Bredesen's to-do list

We've got an addition for Gov. Phil Bredesen's to-do list next month: Don't reappoint Robin Smith to Tennessee's Human Rights Commission. Her term expires in June.

Smith also chairs the Tennessee Republican Party, but that's not why she should not be reappointed. She doesn't deserve the job because she's not qualified. The commission "is an independent state agency charged with preventing and eradicating discrimination in employment, public accommodations, and housing." Policies Smith approved as head of TNGOP proves she does not hold those values.

You'll remember the Tennessee GOP is responsible for drumming up the nationwide controversy over Barack Obama's middle name. TNGOP wanted everyone to hear the name "Hussein" because they knew it would play into people's prejudices and fears.

Gov. Bredesen spoke out against TNGOP's action, saying, "I think that's what prejudice is about, ya know, trying to assign characteristics to people based on statements or signs or something like that. And that’s what they were doing."

Smith apparently sees no contradiction in serving as an officer of an organization working to fight discrimination and saying "We have a duty to inform the Republican base" that Obama's middle name is Hussein and that he is a Muslim.

It was also Smith who, during a speech delivered at the National Civil Rights Museum under the wreath that marks the site of Dr. Martin Luther King's assassination in 1968, said, "President Roosevelt paints the picture that bests captures the desire, priority and vision of the Tennessee Republican Party: 'Above all we must stand shoulder to shoulder, not asking as to the ancestry or creed of our comrades, but only demanding that they be in very truth Americans, and that we all work together, heart, hand, and head, for the honor and the greatness of our common country.'"

Smith represents the fear and prejudice that is being spread by the radical right under the guise of the Republican Party. She clearly is not afraid to promote fear and misunderstanding and offers no apology for her actions.Such attitudes have no place on a commission dedicated to equality and fair play.

We urge you to write to Gov. Bredesen and ask him not to reappoint Smith to the Human Rights Commission. You can also sign a petition calling for Smith's resignation.

Replacing Smith is the best way to demonstrate that Tennesseans stand for justice, not discrimination.

    -- Jim Grinstead