Black Voters and The Republican Party; The Content of One’s Character.

By Raynard Jackson

Those who follow my columns know I have been and am extremely critical of the Republican Party’s and the conservative movement’s continued “ghettoization of the Black voter.”  For purposes of this column, I will use the terms Republican Party and conservative interchangeably.

Even when Republicans try to do the right thing, they do it the wrong way.

They constantly promote and highlight Blacks who have absolutely no connection to the Black community or the conservative movement.

I have and will continue to call out this crazy behavior both publicly and privately.

Exhibit A in this insulting approach to engaging with the Black community is Diamond and Silk.

They are babbling buffoons who present a travelling minstrel show for their white patrons.  Fortunately, they have had their fifteen minutes of fame and are being shown the door after years of complaints from “credible” Blacks throughout the conservative movement.

According to a quote often attributed to famed abolitionist Harriet Tubman, “I freed a thousand slaves.  I could have freed a thousand more if only they knew they were slaves.”  Enough said!

Candace Owens is another person that is damaging conservative efforts to bring more Blacks into the movement.  She says the most foolish, incendiary things that even white folks are left scratching their heads over.

The most recent ignorant trope to exit her mouth is regarding the death of George Floyd.  You can google it to find out the details; but suffice it to say to Owens, just shut the hell up and keep his name out of your mouth.

The man is dead and for you to troll his family is well beyond indecent and inhumane.  But we understand that you are looking for your white benefactors to pat you on the head and say “good girl.”

The final two examples are Shemeka Michelle and Angela Stanton King.  They have two of the most foul mouths I have ever heard.  They actually think this is endearing to people all under the guise of “keepn’ it real.”

No, it’s called keeping it ghetto.

Michelle and King need to understand that their job is to inspire people to reach up; not for them to stoop down to dumb down their approach to their target audience.

The people listed above are all in their late forties and earlier fifties, but their actions are more in line with that of a twenty-year-old.

They remind me of the Claudette Colvin versus Rosa Parks argument.  Yes, that Rosa Parks!

Colvin refused to give up her seat on a segregated Montgomery, AL public bus almost a year before the infamous Rosa Parks incident.

So, why did Rosa Parks become the face of the Civil Rights movement and not Claudette Colvin?  Because Colvin did not meet the “self-imposed” standards of the Black community to be the face of a major lawsuit.

Colvin was a fifteen-year-old unmarried pregnant child who was dark-skinned and didn’t have good hair!!!  Parks was forty-two years of age and employed as a seamstress at a local department store.

But the most important reason was how Parks comported herself; being a woman of good moral standing in the community.

In a similar manner, conservatives must highlight Blacks who uphold certain values, standards and morals.

If the goal is to get more Blacks involved in our movement, why then would you showcase women who are traveling minstrel shows?  Would you do that to the Jewish community?

If the goal is to get more Blacks involved in our movement, why then would you showcase a woman who has absolutely no connection to her own community?  Owens constantly denigrates the very community she claims to be a part of.

If the goal is to get more Blacks involved in our movement, why then would you promote women who have filthy mouths and one who thinks it is appropriate to show her breasts live on TV?

Don’t believe me?  Click on this link to observe Ms. King’s beautiful twins!!!  You can watch the whole thing or go to timestamp 44:18 to see the more revealing parts.

Janet Jackson had “The Pleasure Principle.”  Conservatives need the “Colvin” Principle.

It can no longer be acceptable for conservatives to choose Blacks who are deficient in the area of character; not if the goal is to move the needle forward.

Yes, there is room for diversity of people and approaches to engagement with the Black community IF the Republican brand was not damaged.  But when you have a damaged brand, which we do now, there must be a single, unified approach to substantive engagement with the Black community.

This is public relations 101 on rebuilding a damaged brand.

Those who follow me know I work with some of the biggest names in business, sports, politics and entertainment; so, I know a little something about repairing damaged brands.

I think all the people I discussed above have various levels of talent, but if the goal is to substantively engage with the Black community, there is no room for them.

If the goal is to entertain a white audience, then there is plenty of room for them.

But you can’t have both.

If any of the aforementioned people are interested in discussing my views with them, I am more than happy to have that discussion.  But what I won’t do is engage through social media; that’s the coward’s tool of choice.

There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.  And these folks are killing our chances with the Black community.

[Raynard Jackson is a Pulitzer Award nominated columnist and founder and chairman of Black Americans for a Better Future (BAFBF), a federally registered 527 Super PAC established to get more Blacks involved in the Republican Party. BAFBF focuses on the Black entrepreneur. For more information about BAFBF, visit www.bafbf.org. You can follow Raynard on Twitter; RealRaynardJ; on Gettr: RaynardJackson.]