How the Democratic Party is Like America
They Each Have a History They Can’t Tell
I write this on Day Two of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago. In full disclosure, I am a lifelong Democrat. I’ve voted for a rare Republican in local elections over the years, but there have been none in the last twenty. I didn’t watch live coverage last night, though it was on in the background at the friend’s home I was at. On my ride home, my radio provided a summary of the event which was supposed to have included the history of the Democratic Party. My immediate thought was, “Oh no, they didn’t.”
The Democratic Party would no more broadcast its entire history on national television than America can officially acknowledge systemic racism. Democrats have had some great moments. Truman integrated the armed forces and federal government in 1948. Lyndon Johnson oversaw the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and the Fair Housing Act of 1968. Barack Obama became the nation’s first Black President in 2009, though several presidents have had it questioned whether they could pass the “one-drop rule.”
I don’t claim the Democratic Party is perfect, though it has significantly evolved in the last 80 years regarding racial matters. There was a time when Republicans had the loyalty of Black voters, getting…
