Turning a Blind Eye to Racism

            Opposition to Classroom Integration

                   in Little Rock Arkansas - 1957

“Whenever there’s been Black progress, there’s always been white backlash.”

LaTosha Brown, co-founder of Black Voters Matter 

Georgia’s Republican dominated legislature and its Republican governor were deeply upset that the voters of that state elected a Democratic President and two Democratic U.S. Senators. A vote that, after three recounts, the Republican Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and Republican Governor Brian Kemp were forced, under Georgia law, to certify. Raffensperger endured a withering (but recorded) telephone call from then-president Donald Trump to “find” over 11 thousand votes he needed to win the state, a phone call that is currently under criminal investigation. 

These elected GOP officials unequivocally knew that a massive “get out the vote” effort by the African American community decided the November and subsequent elections, producing a democratic result that this incumbent white majority of state legislators found thoroughly unacceptable… the same legislators who, for the most part, still adhere to the completely disproven “fraudulent election” “stop the steal” theory applied to the 2020 election. Even the Trump appointees on the US Supreme Court rejected that theory as have more than a total of 60 courts that have heard that case. 

When asked, some brazen state legislators explained that so many voters in Georgia lost faith in the election process that some extraordinary effort was required to placate those fears, whether justified or not. To “restore confidence” in the election process. What these racist legislators fail to mention is that it was because of their constant repetition of the “stop the steal” mantra, their refusal to accept an obviously fraud-free vote, these voter fears arose in the first place. These legislators had two choices: affirm the election result as fair and fraud free or simply pass voter suppression laws to prevent a similar result in the future. They made the racist choice, reinstating a 98-page litany of Jim Crow restrictions on Georgia elections. And yes, every Georgia state legislator and Governor Kemp who supported that bill is a clear racist. That may please the current major constituency of the local Republican Party, but it both un-American and, if equal protection under the U.S. Constitution has meaning, illegal.

By attempting to apply “neutral language,” these legislators believed that they could justify the unequivocal minority vote suppression that would result.  The focus was on making urban voting, where large groups of voters of color lived, as difficult as possible. As Georgia moved polling stations out of central urban areas, believing that urban voters without cars would be unable to make the trek, these new laws were aimed at making alternative voting – particularly vote by mail – exceptionally difficult, to make those who made the long lines at those few urban voting centers more comfortable (offering water and snacks) guilty of misdemeanors, to make “get out the vote” efforts (including driving people to polling stations) illegal, giving the state the right to overrule election procedures by local officials and contracting the period in which voting can take place. 

Lest there be the slightest question of the underlying racist motive of this legislation, they even had an African American state legislator (Atlanta Democrat Park Cannon) who knocked on the Governor’s office during the bill’s signing ceremony arrested and charged with two felonies: obstruction of law enforcement and disruption of the General Assembly. She was released from jail late on March 26th.

Castigated by former Presidents Barrack Obama and Jimmy Carter plus President Joe Biden, as well as both Georgia U.S. Senators as racist, these laws found support from Donald Trump, who was still calling the racist shots. Local Republicans could not accede to former president’s dictates fast enough. Georgia led the field of 253 current GOP voter suppression efforts making their way through the legislative process in 43 states. 

The exceptionally tepid response from major corporations headquartered in Georgia, a few token whimpers against the proposed legislation, suggests that a massive boycott, striking those companies in their economic hearts, might be in order. The national revulsion to Georgia’s resurrection of this Jim Crow era law is just beginning. This summer’s Major League Baseball All-Star Game just may be the first most visible target. 

“Major League Baseball is scheduled to play its 2021 All-Star Game this summer at Truist Park, located in Atlanta, Georgia. Yet with less than a week to go until Opening Day, the MLB Players Association appears open to discussing whether or not the event should be relocated in response to recent legislative developments in the state. 

“MLB Players Association director Tony Clark told the Boston Globe that the union body is ‘very much aware’ of the bill signed by Georgia governor Brian Kemp on Thursday [3/25] that overhauled the state's election laws. 

“The bill includes ‘new restrictions on voting by mail and gives the legislature greater control over how elections are run,’ according to CBS News. It has been opposed by both Democrats and voting rights groups who believe the law will ‘disproportionately disenfranchise voters of color.’” CBSSports.com, March 26th. “If Major League Baseball opts not to move this year’s All-Star game out of Atlanta, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Friday [3/26] he would consider declining the honor of managing the National League team.” Los Angeles Times, March 26th. 

Delta Airlines, Home Depot, Arby’s, Coca-Cola, Turner Broadcasting/CNN (Warner Media), Cox Media, NCR, and Sun Trust Banks are among the largest companies with headquarters in Georgia. They have the economic power to send a “reverse the bill” message to the Georgia legislature… if they are properly motivated. Motivate them!

I’m Peter Dekom, and as the rest of the world voices its doubts that the United States is a representative democracy, it’s time to show them that we are not frightened by free and fair elections… one person, one vote.