Mississippi Paper, Meridian Star, Offers Apology for Its ‘Gross Neglect’ During Civil Rights Struggle

Funny, it seems that since Barack Obama will be inaugurated as our our first African American president, everyone is suddenly getting a conscience and apologizing for past racist behavior. Well, in a remarkable turn of events, one day before the birthday holiday for Martin Luther King Jr. is celebrated, — Mississippi-based Meridian Star has, in an editorial, offered an apology for its past coverage of civil rights issues. Really, why did it take them so long to get a conscience and admit to their racist behavior? It took them to do so after 43 presidents have been inaugurated. Well, at least they have admitted the error of their ways and have set the record straight.

The full editorial written by Editor Fredie Carmichael

Tomorrow, as the nation celebrates the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., we also pause to remember those in East Mississippi who were integral in the American civil rights movement. We pause to honor them through vowing to never forget their struggle, their passion, their persistence, their courage — and what these human qualities have meant to our community.

We pause to remember James Chaney, Obie Clark, Polly Heidelberg and others so important to the struggle for equality who are no longer with us. And to honor those who are still with us like Rev. Charles Johnson and State Rep. Charles Young.

We pause to remember so that we never go back; so that we always move forward for social justice and human rights. We vow to be their voice. We vow to embody their passion. It is also important, and historically significant, that today marks the start of official inauguration events for Barack Obama, the country’s 44th president and the first black person elected to that highest of political offices. His swearing in Tuesday will, in a special way, fulfill the dream of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., James Chaney, Obie Clark, Polly Heidelberg and the countless other front-line soldiers in the fight for civil rights across America.

The same as Americans put aside political ideology in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks on our soil on Sept. 11, 2001, to support President George W. Bush, we should now respect and rally to the historical significance and symmetry of the civil rights movement and Barack Obama’s inauguration as president.

The civil rights pioneers of East Mississippi helped build the foundation of human values that made this milestone inauguration possible. So it is especially important that our communities come together at this moment. It is also important that we not forget our past failings to live up to those values. There was a time when this newspaper – and many others across the south — acted with gross neglect by largely ignoring the unfairness of segregated schools, buses, restaurants, washrooms, theaters and other public places. We did it through omission, by not recording for our readers many of the most important civil rights activities that happened in our midst, including protests and sit-ins. That was wrong. We should have loudly protested segregation and the efforts to block voter registration of black East Mississippians.

Current management understands while we can’t go back and undo some past wrongs, we can offer our sincere apology — and promise never again to neglect our responsibility to inform you, our readers, about the human rights and dignity every individual is entitled to in America — no matter their religion, their ethnic background or the color of their skin.

It seems to me that they should not have waited until we have our first African American president to apologize for their racism. If anything, Barack Obama has shown that the American people can transcend race and vote for a candidate on the basis of their platform. Not on the color of their skin. The Meridian Star and all those newspapers that promoted racism should be ashamed of themselves. The news media should see no color, but sadly, that pattern of racism still continues today, albeit subtly.

Filed under: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Meridian Star, Mississippi, Overt Racism, President-elect Barack Obama, Segregation

Tony Zirkle Defends Speech to Group Celebrating the Anniversary of Hitler’s Birth

Black Political Thought’s Idiot of the Week:

Indiana Congressional Candidate Tony Zirkle

Well, our politicians continue to break every record by sinking to new lows. The latest idiot, Tony Zirkle of Indiana’s second district, is defending his speech to a group celebrating the anniversary of Adolf Hitler’s birth. He said that he appeared because he was asked to. Zirkle said that he did not know much about the neo-Nazi group and that his intention was to talk on his concern about “the targeting of young white women and for pornography and prostitution.” This is the person who is seeking to win an election. Mind you, he was standing in front of a painting of Hitler, next to people wearing swastika armbands and with a swastika flag in the background while he gave his speech to the American National Socialist Workers Party in Chicago. What he did is crazy and an insult to the many people whose families were impacted in some way by the horrific and barbaric reign of Adolf Hitler.

Of course, he had to throw black a bone to somehow prove that he was not “racist” by saying that “I’ll speak before any group that invites me.” “I’ve spoken on an African-American radio station in Atlanta.” So, I guess he feels that he had validated his position of being inclusive to the point of total ignorance.

Porter County Republican chairman Chuck Williams denounced Zirkle’s appearance at the gathering.”He certainly doesn’t hold the view of the of the Republican Party,” Williams said. “I don’t know why you would stand up in front of a picture of Adolf Hitler when millions of Americans fought against that kind of oppression.” The event was not the first time Zirkle has raised controversy on race issues. In March, Zirkle raised the idea of segregating races in separate states. Zirkle said he’s not advocating segregation, but said desegregation has been a failure. Zirkle received 30 percent of the vote in the 2006 primary, losing to incumbent Chris Chocola, who was defeated in the general election. Zirkle said Tuesday that winning the election is not his primary goal.”My primary purpose is to educate and inform,” he said.

His constituents need to run away from this man and not even give him the time of day. It is quite obvious that this man is out of touch with reality or he is just a bumbling idiot seeking to give his office, if elected, a bad name. I did a little digging around to see who this man really is. For starters he attended the Naval Academy and has a degree from Georgetown. He went on to be a top prosecutor in Indiana, crusading against Internet pornography. So, I am guessing that in his book segregation is more of a problem to him than Internet pornography!

Zirkle, believes — among other things — that whites are victims of a “genocide,” that the races should be segregated into different states and that pornography is a Jewish plot against women. He said that he’s running for Congress to combat “the genocide of the white race” that pornography is causing — an “unholy pornocaust” against white Christian women. Let’s see now, were these women forced to do this? He believes the solution to STDs and out-of-wedlock births is to separate blacks and whites into segregated states, but he says that’s fully in the tradition of the party.”The original Republican party” felt the same way, he said. “Abraham Lincoln called for African-Americans to be deported back to Africa.”

“What most people don’t know about me is that I’m the father of three beautiful Jewish Christian children,” he said, explaining that his wife had converted from Judaism to Christianity. “I’m obviously not going to be out for gassing innocent Jews.” Yet he blames Jews for much of the plight of white women in America. “The massive number of Jews in the [pornography] industry basically brag about it,” he said, asserting that “most of the early porn stars were Jewish men.” Zirkle said he doesn’t expect to win on Tuesday, but “winning is not my primary objective. My primary objective is to educate and inform.” Educate and inform who? Obviously idiots like himself. Just think this man claims to be a Christian father. What is he reading in his Bible about love and inclusion for all? Hypocrite.

This mindset is scary and the reality is that we have idiots like this running around and saying they are Christians. Imagine him being a prosecutor and trying a case involving blacks or Hispanics. And to think that people have come done on Rev. Jeremiah Wright Jr.’s statements and have called him a racist! Congressional wannabe, Tony Zirkle, you are Black Political Thought’s Idiot of the Week!

Filed under: Adolf Hitler, Idiot, Racism, Segregation, Swastikas, Tony Zirkle