[lbo-talk] Pollitt on Dean

Wojtek Sokolowski sokol at jhu.edu
Fri Aug 29 06:27:58 PDT 2003



> Jon Johanning wrote:
>
> > It looks to me as though white Democratic presidential candidates
> > generally have an extremely difficult time connecting with
> > African-Americans, unless they really make an effort, the way
Clinton

Only when by "communicating with African Americans" you mean embracing "gangsta rap" and generally pandering to the feeling of streets thugs. Most African-Americans I know have no problems siding with- and voting for the mainstream Democratic candidates. Au contraire, many of them find my red - green sympathies a bunch of pie-in-the-sky BS. A clear evidence of that was last mayoral election on Baltimore, when a mainstream white candidate got more black votes than two African -American ones - one acting as a street thug and the other one making vague promises to "neighborhoods."

Speaking of which - last Wednesday my community association organized a public forum for candidates to the city council (which is totally toothless in Baltimore) in the upcoming election. About 11 contenders showed up: 7 Democrats, 2 Repugs, 1 Independent and 1 Green. My heart was with the Green, until he spoke. His presentation was plainly goofy - a reply of my Green experience from few years before, when a meeting to organize write-in campaign for Nader was cancelled because the organizers get the directions wrong and most participants got lost in the vast wasteland of Baltimore/Washington suburbs. So low and behold - most people from my hood will vote for a Democrat - who seems to have his act together

Wojtek



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