Religious Right Tells Followers: Tone Down the Racism
At this weekend's Values Voter summit, religious right leaders, who have long played to racial resentment, seem alarmed at how the overt racism of some of the Tea Partiers could harm their own movement -- decades in the making -- of politicized Christian evangelicals and conservative Catholics.
It was a mixed message, to be sure, given Rep. Roy Blunt's big laugh line about how being a Republican in Washington these days means having to "play the ball where the monkey throws it." But even as some conference speakers sent coded racial messages, others cautioned the troops to extreme discipline on matters of race in their messaging, "lest we cast our movement," in the words of conference closer, the Rev. Harry Jackson, "... in a way that will cause people to think that we're something that we're not."
Jackson is the religious right's point man in Washington, where he is waging a battle, organizing African American pastors to prevent the City Council from enacting a same-sex marriage law.
Jackson spoke with urgency about his personal need to have the religious right behave well on matters of race, saying, "I cannot win this fight...if even my own black brothers see me as a traitor.
"What I want to say to you is that the burning question in the media today is whether this growing grassroots movement is, the Tea Party movement, the morally engaged, who are crying out, concerned with the problem of health care, as well -- that many of us are cast as being racist. The word has gone out that there is, in fact, a racist element that is causing us to rise up and come against President Obama ..."
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Bishop Jackson's investment with these thugs is that he hates gays. His battle with the DC council over recognition of SSM has revealed that he can lie and distort with the best of them.
Interesting that the message is "tone down the racism" as opposed to "stop the racism." It's like a parent yelling at his teenager to "turn that racket down" instead of "turn it off." One message says you can keep playing it as long as I can't hear it. The other stops it in its tracks.
Seems to me the evangelicals just don't want to hear the music. They like the tune, even want to dance to it, but don't want the neighbors to hear what's playing on the Hi-Fi tonight.
Did they actually think they were being subtle about it? I suppose Blunt had to get in one dig, so he went for the monkey joke.
But I have news for the right wing. They have created a Frankenstein in Limbaugh and Beck. These two monsters are alive and will not stop. Hate, racism and conspiracy theories boost ratings and keep them in the news and keep them relevant.
As for the Rev. Jackson, I don't see how an African American can align themselves with the Republican Party. There just is no place for a black person in that party.
Ahem, they don't need a Black man, who might be the only Black in that crowd (snark), to tell them not to be racist....
The only working definition of racism these yahoos have has to do with white sheets, burning crosses, and strange fruit hanging from Southern trees.
Anything more complex than that is too far outside their frame of reference. Thus, they will continue to use coded racist language while congratulating themselves on their lack of racism. And the rest of the world, particularly people of color, will continue to view them with suspicion when it comes to race issues.
After 10 months of among the most insanely racist rhetoric I have witnessed in my life, it isn't a matter of the birthers/tea baggers and dittoheads toning down their racism, just the public utterances. The Rethugs are only worried about this damaging their 2010 mid term election chances, NOT the rhetorical violence that is slowly become physical violence. They are embarrased by the results, not the inentions.
For them it's not a question of perhaps looking inward and reflecting on their words, thoughts and feelings, but turning it down so as not to 'appear' racist to others. Makes me sick.
Republicans who follow Limbaugh and Beck are asked the impossible, 'turn down your racism'.
Impossible
The republicans, as I see it, have been led astray. They follow and worship people because they say with their mouths that they are against abortion or (fill in the blank) about God's Word. They have allowed these people to break and degrade other parts of God's Word, somehow feeling it is justified because they feel they are fighting for God's Word. One thing Christians should know is how to keep God's Word in context, and republicans simply do not do that these days.
Living around republicans I understand where the "real" feelings are coming from. They are afraid that this country is turning away from God, and therefore, God may then turn away from our nation, and let us fail. We live in a democracy, not a theocracy, dictatorship, or any other type of government. That means that we allow people to live the way they choose. If it is against our religion and we feel we need to say something, then fine, but to attempt to destroy our democracy and force our beliefs on the others is not sensible, and it is not what God's Word tells us to do.
"lest we cast our movement ... in a way that will cause people to think that we're something that we're not."
I think these people are exactly who they appear to be. The pale faces are motivated by an incipient racism and the remainder are religiously ignorant in the extreme. All these groups in their readings of their holy book are characterized by extreme selfishness and xenophobic tendencies. They actually believe the prosperity gospel mumbo jumbo that if they give their so called religious leaders tax free dollars that God will rain diamonds on them either now or in their next life. In the meantime their leadership is living high off the hog laughing all the way to the bank.
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