FW: Racial Blind Spot Continues toAfflict Greens

["Charles Brown" <CharlesB@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

>>> sawicky@xxxxxxxxxx 12/01/00 03:06PM >>>
CB: Yea, it's one thing to oppose Gore, even though he has the support of
the overwhelming majority of Black voters. It is another thing to think
struggle against good ole boy racism is not a left issue because Gore tries
to use it for himself.

The masses of Black people are still a more actual left force than the left
intelligentsia.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

a) of course it's a left issue.  my misgiving is that it
is poisoned by the present context -- saving Gore's bacon.

My other objection is to some implicit negative comparison
of Nader to Gore.  Nader's campaign was at least as sensitive
to race issues as Gore's.  You could say not sensitive enough,
but that's a different matter.


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CB: Given the centrality of racism in American politics, struggle against racist discrimination against Black and other voters of color is so potent I don't think it can be poisoned by Gore's little poison.  I must say here that though I am not naive about the persistence of American racism, I am still taken aback at the gross incidents of racism that still leap out about once per month in America.

But crisis is opportunity, so lets use these gross abuses to stir something up. Let us use the coincidence of the extraordinarily close election and the focus it puts on voting system abuses of all types to our advantage ( reverse of Gore using us to save his bacon)

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b) masses to intelligentsia is an applies/oranges comparison.
Right now, the masses are real because they have people like Rangel.
They are not real because they are shutting down industries left
and right, or mass mobilizing on hot issues.  They aren't.

If you mean Charlie Rangel is more real than anybody on this
list, I would agree in terms of power and popularity.  I would
not in terms of a commitment to a progressive direction for
politics.

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CB: Gotta think about the noncommensurability of masses and intellgentsia.... lets see....Aren't the masses always the "real" for leftwingers ? I suppose by 3% we could say Nader has some masses, but I guess I am thinking of Nader as "the left intelligentsia". I guess my point is that lefts in the current situation have the flexibility to support Nader in the election, and yet criticize him for not getting way out front in support of Black voting rights. What a golden opportunity for Nader to overcome the too-white color of his campaign. It is standing out publically, I mean getting freakin' mad as hell, even though the votes are for Gore, that would start to make him register a bit in the minds of Black people. The Communists of the 20'and 30's became known as pro-Black because they found ways to really standout in contrast with other white politicians.

There have been criticisms of Nader on this in the course of the campaign, so this is not new. And what better time than after the campaign to pound it into Nader's head , in the sense that it isn't losing him votes to criticize him now.

We have the flexibility to criticize everybody now.

How about John Conyers as as good as Nader ?