House Of Representatives Apologizes For Slavery, Jim Crow Laws

[flashl]

Source: AHN


July 30, 2008 12:52 p.m. EST

Amy Beeman - AHN

Washington, D.C (AHN) -- The House of Representatives issued an official apology Tuesday to African-American's for imposing slavery and Jim Crow laws on their ancestors.

The apology, the first in the 140 years since slavery was abolished, was initially introduced by Steve Cohen (D-TN), who represents Memphis, a majority black city.

The unprecedented apology to black American's has been avoided in the past because some in the government were concerned that to admit their wrongs would mean black families who sue for reparations would have a stronger case.

Cohen's resolution said that Africans forced into slavery ''were brutalized, humiliated, dehumanized and subjected to the indignity of being stripped of their names and heritage,'' and that black Americans still suffer from the effects of their families long being segregated, defined as second class citizens, and being denied the same rights and respect as white American's.

Cohen said in the apology, ''Slavery and Jim Crow are stains upon what is the greatest nation on the face of the earth." He added that this apology is a step toward righting the wrongs the government imposed on African-American's for hundreds of years.

Read more: http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7011777947

[Crowman1979]

1. Gee, the government is so punctual with these apologies!

:sarcasm:

I guess its an unwritten rule to wait until most or all of the victims are dead, in order to avoid those pesky reparations and god forbid medical treatment.

[Demeter]

18. Polishing an Apple for Obama?

Who didn't come here as a slave anyway, and might have slave owners in his background....

Well, better late than never. It's the thought that counts....

[Fresh_Start]

2. when are they going to apologize to the native americans

the mexicans, women, children, and all the other species that we've managed to harm?

[Kelvin Mace]

3. Based on the current time table

sometime around 2308 I would guess.

Give my regards to Capt. Kirk when you see him!

[Jack Rabbit]

5. Some time between now and then the House might apologize

Some time between now and then the House might apologize for taking the impeachment of Bush and Cheney off the table in 2007.

[marshall]

21. I'm still waiting for an apology for my Jewish ancestors

They were run out of Spain during the Inquisition. Thank goodness Henry VIII took them in as court musicians (after they languished in Venice for a few years).

[Doctor_J]

4. Is it just me, or should they be focussing on energy & foreign policy

instead of wasting time on stupid symbolic gestures like this?

:eyes:

[AtLiberty]

6. Jim Crow is alive and well...

This is not something from the past...IT'S IN THE PRESENT!

[wvbygod]

8. examples please

Got any examples of it being alive and well in America?

[Kweli4Real]

11. Examples???

Okay, how about the rampant discrimination in housing, employment, financing and public accommodations? To even question whether Jim Crow has survived betrays a lack of understanding of what Jim Crow is. The history books define less than a third of the practice ... the de jure portion; the majority of Jim Crow was/is societal and institutional, with no written prohibitions.

But that being said, as an African-American , I think I speak for many African-Americans when I say "Thank for the apology, but no thanks." Especially, since only an idiot would not see that this resolution was naked electioneering, by a white candidate facing a strong African-American opponent.

[EFerrari]

17. You forgot trying to vote while black.

And the possibility that this is naked electioneering by the Democrats trying to pick up votes in the South -- if black people could actually get their votes counted.

[Hugabear]

28. Don't forget Driving While Black

I think among many law enforcement types, they still have the assumption that a young black male driving a nice vehicle must somehow be involved in the drug trade.

[EFerrari]

30. One of my buddies at work almost lost her job multiple times

because she got stopped on the way in and we had to clock it 15 minutes before our shift started. Bastards.

[sofa king]

12. I have the only example you need: George W. Bush.

Who is President because of the "caging" and illegal removal from voting rolls of African Americans in the states of Florida and Ohio.

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/5/8/133126/8717

http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/10432334/was_the_2004_election_stolen

http://www.thenation.com/doc/20040517/palast

http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A99749-2001May30?language=printer

[ptolle]

22. purging surging

I note the Palast article about voter purges in Florida and Ohio. Palast is now covering a similar tactic in the current swing state of Colorado.
http://www.gregpalast.com/obama-doesn%E2%80%99t-sweat-he-should/
It's the one thing you can count on with conservatives if it worked in the past they'll keep doing it until they get busted for it.
Unfortunately it's a complex issue and too esoteric for the average voter especially those not directly affected.I'm hoping the Democratic party will call the Colorado SOS on this given that their national convention is to be in the capitol city of that state, or that the Obama campaign should make an issue of it.

