Right Wingers Fan the Flames of Hatred Once Again

Surprise!  Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN) just got some blindsided by some online “support” I’m sure he didn’t ask for and doesn’t want.  It seems the far-right blog RedState.com has adopted Cohen as a pet cause.

RedState is once again trying to convince middle class white males (like myself) that we are really the downtrodden race in this country, subject to “reverse racism” and discrimination at every turn.  Here’s a clip from an email blast RedState just sent to its readers:

Steve Cohen just might lose his re-election not because he has been ineffective in representing his district, but because he is white. And a number of black members of Congress are happy about that.  […]  What is happening to Steve Cohen is real racism and there are no prominent national media stories about it.

Their crocodile tears would be funny if they weren’t so disgusting. 

Think RedState genuinely cares about racial tensions in Memphis, or the fate of Steve Cohen, or outcome of a safe-seat Democratic primary?  Of course not.  This email wasn’t aimed at anyone who might actually be voting in that race.  How many Memphis Democrats do you think are on RedState’s mailing list anyway?

This email is aimed at white people -- trying to stir up a little hostility against black people.  To fan that little flame of bitterness and anger some white people feel.  To once again use hate as a campaign tool.

There’s a reason why RedState wants to stir up that hostility in this election year.  And in case that reason isn’t obvious enough, RedState was good enough to spell it right out:

And where is Barack Obama? … In Tennessee-9, Barack Obama has remained silent.

There it is.  That’s the point to this whole email.  They’re more than happy to stir up racism if just a little bit bleeds over on Obama.  Whatever it takes to win.  No matter how vile it is or how much damage it does the country.

- Calvin Rye

Comments

[Cindi Brown]

Well, whites are not exactly the downtrodden race in this country, but Cohen is being treated unfairly by blacks because he is not black. Here's what the Washington Post blog says happened:

"A shockingly worded flier paints Jewish Rep. Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.) as a Jesus hater.

'Memphis Congressman Steve Cohen and the JEWS HATE Jesus,' blares the flier, which Cohen himself received in the mail -- inducing gasps -- last week.

Circulated by an African-American minister from Murfreesboro Tenn., which isn't even in Cohen's district, the literature encourages other black leaders in Memphis to 'see to it that one and ONLY one black Christian faces this opponent of Christ and Christianity in the 2008 election.'"

Can you imagine a white minister circulating an anti-semitic flier and having that not be a huge national story?

And more importantly:

"Last summer Cohen came under attack from black ministers who challenged the congressman's support for federal hate crimes legislation to protect gay rights. The paper wrote that the 'real motive' behind the ministers' attacks was revealed later by Rev. Robert Poindexter who, according to the Commercial Appeal, said of Cohen: 'He's not black and he can't represent me, that's just the bottom line.'

My girlfriend, who is a black Democrat living in Memphis, confirms that there is a large group of blacks trying to vote Cohen out, essientially because he is not black but his opponent is. She doesn't go for that kind of stuff, so she plans to volunteer for the Cohen campaign.

Here's why Obama is relevant, also from the Post:

"The first-term congressman hopes Barack Obama's success will trickle down. 'Obama is showing us that Americans have gotten beyond race. He's gotten a good number of Caucasian votes, so I think we're making advances,' says Cohen, who endorsed Obama."

Obama's silence on Cohen's behalf fuels the fear that many whites have that Obama might be more interested in representing blacks than in representing all Americans. These fears reached their peak with the business about Obama being a member of a black separatist church.

Are these fears racist? Maybe. But simply calling whites who have them racist doesn't heal anything. As progressives, we have to actually address those fears and bridge those gaps so this country can move forward.

[calvin rye]

First, Cohen is going to win next week's primary in a cakewalk. He doesn't need Obama (or RedState) to save him.

Second, getting Obama involved would only put this whole mess on a national stage, which would only make Obama look worse for being associated with it -- even if he's speaking up for the white guy. Of course, that's why RedState's entire strategy: trying to give visibility to this mess and trying to link Obama to it any way they can.

If Cohen were in trouble, then Obama might need to give him a boost. But since Cohen is safe, Obama can't get baited into getting involved in this kind of divisive distraction.

Obama's silence might give RedState and their ilk a small opening to stir up fears among white conservatives. Obama's involvement would do the same... times ten. Unless Cohen needs him, Obama is smart to stay clear.