April 7, 2010
NRAAC's National Chair
Dr. Jean Howard-Hill
National Republican African American Caucus [NRAAC] Blog
http://nraac.blogspot.com
Seriously Michael Steele
Seriously Chairman Steele? The race card? Surely you jest. There is no way in heaven, earth or hell you can now have this awakening that there is a race problem within our dearly beloved predominantly lily white party, now that you are knee deep in political cow manure.
Yesterday, I got a call from well known reporter and columnist Kathleen Parker and was asked to comment on the RNC Chair’s recent interview on ABC’s Good Morning America. Her article appears today in over 400 newspapers across the country, including the Washington Post.
In that interview, Steele was asked by George Stephanopoulos whether his race gave him a "slimmer margin for error." Steele’s answer - "The honest answer is yes," said Steele. "It just is. Barack Obama has a slimmer margin. We all -- a lot of folks do. It's a different role for me to play and others to play, and that's just the reality of it."
At first I became hysterical with laughter. How humorous was this sudden epiphany of his. Then laughter turned to disbelief.
Seriously Steele? Feeling a need to be Black again?
Here we are, many of us African American Republicans, thought Steele had transcended color! We no longer believed he any longer thought he was a black man. Now all of a sudden, he has awakened again to this reality?
Come on Steele! You cannot ignore those of “us” who are Black GOPers, fail to take our calls; fail to meet with “us”; fail to recognize we are an intricate part of the party; fail to make attempts to recruit “us” into the party; fail to recognize or assist those of “us” who are recruiting “us” in the party; fail to address the issue of minority exclusion and the party’s false claim of wanting “us” in the party; fail to lend support to those of “us” who are running for office, and then now that you find yourself knee deep in political cow manure, try to play the race card? Surely not! It just does not work this way!
It would be one thing if Steele did not know some of us. But he does. I met Steele in 2001, when as the national chair for the National Republican African American Caucus (NRAAC), after an invitation to the White House to discuss minority recruitment into the Republican Party, Angela Sailor (then White House liaison, who is also presently at the RNC), sent me over to meet with Michael Steele and Dante Hayes. During that meeting, Steele and Hayes shared some of the same frustrations we had with the lack of opportunities and presence of African Americans within the GOP. I also have made Steele aware of the problems the NRAAC has had within the Tennessee political landscape that have blocked us from bringing African Americans into the GOP on a local, state and national level, while the Republican Party - RNC stood back and did absolutely NOTHING to stop it! I sent him my 2004 book, Black Eyes Shut – White Lips Sealed, which well documents all of this.
Steele’s response to us? Let me just put it this way, as one would say in the South, he remained so quiet that you could “hear a rat piss on cotton”. So it is not like he does not know that there is a national organization, headquartered in Tennessee, which for years has successfully recruited African Americans into the party, with a 76 percent clergy membership under the most racist of atmospheres!
To reach the NRAAC national chair:
Jean Howard-Hill
423-702-5622 NRAAC office
nraachowardhill@gmail.com
Jean.howard.hill@gmail.com
She has taught full time and as an adjunct, American Government, State and Local Government, and International Politics and Culture of Nonwestern Countries at the University of Tennessee Chattanooga, and was voted 2006 Outstanding Professor of the year. Additionally, from 1976 to 1979, she designed and directed the "Democracy In Action" Program, which was a civics program taught in the local school systems. Howard-Hill also is a local political commentator and holds a law degree from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville College of Law. She also is ordained clergy and heads The Healing Place Ministries International, overseeing 47 ministries throughout Africa.
She also is a TN third district congressional candidate. If elected, she would be the first African American Republican and female to be elected from the third district. Her campaign website can be found at: http://ladyjforcongress.com and http://jeanhowardhillforcongress.com; http://jeanhowardhillcampaignnews.blogspot.com; http://blogwithladyjforcongress.blogspot.com; http://jeanhowardhillforcongress.ning.com; http://www.youtube.com/JHHCongress; http://twitter.com/ JHHCongress.]
The National Republican African-American Caucus is an organization that is comprised of Spirit filled people of faith within the African American community, that works in conjunction with local, state and national party efforts to embrace, and offer African-American Republicans opportunities for inclusion and involvement in the Republican Party, and builds bridges between the African-American community and the Republican Party. In doing so, it seeks to carry out the philosophy and mission set before President Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglas to build a stronger and more inclusive Republican Party, where those guiding principles are more important than politics.
More information on the NRAACcan be found at:
http://www.nraacaucus.org; http://nraacaucus.ning.com [NRAAC] National Republican African American Caucus Social Issue Network (members only); http://nraac.blogspot.com [NRAAC Blog]; http://youthonthehorizons.blogspot.com [NRAAC Youth on the Horizons Blog]; http://the-twig.blogspot.com [NRAAC New Generation-New Direction Blog]; and
http://theblackolivebranch.blogspot.com [NRAAC National Chair's Blog]. Each State Caucus can be accessed by state. See related links at http://www.nraacaucus.org/index_files/Page816.htm. Also can be found on the RNC group page at http://our.gop.com/Groups/National_Republican_African-American_Caucus_NRAAC.
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