In our civics classes, we learned about people who took the streets to protest government spending and enormous deficits during the Great Depression. The protesters’ heroic efforts continue to be universally celebrated and appreciated; the tea partiers, by most accounts, were great Americans.
So, why is there nearly universal disdain to modern-day tea partiers?
Because, in a classic case of shoot-the-messenger-rather-than-the-message, it’s because most tea partiers are white.
Does the color of the skin make someone’s political position more or less relevant? We think not. Ask anyone not connected to government their thoughts on city hall, the statehouse, or the Capitol, and the answer is the same: Government doesn’t represent the people. Further, common folks maintain that partisanship is counterproductive to good governance. Yet, the same folks go back and put the same old people or ideal (or lack thereof) into office every election cycle. In other words, take the messenger out of the equation, and tea parties would be largely celebrated rather than mocked.
Original and modern-day tea parties’ fundamental aim is to protest taxation without representation. That’s a noble message, no matter who the messenger is, and we feel that to fleetingly dismiss a tea partier as not being legitimate is un-American at best.
Stop the Violence worthy of support
It was a beautiful sight early Saturday morning at the Stop the Violence prayer breakfast in the Darton gymnasium: A truly diverse, God-fearing collection of citizens from throughout Albany who truly care about their community.
The local Stop the Violence movement and its parent organization, T.A.K.I.N.G. A.U.T.H.O.R.I.T.Y., was initiated by Gethsemane Worship Center Bishop Frederick Williams in the memory of Williams’ sister, who was murdered last year. And boy has it picked up steam.
More than 3,000 boys and young men participated in the new organization’s basketball tournament on Saturday. The idea, Williams says, is to communicate the message that criminal behavior is far-reaching and that it is important for those of who care to impact young lives, one soul at a time.
We commend Williams and the other Stop the Violence movement leaders and pledge our support to this potentially community-changing endeavor.
