"I will say, then, that I am not, nor ever have been, in favor of bringing about in any way the social and political equality of the white and black races -- that I am not, nor ever have been, in favor of making voters or jurors of Negroes, nor of qualifying them to hold office, nor to intermarry with white people; and I will say in addition to this, that there is a physical difference between the white and black races which I believe will forever forbid the two races living together on terms of social and political equality. And inasmuch as they cannot so live, while they do remain together there must be the position of superior and inferior, and I, as much as any other man, am in favor of having the superior position assigned to the white race." - Abraham Lincoln
Ok, lemme ask you something: have you ever seen or met a poor Black republican? Yeah, have you ever met a Black person or minority who would be considered a part of the working poor or underclass identify themselves as a conservative or republican? Seriously, I'd like you to think about that and answer in your commentary. The reason I'm asking, is that I just wanted to be sure that I wasn't trippin on Black conservatives. I mean, I'm not saying that to be a democrat, you have to be broke, poor, or living in the projects; it would be foolish of me to think or suggest something like that, right? However, I just wanted to make sure that I wasn't buggin when I say that the Black republicans I see are often people who are well to do who seek to separate themselves from the rest of the Negro collective.Of course they're all not well to do, but I can't help but to think that by affiliation, they seek to use the Republican Party to get a leg up on the rest of the Negro collective. I'm just sayin, I've never seen a Black person talk shit about welfare, and other social programs and refer to people who use those services as parasites. Now a White person identifying as republican, I understand their ideological way of thinking; White privilege affords you the ability to say those things. However, Black people saying something like that? Especially when disproportionately there are more Blacks and minorities in poverty or are relatively disadvantaged economically and otherwise?!!! To me, I'm sorry, but that's some bullshit if you ask me. I think its bullshit especially when being Black you're used as a pawn or an example of an exceptional Negro all in an attempt to further the "us against them" ideologues of the republican party.
Like this woman for example:
Parasitic society huh? Not all of us are hypnotized? Did you hear what she said? I mean, she is right in saying that one president would not change your circumstances. However, given the current state of the economy, I'm sorry, but I'm glad that I have a president the likes of Barack Obama to attempt to steer us out of this mess. I mean lets be real, if Bush were able to have a third term, would there be all this protesting? Oh well, since my White buddies find it convenient to remind me that Obama is half Black, I guess I won't be wrong in saying that it was her White side that had her talking like that, but I digress.
Last week I ran into a friend of mine that I met at a job back in the early 90's; actually, I hired him. I haven't seen him in about 12yrs. He was a pretty cool brother, intelligent, and always had a way with the ladies. Unfortunately for the sisters, he was the talk of the town for all the White girls. In other words, as attractive as he was, he dated nothing but White women. I suspect having grown up in a small town and attending a private catholic school where you're a star athlete had something to do with that. I guess in those circumstances its easy to become the exceptional Negro.
While checking out his profile on Facebook, I noticed where he listed his political affiliation as republican. It struck me, because knowing the guy that I knew him as, he never really gave two shits about politics, or at least never expressed an interest. Instinctively, as I gave thought to some of the stuff I knew about him personally, I chalked it up to the fact that he chooses to identify with pretty much nothing but Anglo Saxon American culture. Yes, my man can be pretty much termed the resident token. I have yet to speak with him, but I can't help but wonder how did he go from being what some would term a "thug" to a republican. Oh, and when I say "thug", this is just how he was often described by White folks who he thought were friends of his; nope, I never saw him in that light.
So now, per the sign held by the brother in the picture above there is a new organization in town, and it's called the BPABO (Blacks People against Barack Obama). I can't help but to think that this group is comprised of misguided Negroes who are easily influenced; Black people who are they themselves victims of the further polarization of cultures as done by the good folks on the right wing of the political landscape.
Oh well, maybe I'm wrong, and maybe a Black conservative may read this and prove me otherwise, and explain why they choose to be or identify politically with the Republican Party. I don't know about you, but since race is a social construct that has not been too kind to people of color, the last thing I'd want to be is a card carrying member of the party of Lincoln. Well, that's unless I ever get abducted by Republican little alien green men and get whisked away to another planet or something. Oh, just for the record, just in case you're wondering, I'm not a democrat nor an independent. I'm just a Black man who loves pointing out the hypocrisy of everything I see.
