Indiana

From ?Bang Bang? to ?Blackface?

By Abdul Hakim-Shabazz

More controversial remarks have surfaced regarding  marginal U.S. Senate candidate Richard Behney.  In the Spring of last year Behney expressed his outrage with the national Tea Party movement and his letter was published at DailyPaul.com. 

Behney objected to the idea of  Tea Party members bringing canned goods to local rallies as a way to generate positive media attention.  Instead Behney suggested the following…

Now, if we want media attention, let?s take a lesson from the original Tea Partiers. The original men dressed up like Native Indians not to disguise their identities?everyone knew who they were. They dressed up like Indians to emphasize the ?radical? point that they (Americans) were NOT going to be treated like ?heathens? any longer by the English crown (government). You desire media attention? Titillate the main stream media by leaking that our Tea Parties are going to have an ?anti-slavery? message?cameras WILL show up. Picture men, womEn, and children in chains (black face?) with banners and signs declaring ?WE WILL NOT BE ENSLAVED BY THIS GOVERNMENT!? ? ?LET THE AMERICAN PEOPLE GO!? ? ?FREE US FROM THE WHIPS OF PELOSI AND REID!?

Now to be fair to Mr. Behney, he made the remarks before he was a declared candidate for the U.S. Senate.  But think about this, a predominately white crowd showing up in blackface, dressed as slaves,  as a way to protest the policies of the first African-American President.  Mr. Behney is right, they would have definitely gotten some media attention with that idea.

Full post as published by Indiana Barrister on January 30, 2010 (boomark / email).