[EFerrari]

23. It's easy to explain to voters. They go to places with a lot of black voters

and they try to get them kicked off of the rolls so they can't vote.

They do the same to students and soldiers.

[bitchkitty]

7. About freaking time.

Actions speak a whole hell of a lot louder than words, fellas. We shall see...

[CountAllVotes]

9. apologize to all peoples

that have suffered the atrocities of the white man in America. Not until proper restitution has been paid will any recovery have a possibility to begin.

:kick:

[MessiahRp]

10. What was the vote count?

Rarely is anything completely unanimous so I am curious who the dissenters were.

Rp

[twiceshy]

13. Don't bother to apologize for me........

My Irish and French Canadian ancesters were treated like shit when they came to the good 'ol USA in the late 1880's and certainly did not benifit from slavery.

[MessiahRp]

14. My family was mostly Italian

And when they immigrated in the early 1900s they never owned slaves either. Nevertheless we should still be apologizing on the whole as a nation for the laws that were not changed and when they were not enforced in the name of racism.

Rp

[thesquanderer]

15. benefitting

re: "came to the good 'ol USA in the late 1880's and certainly did not benifit from slavery."

There has been so much immigration since the Civil War that probably most people would say that their familes/ancestors did not benefit from slavery... but slavery (or, if you will, the fruits of free labor) is arguably part of what built this country into a place that your ancestors wanted to come to, even though slavery was over by then, so in a way, everyone here has benefitted, in a sense, from the efforts of slaves.

[Hugabear]

29. Exactly!

That's what makes this whole "I didn't benefit from slaves" argument pure BULLSHIT. If you're living in this country today, then you benefited from the slave labor of the 1800s.

[EFerrari]

20. Slavery was the economic engine of this country.

Unless your ancestors remained totally off the grid, they did benefit from slavery.

[Kweli4Real]

24. Not trying to pick a fight or anything ...

I have a letter that my mother received in 1976 indicating that while she was "well qualified for the position" , the company was unable to offer her the job because the hospital had never employed a negro in a management position. In closing the letter, they stated that passing her over for the promotion was "not a statement of her valued service" and encouraged her to continue " put forth the same effort and hard work" that they had witnessed during her 10 years with the hospital.

But I guess she should have been honored that they took the time to acknowledge her application ... Huh? :sarcasm:

So while your Irish and French Canadian ancestors may have been treated like sh!t, I seriously doubt that they experienced such treatment.

I could provide other examples of the life and times of Jim Crow; but that would lead to light shining and making the "I didn't do it and my people had it just as bad" crowd uncomfortable.

[EFerrari]

25. I remember being shocked to learn that our Capitol building

was built by slave labor. Wtf, who did I think built it?

Let's air it out and get straight with it. That's what you have to do with rottenness.

[ohio2007]

27. the count was by voice .

no paper trail

[thesquanderer]

16. money

re: "the government were concerned that to admit their wrongs would mean black families who sue for reparations would have a stronger case"

Of course it comes down to money. But how ridiculous it is to say that the reparations advocates would have a stronger case if the U.S. admitted there had been slavery and that it had been wrong. Like anyone needs to build a case for that? It's not quite like the doctor who won't apologize for a mistake because he may want to try to deny the mistake if there's a financial penalty. (A whole other topic.) Nobody is going to deny that slavery happened, or try to defend it.

[Prisoner_Number_Six]

19. Saaay, THAT'S might white of 'em!

Now, about this woman's suffrage thang... :headbang:

[Uncle Joe]

26. Even though it's late and other apologies are owed to various peoples,

I believe it's a good thing to do.

I believe the only way you can rid your self of subconscious guilt which only feeds resentment and goes on to magnify hatred is to apologize for whatever the transgression is or was.

Furthermore the transgression doesn't need to be committed by you in order for you to feel some form of guilt, as it's buried in your subconscious non-rational thinking mind, that part of your mind's ruler is emotion as opposed to logic.

Kicked and recommended.

Thanks for the thread, flashl.