Racism and the 2 party system

The Democrats and the Republicans. Bitter rivals for close to 160 years of American history. The Democratic party in its current phase truly came out of reforms after the Civil War, though it can trace its roots back to the early 1790's with the Jeffersonian Democrats. Since then, to the present day, one of these two parties has been the party of racism. Founded in 1854, the Republican Party has been on the scene a bit later than the Democrat roots. One of these two parties championed abolition of slavery. It was under one of these two parties that African Americans, and indeed all people of every race, were given the Constitutional Amendments number 13, 14, and 15. Amendment 13 abolishes slavery in the United States, freeing countless African Americans from the bonds of slavery. It was enacted in December 1865. The 14th Amendment guarantees due process of law and citizenship for former slaves. It was enacted in July of 1868. Amendment 15 gives African Americans the right to vote. It was enacted in February of 1870. The Civil Rights Acts of 1866, 1871, 1957, 1960, and even in 1991 were all passed. Clarence Thomas was appointed to the Supreme Court by one of these parties. The famous (or infamous) Little Rock Nine, African American students escorted by the Federal Government in 1957. All of these examples of bridging the gap of racism and bringing together white and black, and truly, bringing together members of every race and ethnicity, were passed under one party. Add to this the first and second African American Secretaries of State.

In contrast, the KKK have arisen, not once, but twice. Thomas Dixon, writer and playwright of several racist works including, "The Clansman" and "The Leopard's Spots" advocated one of these two major parties. Opposition to the 1957 Civil Rights Act, as well as the 1960 Civil Rights Act came from the opposite party as well.

According to this news article from this morning, that party is obviously the Republican party that supports racism and denounces civil rights and liberties. Or is it? Let's look through the history books and see just which party supports racism.

Starting with the Constitutional Amendments. Please remember that in order for ratification of Amendments, it requires state approval of 2/3 of the states in the Union (at the time of enactment) in order to become an official Amendment

December 1865 - 13th Amendment for the Abolition of Slavery - Enacted under President Andrew Johnson (Republican). Based off of President Abraham Lincoln's (Republican) Emancipation Proclamation.

July 1868 - 14th Amendment guaranteeing Due Process and Citizenship - Enacted under President Andrew Johnson (Republican).

February 1870 - 15th Amendment guaranteeing universal suffrage of all races (women's suffrage was the 19th Amendment) - Enacted under and strictly enforced by Federal power by President Ulysses S. Grant (Republican)

Running Scorecard:
Republican Constitutional Amendments against racism - 3
Democrat Constitutional Amendments against racism - 0

Now to the Civil Rights Acts.

1866 - Extended the rights of Emancipated Slaves - Passed under Republican Congress, over presidential veto of Andrew Johnson who only vetoed it because he felt it would act in favor of one race over another. Still a Republican Act.

1871 - "The Klan Act", making the KKK an illegal organization and granting federal power to shut it down - Proposed by Benjamin Franklin Butler (Republican), a former Union General, and passed by President Ulysses S. Grant (Republican).

1875 - Prohibited Discrimination (Later overturned by the Supreme Court in 1883) - Proposed by Charles Sumner (Republican) and the same Benjamin F. Butler (Republican) who wrote the 1871 Klan Act. It was overturned by the Supreme Court because it enforced government regulation into private affairs.

1957 - The establishment of the CRC (Civil Rights Commission) to enforce voting rights and overturn the Jim Crow laws of the predominantly Democrat south. Written into law and enforced by President Dwight D. Eisenhower (Republican), it's interesting to note that James Strom Thurmond (Democrat) held the longest single manned filibuster in American history to try and stop the bill.

1960 - Further increased enforcement of the Civil Rights Act of 1957 and the 15th Amendment, allowing Federal oversight into all elections, including state and local elections to allow people the right to vote. 18 Democrats divided into 3 teams of 6 to create a continuous filibuster to stop this bill. This became the longest overall filibuster by any party in American History, lasting for 43 hours from February 29th to March 2nd. The bill was signed into law by President Dwight D. Eisenhower (Republican)

1964 - Guaranteeing the rights of the past Amendments and rewriting the 1875 Amendment to allow it to pass Judicial Review - Proposed by President John F. Kennedy (Democrat) and passed with Bi-Partisan support. An interesting note, Senator Robert Byrd (Democrat), the current incumbent Senior Senator from West Virginia opposed this measure.

