Steele, Black Republicans Not Uncle Toms or Sellouts
If you ask someone white to tell you the political party of someone who is pro-life, against gay marriage, for a smaller government, a fiscal conservative and a consistent critic of the policies of President Barack Obama, chances are the answer will be the Republican Party. If you ask someone black and throw in that the individual you're describing is also an African-American, chances are he'll be called an Uncle Tom or a sellout. Welcome to the world of Michael Steele and black Republicans. When I told folks on Facebook and Twitter that I was interviewing Steele last week for my show on the cable network TV One, "Washington Watch with Roland Martin," the comments were expected. He was ripped, called every name in the book, and castigated. Why? Largely because he's a black Republican. Yes, African-Americans are loyal to President Barack Obama and fiercely protective of him. Heck, even when legendary radio show host Tom Joyner made some comments recently on his show that were perceived as critical of the president, folks called him an Uncle Tom. And Joyner was one of Obama's biggest supporters during the campaign! There is little doubt that Republicans have had a sorry history with African-Americans for the past 41 years. Richard Nixon's "Southern Strategy," designed to exploit white fears about African-Americans in order to win at the ballot box, continued to deliver the South to the GOP well into this decade. Republican attacks on social programs were deemed as being aimed at poor people, African-Americans in particular. The divisions were amplified further by Democrats who were willing to use race to hype up black voter turnout in order to defeat Republicans. If you want to get a reaction out of a largely black audience, tell them you're a black Republican. Black members of the GOP are the butts of jokes from comedians on TV and in movies. And downright silly. The reality is that no political party owns a bloc of voters. I have criticized white Republicans for not reaching out and engaging African-Americans on issues they have in common, and Democrats should not get a pass for their ability to depend on black voters while throwing them under the bus if needed. As someone who has voted for Democrats, Republicans and independents, what matters to me are the issues. Last year, Michael Steele and I participated in a debate at Fayetteville State University, a historically black college. For the most part, he and I agreed on education, family, accountability of public servants and community service but disagreed on public policy positions that were more about being wedded to an ideology as opposed to personal principles. We didn't get angry or throw stuff at each other. We had a healthy debate on the issues and had a helluva time before the audience. This is what we all should be able to strive for. Listening to one another and making determinations on what people are saying, as opposed to depending on labels, is vital. So I hope that black voters in Texas actually listen to Michael Williams, chairman of the Texas Railroad Commission, as he campaigns for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Kay Bailey Hutchison. He deserves an audience just like anyone else. The day we end the name-calling and personal attacks will be a great one. Then we will have the chance to truly find out who people are, and we won't have to depend on silly labels that say nothing about who they are as people or what they will be able to accomplish. Roland S. Martin is an award-winning CNN analyst and the author of the forthcoming book "The First: President Barack Obama's Road to the White House as originally reported by Roland S. Martin." Please visit his Web site at www.RolandSMartin.com. To find out more about Roland S. Martin and read his past columns, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com. COPYRIGHT 2009 CREATORS.COM
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