Some of you may recall that last week I ran an column entitled “25 Questions to Ponder…” This column generated plenty of feedback, particularly the question, “How can Democrats claim to be the party of civil rights when virtually every segregationist was a Democrat?” Since this question received such a large response, I have decided to address the issue of civil rights and the political parties this week.
Most people know the Republican Party was founded in opposition to slavery. It was Republican Abraham Lincoln who freed the slaves, and Senate Republicans who first gave black men the right to vote. Many abolitionists were conservative Christians.
In Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, the Supreme Court ruled segregation unconstitutional. Some school districts refused to abide by the ruling. One of the most famous cases involved Little Rock Central High School, when Arkansas Governor Orville Faubus, a Democrat, dispatched the Arkansas National Guard to prevent the nine black students from entering the school. In response, Republican President Dwight Eisenhower sent in troops to protect the students.
The most infamous supporter of segregation was Alabama Gov. George Wallace. Wallace famously proclaimed "…segregation now, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever!" It was Wallace who "stood at the schoolhouse door" in 1963 at the University of Alabama and confronted federal authorities when they attempted to enroll black students. He also ran unsuccessfully for president three times. Wallace's support went beyond the South, as he won the Michigan primary in 1972. Though many today don't care to remember, George Wallace was a Democrat.
During the 1960s Civil Rights movement, many Democrats fought to maintain the status quo. Even President John F. Kennedy, who is widely praised for his civil rights record, wanted to wait until after the 1964 election to push civil rights legislation for fear he would alienate his Democratic base. JFK's brother, Attorney General Robert Kennedy, authorized J. Edgar Hoover to wiretap Martin Luther King. It was not Kennedy or Johnson who authorized the first affirmative action program, but Republican Richard Nixon.
A higher percentage of Senate Republicans supported the Civil Rights Act of 1964 than did Democrats. After signing the bill, President Lyndon B. Johnson thanked Republicans for their support, as much of his own party wasn't there to help. Among those who opposed the act were Al Gore's father, Senator Al Gore, Sr., Bill Clinton's mentor, William Fulbright, and 19 other Democrats (and only six Republicans). Some have argued that yesterday’s Southern Democrats are today’s Republicans. This is not true. With a few exceptions (like Strom Thurmond), almost all the “Dixiecrats” remained Democrats. It was not until years after the Civil Rights movement that Republicans began making gains in the South.
Volumes could be written about Senator Robert Byrd, the West Virginia Democrat. The Democratic Senior Senator, and Senate Democratic leader from 1977-1989, Byrd is a former member of the Ku Klux Klan. He filibustered against the 1964 Civil Rights Act, and used a racial slur on national television as recently as 2001. But since he's a Democrat, no one calls for his resignation. Compare that to the treatment Trent Lott received for his dumb comments.
Bill Clinton, who has been called "the first black president," does not have the sterling record on race that one is led to believe. In an event that is all but forgotten today, Newsmax.com reports that then-Arkansas Governor Clinton was sued by the NAACP in 1989 for violating the federal Voting Rights Act of 1965. A three judge panel ordered him to redraw electoral districts to allow blacks to have greater voting strength.
Despite all this, the Democratic Party loves to play the race card at every opportunity. Al Gore's campaign manager, Donna Brazile, described Republicans as "white boys." She also attacked Colin Powell and former Oklahoma Congressman J.C. Watts, "The Republicans bring out Colin Powell and J.C. Watts because they have no program, no policy. They play that game because they have no other game. They have no love and no joy. They'd rather take pictures with black children than feed them." A Missouri campaign ad in 1998 claimed that if you vote Republican, you allow "another cross to burn."
Democrats use this rhetoric because they know if they lose any of the black vote, the electoral results would be disastrous. Even though, in many ways, they have a much poorer record on civil rights, they still claim the moral high ground. And they now have the NAACP to defend this silly notion. It's time for Republicans to set the historical record straight.
Of course, there is and has been racism in both parties, which every intelligent American regrets. But to claim that the Democratic Party has a superior record on civil rights is to ignore 150 years of history.
John Brown is a senior in political science and history at the University of Tennessee @ Knoxville. Contact him at johnnyb325@aol.com or visit www.johnnorrisbrown.com. This column originally appeared in the October 21, 2003 edition of The Daily Beacon, available here.