What is the mission of the NAACP? “The mission of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People is to ensure the political, educational, social, and economic equality of rights of all persons and to eliminate race-based discrimination.”
All persons? I don’t think so. Talk a walk through the NAACP web site and show me where any race other than black is represented. This isn’t a racist statement, it is simply an observation. Look at the awards from the most recent “Image Awards” and find me a non-black reference other than “Dora The Explorer.” (personally I think Little Bill is a ton better than Dora. The music is awesome, and Little Bill lacks the incredibly annoying voice that Dora has.) Claiming that the NAACP promotes the welfare of all racist is like saying that ACORD promotes the welfare of all political parties. Prove me wrong.
Apparently this year the organization is taking a page from the Obama playbook by removing any and all transparency surrounding the creation of its official resolution aimed at tea party members. Thanks to Philip Klein at the American Spectator, we know of a few portions of the current draft of this resolution:
- “Some Tea Party members have used racial epithets and verbally and physically abused African-American congressman and others, and have been charged with making dangerous threats against duly elected public officials…”
- Another line of the resolution called the Tea Party movement a “threat to the pursuit of human rights, justice and equality for all.”
- “BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED that the NAACP call upon all people of good will specifically but not limited to all political parties and human rights organizations to publicly repudiate the racism and expel the racial instigators of the Tea Party, and to stand in opposition to its drive to push our country back to the pre-civil rights era.”
Hmm. I’ve been to several tea party events including the original 9/11 DC rally and the 4/15 Alamo rally. I can say with confidence that these events were outstanding examples of courtesy, patriotism and camaraderie. To suggest that these events were racist in any way is dishonest. To assert in writing that they are an attempt to “push our country back to the pre-civil rights era” borders on insane.
Yet these stereotypes exist because the press continues to spread lies, and our president and first lady continue to willfully mislead the American public about race issues purely for their own personal gain. This disgusts me and it should disgust you too.
Remember when Michelle Obama first played the race card on 60 Minutes? Instead of using their own life as an example of what minorities can achieve in America, she chose to remain divisive. And now, at a time when race relations appear to me to be as tense as they have ever been in my lifetime, does she take the high road and use her pulpit at the NAACP to try and unite people? No. Instead, the NAACP feels compelled to craft a condemnation of an organization that it does not understand, based on evidence that does not exist. Of course, you cannot defend yourself against something you are not, but that is besides the point.
I would like to see the NAACP summit try to join communities, not divide them. I would like to see our president creating racial harmony and understanding, not poking his nose into racial issues only when the white community can be blamed (see the Cambridge Police, the freedom of the Philadelphia New Black Panthers, or the lawsuit(s) against Arizona for a crime that does not exist). I wish I could say that our president was a uniting force. Instead, I sadly see a man focused on his legacy, not his leadership. Perhaps he could learn something from the following excerpt from a speech from a great man, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Oh, there will be a day, the question won’t be, “How many awards did you get in life?” Not that day. It won’t be, “How popular were you in your social setting?” That won’t be the question that day. It will not ask how many degrees you’ve been able to get. The question that day will not be concerned with whether you are a “Ph.D.” or a “no D.” It will not be concerned with whether you went to Morehouse or whether you went to “No House.”… On that day the question will be, “What did you do for others?”
This video is yet another example of the fine journalistic efforts being offered by cellar dweller MSNBC. I would never have heard of this spare’s tirade if not for the diligent reporting of our friends at HotAir. Dylan Ratigan, who has a television show because… Anyway, Ratigan had Mark Williams from the Tea Party Express appear on his show. I would use the word “interview” but when you give a guest a total of eight seconds of uninterrupted speaking time, I don’t think you can use such a term. I could go on, but this gem of a video speaks volumes. By the way Dylan, Williams answered your question twice. You were simply too caught up in your own ego to notice. Epic. Fail.
Feel free to let him know how you feel. Here is his facebook page:, you can email his show, or hit him up via twitter. Apparently MSNBC has disabled the “contact the show” email page for the time being. He can talk it, but he can’t walk it. Dylan, not only are you a jackass, but you are a pussy.
My journey to the Glenn Beck inspired 9/12 Tea Party was truly memorable. Like so many of the people I met I felt compelled to be there, just like the characters from “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” that were drawn to that flat-topped mountain. I am so happy that I made the trip and will try to convey to you the emotions that I felt.
The morning began at Freedom Plaza at Pennsylvania and 12th around 10 a.m. My brother-in-law dropped me off near the corner of the plaza and I immediately blended in with thousands of sign-carrying patriots. People lined both sides of the street, and the plaza itself was jam packed. Cameras and cell phones were snapping pictures and the energy was tangible. I made my way toward the plaza and looked for a Texas flag so I latch onto a group.
Being alone (the wife and kids were sadly back in Texas), I was able to maneuver quite easily through the crowds. The march was supposed to start at 11:00 or 11:30, but as I made my way toward the forward end of the park I noticed that crowds were already marching due to the massive inflow of people pouring into the plaza from various side streets. The march was underway!