1968 - Fair Housing Act - Signed into law by President Lyndon Baines Johnson (Democrat). This Act went along with the Act of 1866, which guaranteed citizenship rights (including holding property like real estate), to African Americans.

1991 - Regulation of Discrimination Claims - While it may sound limiting, it allowed for new damages, including emotional distress, to be awarded by the courts. Signed into law by President George H. W. Bush (Republican)

Running Scorecard:
Republican Civil Rights Acts - 6
Major Republican Protests - 1 (Andrew Johnson's Veto)
Democrat Civil Rights Acts - 2 (1964, 1968)
Major Democrat Protests - 2 (1957, 1960)

Now to the action. The grit.

Writing of "The Clansman" and "The Leopard's Spots" by Thomas Dixon - 1905 - Dixon commented on his writing these fictional tales and representing them as historical fact by stating that they were "to revolutionize northern sentiment by a presentation of history that would transform every man in my audience into a good Democrat!"

D.W. Griffith - The Birth of a Nation (1915) - The greatest KKK piece of propaganda ever created. Made, no less, by the son of a Confederate Colonel.

Brown V. Board of Education - 1954 - Supreme Court Case banning discrimination in schools under Chief Justice Earl Warren, appointed by President Eisenhower (Republican) - 1954. It is of note that every other justice on the Supreme Court at the time was appointed by either Harry S. Truman (Democrat) or Franklin Delano Roosevelt (Democrat). However, Justices are there only to interpret the law and hold up any law against the constitution to declare it either Constitutional or Unconstitutional.

The Little Rock Nine - 1957 - Federal Troops escort 9 students in Little Rock, Arkansas to school to enforce integration legislation. Enforced by order of President Dwight D. Eisenhower (Republican)

Running Scorecard:
Democrat movements: 2 for racism
Republican movements: 2 against racism

Appointments to Public Offices:

Thurgood Marshall - First African American Supreme Court Judge - Appointed by President Lyndon B. Johnson (Democrat)

Clarence Thomas - Second African American Supreme Court Judge - Appointed by President George H. W. Bush (Republican)

Colin Powell - First (and so far the only) African American on the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and First African American Secretary of State. As the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, he worked for President George H. W. Bush (Republican), and as the Secretary of State, he worked for President George W. Bush (Republican)

Condoleeza Rice - Second African American Secretary of State (First African American Woman) - Appointed by President George W. Bush (Republican)

Running Scorecard:

Democrat Appointments: 1
Republican Appointments: 4 (The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is an appointed position)

The final scorecard:

Republicans actions against racism: 15 (3 Amendments, 6 Congressional Acts, 2 uses of Federal power being Brown v. Board and the Little Rock Nine, 4 appointments to high public office)

Republican actions for racism: 1 (Andrew Johnson's veto)

Democrat actions against racism: 5 (2 Congressional Acts, 1 Appointment, Brown v. Board of Education, 1 Nomination of Barack Obama)

Democrat actions for racism: 4 (The longest 2 filibusters in history against the Civil Rights Acts of 1957 and 1960, Dixon's writings, and "The Birth of a Nation")

Please note that several facts have been left out with the intention of me getting this done in a somewhat timely manner. Jim Crow laws passed mostly by Southern states to prohibit voting were almost entirely passed by states dominated by the Democratic Party. But since I'm not willing to research all of them, you'll notice that they are not represented in the scorecards.

I'm a history major, so with that final tally of major movements for and against racism, I'll leave you to do the math and your own research on the REAL history of racism in America. But to me? It looks like the Democrats are the party of racism. It's pretty sad that people sleep through history. It's amazing what you can learn by reading a history book rather than the liberal media.