Ala. vote shows some Old South sympathies

[Snellius]

Nov. 5, 2004 | Montgomery, Ala. -- Old times are not forgotten in the heart of Dixie. Alabama voters elected a Supreme Court candidate linked to Old South ideals and apparently killed a move to strike segregationist language from the state Constitution, a victory of sorts for the state's neo-Confederate crowd.

Michael Hill, president of the pro-secession League of the South, said Tom Parker's election Tuesday and the Amendment Two results make it obvious many Alabama voters still identify with Southern causes.

A black law professor said the twin developments were worrisome.
"The message is that people don't care, they don't understand, and that some people are bigots," said Bryan Fair, who teaches at the University of Alabama.
...
Parker -- a former aide to Roy Moore, the Alabama chief justice who was ousted from the bench for refusing to remove a Ten Commandments monument from the courthouse -- did not back down when stories emerged shortly before the vote about his handing out tiny Confederate flags and associating with leaders of ultraconservative, pro-Confederacy groups, including the League, which campaigned heavily for him.

Parker and Moore also were leading opponents of Amendment Two, which would have stricken from the Constitution language mandating segregated schools and imposing poll taxes -- provisions, now unenforceable, that were approved in 1901 to repress blacks and poor whites. Critics claimed another part of the proposal could have led to federal court orders for big tax increases to fund schools.

http://www.salon.com/news/wire/2004/11/05/ala/index.html

[snippy]

1. This is the republican party in action.

Anyone who votes republican in this country, regardless of where they live, empowers and condones the people who support this.

[bkcc]

2. Shocking!

Seriously, as a New Yorker, I'm so sick of hearing people defend the South. And articles like this are the perfect example of why no one should defend it. Ever.

Sure, there are plenty of enlightened people living there, but the overall region is still full of racist, willfully ignorant Bible thumpers.

That having been said, what can we do to change it?
It seems that for every step forward taken by the rest of the nation, the South takes one step back. (Banning the teaching of evolution, anyone??) And yet still candidates for president must pander to this area. It's truly not fair, and the rest of the nation is suffering for it.

"The message is that people don't care, they don't understand, and that some people are bigots"

No shit, buddy.

[LizW]

4. Solution.

Move here.

Quit complaining get your ass down here and help change things. Come fight the fight we fight every day for better schools and fairer tax laws and racial equality and good jobs. Come live among the Southern Baptists and other evangelicals and show them that people aren't immoral just because they don't go to the "right" church.

Come on down! The progressive pockets in the south didn't get that way because they just suddenly decided to become so. They got that way because educated liberals moved in from outside the south and changed things.

If you really want the south to become more progressive, it will require more than sitting back pointing and sneering at our backward ways.

[bkcc]

6. Okay.

For the record, I'm not just sitting on my ass here in the North laughing and namecalling. There's plenty of work to do here as well.

But what you've just stated raises an interesting point. Maybe more of us should look into moving down to the South to try to make a difference. It's not exactly as easy as it sounds, though. Where are the jobs? Where should we live?

I'd love to continue this discussion.

[DBoon]

14. There is a deeply buried progressive tradition in the South

That is all to often buried.

We need to defend THAT South.

[annerevere]

3. Unfortunately, not surprising

I grew up in Alabama and strides have been made, but they still have a very long way to go.

[deminflorida]

5. This is Breaking News????

It's a known fact...(I know, I was born in Alabama), racism is rampant...

In Selma unfortunately both from a Black and White perspective. Situation there will never get any better. The whites have all moved out into Dallas county so their kids don't have to go to school with black kids. The Blacks are consistently trying to rid the city of anything remotely related to the city's civil war history, i.e. monuments, etc....

The state as a whole is poor, ignorant...the education budget is running in the red and the fundies do not want a state lottery.

They will lynch the Governor if he even considers raising taxes..(and the guy's a republican).

I've often wondered as an Alabama native why the god-damn Taliban just don't pack up and move from eastern Afghanistan, western Pakistan and move to Alabama.

[IrishBloodEngHeart]

7. We allow Bush to make fun of Massachusetts

yet we don't say a word about these ignorant red neck states.

Stand up and fight, someone!

[tedoll78]

10. BINGO.

And I tells ya, Alabama to a swing stater is a helluva lot scarier than Massachusetts could ever be.

All we need to do is find a crappy house with the cinderblocked-car, the dog with three legs, tires all strewn about, the drunk/abusive husband in the wife-beater, etc etc.. and use this image to portray Alabama. Just like they use the drag queen abortionists to portray Massachusetts. And I say this as someone who has lived in the South for all of his life.

Do we want Massachusetts-like schools, with their high scores?
Do we want Massachusetts' divorce and rates?
How about Massachusetts' environmental protections?
etc etc..

[sandnsea]

12. We should have

I had hoped we would. And mention that red state welfare that the blue states are paying for. I mentioned it to people here in Oregon, why would you vote for a tax cutting Republican who wants to turn the state into Alabama. If you want to live like an Alabaman, it's available, just go there.

[bamacrat]

8. damnit to hell

i am an alabama resident and I signed the petition to have the racist language removed. this proposal failed for two reasons. one the vast majority of people from this state are too stupid, (obvious by our red hue) and two not enough publicity was made of the petition. which kinda reverts back to my first reason. this depresses me as an alabama native and as a human being.

[sandnsea]

13. Taxes & socialism

If you live there and didn't understand the tax angle and social equality angle of this, then I just don't think there's any hope at all. They didn't vote against this because of the racist language, they voted against this because they didn't want their taxes raised, mostly. That and being afraid they'd have to send their kids to school with blacks. I live clear out in Oregon and understand that.

[KT2000]

9. Love the language -

"old south ideals"

let's try old south racism for accuracy

[pinerow]

11. Not only racism...the collective IQ is about the average neck size

nt