the governed.
It is with those thoughts in mind that I looked into the controversies surrounding North Carolina’s new voting law as one example among many concerns. For a more complete account, read Appeal-16-1468 published by the Fourth Circuit United States Court of Appeals. It overturned portions of the law because of its discriminatory intent.
The court found that the law was specifically designed to target African Americans and said, “…by 2013 African American registration and turnout rates had finally reached near-parity with white registration and turnout rates. African Americans were poised to act as a major electoral force. But, on the day after the Supreme Court issued Shelby County v. Holder, 133 S. Ct. 2612 (2013), eliminating preclearance obligations, a leader of the party that newly dominated the legislature (and the party that rarely enjoyed African American support) announced an intention to enact what he characterized as an “omnibus” election law. Before enacting that law, the legislature requested data on the use, by race, of a number of voting practices. Upon receipt of the race data, the General Assembly enacted legislation that restricted voting and registration in five different ways, all of which disproportionately affected African Americans.”
The court also found that, “Although the new provisions target African Americans with almost surgical precision, they constitute inapt remedies for the problems assertedly justifying them and, in fact, impose cures for problems that did not exist. Thus the asserted justifications cannot and do not conceal the State’s true motivation … the State took away [minority voters’] opportunity because [they] were about to exercise it. … Faced with this record, we can only conclude that the North Carolina General Assembly enacted the challenged provisions of the law with discriminatory intent.”
Here are a few examples of discrimination that the court found in the law. In deciding which forms of identification would be acceptable for voting, the legislature used racial data to select IDs that whites are more likely to have than minorities. They used racial data to eliminate voting opportunities that were used more heavily by African Americans than whites. Similar processes were used to determine early voting days, eliminate same day registration, and eliminate out-of precinct voting.
North Carolina’s law was crafted by Republican leadership in secret sessions with advice from consultants employed by attorneys so that documentation of their work would not be available to the public. The court found that “… after the General Assembly finally revealed the expanded (law) to the public, the legislature rushed it through the legislative process…in three days: one day for a public hearing, two days in the Senate, and two hours in the House.”
The law passed by party line vote. Every Republican legislator supported it. I don’t think they are all racists. Instead, I think they are much like the Democrats who passed racist laws in the Jim Crow era. They bowed to pressure to win elections and one way to win elections is to keep the opposition from voting. That’s what they did, and it is an example of 21st century racism in operation.
Because of laws like this one and other grievances, some people don’t honor our national flag and anthem. Would you honor the flag of a nation that did such things to you? I’ll continue to pledge allegiance because our courts generally overturn unjust laws and because we’re free to replace those who passed a racist law at our next election. It’s time to have a record voter turnout.