Suppose a white congressman tried to join the CBC.
Would he be allowed to join? If he would not, what would be the ONLY reason he would not be allowed?
I am not saying whites are repressed or that the CBC is a bad organization. I am not saying Obama is unfit to be president for his membership in the organization.
I am simply saying that ANY organization that excludes members based SOLELY on race is, by definition, racist.
To deny it is simply ignoring the facts.
Solitary...
White membership
Over the years, the question has arisen, "Does the Caucus allow only black members?" Pete Stark, D-Ca., who is white, tried and failed to join in 1975. The caucus does have dozens of honorary members who are white, Hispanic, and Jewish.[citation needed] In January 2007, it was reported that white members of Congress were not welcome to join the CBC.[6] Freshman Representative Steve Cohen, D-Tn., who is white, pledged to apply for membership during his election campaign to represent his constituents, who were 60% black. It was reported that although the bylaws of the caucus do not make race a prerequisite for membership, former and current members of the Caucus agreed that the group should remain "exclusively black." Rep. William Lacy Clay, Jr., D-Mo., the son of Rep. William Lacy Clay Sr., D-Mo., a co-founder of the caucus, is quoted as saying, "Mr. Cohen asked for admission, and he got his answer. He's white and the Caucus is black. It's time to move on. We have racial policies to pursue and we are pursuing them, as Mr. Cohen has learned. It's an unwritten rule. It's understood." In response to the decision, Rep. Cohen stated, "It's their caucus and they do things their way. You don't force your way in."
Rep. Clay issued an official statement from his office:
"Quite simply, Rep. Cohen will have to accept what the rest of the country will have to accept - there has been an unofficial Congressional White Caucus for over 200 years, and now it's our turn to say who can join 'the club.' He does not, and cannot, meet the membership criteria, unless he can change his skin color. Primarily, we are concerned with the needs and concerns of the black population, and we will not allow white America to infringe on those objectives."
On January 25, 2007, Representative Tom Tancredo, R-Co., spoke out against the continued existence of the CBC as well as the Democratic Congressional Hispanic Caucus and the Republican Congressional Hispanic Conference saying, "It is utterly hypocritical for Congress to extol the virtues of a color-blind society while officially sanctioning caucuses that are based solely on race. If we are serious about achieving the goal of a colorblind society, Congress should lead by example and end these divisive, race-based caucuses."
[ame="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Congressional_Black_Caucus"]No Whites Allowed[/ame]
There's your answer... not so nice, huh?
--usnr95
