Apparently, when Republicans attempt to talk to the African-American community, it is ‘using the race card:’
One of the radio ads addresses Kerry’s failure to vote on a bill to extend unemployment benefits for 13 weeks: “It needed 60 votes to pass. Ninety-nine out of 100 senators voted — Kerry did not! It lost by one vote! Maybe Kerry thought the more of us who are unemployed and hurting, the more likely we would vote Democrat.”
Another ad attacks Teresa Heinz Kerry, who, at the Democratic convention last month cited her birth and upbringing in Mozambique and who has described herself as African American. In the radio commercial, the announcer says: “His wife says she’s an African American. While technically true, I don’t believe a white woman, raised in Africa, surrounded by servants, qualifies.”
The Kerry campaign denounced the ads, all of which are being aired on radio stations with largely black audiences. “It’s disgusting that the president’s political allies are now using race as a political weapon,” said Bill Lynch, deputy manager of the Kerry campaign. “First a group of right-wing Swift boat veterans began smearing John Kerry’s military service, and now another group has resorted to playing racial politics.”
Mighty timid, these Democrats. I wonder what they might say if someone ran a commercial claiming Kerry lynched a black man?
Slartibartfast
Playing devil’s advocate, here:
Would a black woman, raised in Africa, surrounded by servants, qualify as being African-American? Is the issue servants? If not, why even mention it?
Unrelated, why are racial descriptors important to those who want racial equality?
Rick
“Every time one of these GOP ads airs, another Black church burns.”
Yeah, *that’s* the ticket!
Cordially…
?
Think of all the money that has been spent on advertizing for the Presidential race.
And yet no one is winning!
Maybe they have to do it to keep from losing. Or maybe it just isn’t worth anything.
Adrian Spidle
How did Teresa get her hands on the Heinz fortune?
Teresa Heinz grew up the daughter of a rich dentist in the slave holding Portuguese territory of Mozambique. I spent some time there in Lorenzo Marques and Beira back in the 60s and have a pretty good idea of the life of the colonial Portuguese community she belonged to.
The blacks were considered Kaffirs which meant not quite human to them. I’ll never forget viewing several hundred blacks shovelling urea from the deck of my ship the SS African Mercury at the dock in Lorenzo Marques. The burning sun beat down on a urea dust blurred scene of these poor souls singing there hearts out while they shovelled in unison to the haunting and powerfully primitive tune that eminated from their throats.
I must confess that the seafood was wonderful – lobster tails and shrimp in particular – and the service was superb for us white folks. My brief taste of the Colonial life – in Lorenzo Marques, Mombassa, Dar es Salam, Karachi and Bombay vividly etched in my mind the meaning of Colonialism.
Now as to the Heinz money, I’ve know some very rich people in my life and, without exception, rich families keep a tight fist on the family fortune. Trusts are set up so that the children get almost everything. Spouses might get a few million to tide them over but “outsiders” never get control of the fortune.
Friends of mine, in the know, assert that there has to be a major story to explain how Teresa got control of the great Heinz family fortune, and it’s probably scandalous if it could ever be uncovered.
I’m sure John Heinz
The Lonewacko Blog
The race-baiting isn’t good when Dems or Repubs do it. It would have been better to have taken the high road.
Rick
What Would Oliver Do?
Cordially…