Volume I No. 43
 12-10-02
 Who Does Trent Lott Really Stand With? 
 { Sometimes Apologies Just Aren't Enough }
 author: Vance Cureton
 © Copyright 2002

 Once again former and soon to be Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott
 finds himself involved in controversy surrounding his sentiments 
 regarding the past history of this country. This time it was Lott's 
 unsolicited comment at a celebratory gathering for the long time Old 
 South racist and now retiring Senator Strom Thurmond's 100th birthday. 

 Senator Lott said, "...when Senator Strom Thurmond ran for president
 we voted for him. We're proud of it. And if the rest of our country 
 had followed our lead, we wouldn't have had all these problems 
 over all these years..."

 Was the above comment a bad choice of words or a freudian slip
 of sorts? It would be very easy to give Lott the benefit of the doubt 
 and regard the comment as simply a case of poorly chosen words. 
 But one has to begin to really wonder about this particular Southern 
 politician.

 Strom Thurmond!

 Strom Thurmond has never been a friend of people of color in this 
 country, even though it is accepted that he is not the vile racist he 
 once was in his younger days. And we will not argue that point in 
 this column. But even allowing for that, what could Senator Lott 
 have possibly meant by his words that, "...we wouldn't have had 
 all these problems over all these years..." if the segregationist 
 Thurmond had won the White House.

 The thought of having had Senator Strom Thurmond as a President 
 is beyond scary. It's downright horrifying. Where indeed would this
 country be if Thurmond had won in 1948?

 Has Trent Lott checked the Senate chambers lately? Are any of his
 colleagues African-American? We all know the answer. -- And to this 
 day, how many African Americans have been voted by either major 
 party to the ticket as the Vice President or Presidential nominee? 

 Answer: There hasn't been one. 

 And this is without a vile segregationist Dixiecrat ever having listed 
 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue as his mailing address. And so far we have 
 only mentioned politics. There's not enough space in a single column 
 such as this to even begin talking about the progress or lack there-of 
 regarding African-Americans and other non-whites on the social 
 and economic fronts. 

 This country has shown a tremendous reluctantance towards acknow-
 ledging and confronting the institutionalized racism and sexism 
 that persists in all strata of American life. So what, Lord help us 
 was Trent Lott possibly talking about? What is the kind of American 
 society he dreams about away from the cameras and the bright lights?

 As recently as 1998 Senator Lott had to explain away his associations 
 with the so-called Council of Conservative Citizens. A group with
 white supremacists leanings.

 { If you want to check out what these patriotic Americans represent
 check out this site: http://www.cofcc.org }

 Lott in so many words pleaded that he was ignorant of the true
 political intent of this and other like groups. As a Son of the South, 
 Lott's explanation seemed unlikely, but was generally accepted by 
 the mainstream media, and the story eventually died from lack of 
 interest. Perhaps, the cameras and microphones should not have 
 been taken away so quickly.

 In fairness, Lott has issued an apology regarding his latest snafu.

 "...A poor choice of words conveyed to some the impression that 
 I embraced the discarded policies of the past. Nothing could be 
 further from the truth, and I apologize to anyone who was offended 
 by my statement.'' 

 Racism and bigotry is an ugly thing. And it is taken that there are a
 number of closet racists in both Congress and the U.S. Senate. It is 
 a given. Because the men and women elected to those offices reflect 
 American society. And there are scores of hard-working, God fearing 
 Americans who pine for the good ole days. Who long for a United
 States of America peopled with many less non-white immigrants. An 
 America where the descendants of African slaves knew their place, 
 and stayed within their own communities. 

 This is simply reality. 

 But once again this Son of the South - Senator Trent Lott - has called 
 attention to himself. Those words he spoke at Thurmond's birthday
 party were his words. No one forced him to speak them. Something 
 inside of the man obviously found comfort in the sentimentalities that 
 were so eloquently expressed.

 A bad choice of words?

 Not likely. 

 This was a slip of the Fruedian kind.

 So what does this man really stand for? And who does he stand with?

 What is Senator Trent Lott really about?

 He should go.

 His kind of bigotry does not belong in the U.S. Senate.

 Sometimes apologies just aren't enough.
 

 ReadingPost.Com
 © Copyright 2002

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