THE MARCH
As I walked down Pennsylvania Avenue I was amazed at the positive energy I felt, and was truly entertained by some very creative signs. There was NO astroturf here, all of these signs were handmade. I passed groups from Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Virginia and Connecticut as well as a few groups from Texas. But since I was making such good time I kept moving forward hoping to get a good spot to watch the speeches.
Along the way I didn’t see a single pro-Obama sign, or any organized dissenters or protest protestors. Chants were varied and equally energetic: “Can you here me now!” — “Throw them out!” — “We want our country back!” — “You Lie!” — and of course, “USA! USA!” Noticeably absent was the press. No cameras, reporters, etc. It was as though the event was invisible.
Some of the best signs I saw included a life-sized Obama cut out with two clear plastic TelePrompTer screens; a Nancy Pelosi poster with an over-sized mouth for people to throw tea bags into; a gorup of people holding up letters that spelled “ENOUGH”; and a group carrying a huge American flag horizontally as they walked. Costume of the day went to a trip of partygoers: a man wearing a huge dreadlocks wig and fake marijuana leaves on is chest labelled “Green Czar,” a woman wearing a flesh-toned body suit and a clear plastic cover labelled “Transparency Czar, and a curvaceous woman wearing a tight t-shirt strategically labelled “Boob Czar.”
THE RALLY
As we approached the Capitol the crowd was being routed through an entrance to the right side of the grassy area between the reflecting pool and the capitol steps. I was too late to make it into the central area stage front, so I worked my way to stage left. As I walked around looking for a good view a woman was waling around with a megaphone announcing “the official police estimate is 1.2 million in attendance.” I thought that this was a bit unusual, since it was still only 11 a.m. and I thought it was too early for a count to be determined yet. Honestly, I felt that this was a liberal plant trying to spread false information, but perhaps I’m just a skeptic. I saw that same person about an hour later announcing “1.5 million according to park police.” I’ll never know… but I still remain skeptical of that individual.
After a few minutes on the grass I decided to head back to a more central location to get a better view and hopefully grab a spot on one of the statues. I swam against the flow of the crowd and made my way to the Garfield statue a little stage left of center. I climbed up and established the position that would be mine for the remainder of the day. Next to me was a lovely woman named Sandy (a United Airlines flight attendant) and her husband. They were from South Carolina. To my left was a gentleman from California, and below me was a guy from Ohio. As I positioned my backpack on the head of a lower statue I heard someone call my name. Then I heard someone yell out my company name! Lo and behold, I looked down to see not one but TWO of my coworkers from San Antonio, Texas! Here I am in the midst of realistically a million people at a single event and ten feet away from me are two coworkers. What are the odds?
As I started snapping pictures and noticed that the crowd was growing much bigger behind me. The crowd reached back as far as I could see in all directions. But still, no press to be seen. Eventually the speakers started and I was very pleased to hear a crisp, clear sound system. My vantage point was a good one, and I actually was able to sit for the entire event while still being able to see everything.
All of the pre-speech energy and crowd noise disappeared almost instantly when the national anthem was announced. Hats were removed, hands placed over hearts, and the entire crowd sang in a beautiful unison voice. After the anthem completed a large group in the heart of the crowd started to chant “USA! USA!”, something that always give me goosebumps. Then the speeches began. There were politicians, a few musical performances, and lots of speeches from people like you and me that until recently were not actively involved in politics or watchdog efforts. But still, the most moving portion for me was when the entire crowd sang the national anthem.
At one point a small group called “People of Faith for Health Care Reform” showed up all holding identical blue signs. There were about twenty in the group, a dozen had signs. They stood off by the side for a little while, then left. I noticed the next day that there was a picture of them in the Washington Post, next to two pictures of tea party groups. Despite the fact that there were one million of us and twenty of them, yet they received any coverage at all, never mind a photo in the paper, is just another sign of the ridiculous media bias we face today.
The speeches, occasionally interspersed with video and musical segues, lasted almost three hours. The entire event was broadcast by C-SPAN and can be found here. As “God Bless America” played over the speakers the massive yet peaceful crowd left as orderly as they arrived. Eventually the place was mostly empty with just a few stragglers staying behind to cling to the last fragments of remaining energy. As you have probably seen by now, the mall and Capitol areas were kept clean by the responsible actions of all of the attendees, unlike those that trashed the grounds during the Obama inauguration. (This isn’t necessarily an indictment of democrats or Obama supporters, it just is what it is.)
I spent the rest of the day walking around the mall, occasionally entering various Smithsonian museums. I ran into more patriots and we shared our similar views: this was a magical event attended by wonderful people with the best of intentions and a deep desire to return America to the country our founding fathers intended to create. Sandy, I’ll see you next year!
I’m finally back home from the motivating and inspirational rally known as the Washington D.C. 9/12 Tea Party. It was amazing to participate, I met so many like-minded people. Like-minded as in “we want less government, not more.”
Say what you want about the press non-coverage, but I am confident that we reached a million people. I’ve got lots of pictures and video to upload, here is a short video of my walk from Freedom Plaza to the Capitol. It took about an hour, I was alone so I was able to meander through the crowd and work my way toward the front of the throngs of people.
