The 9th Congressional District of Tennessee is a bit of an "anomaly". It's a majority black district with a white jewish Representative, Steve Cohen. Given this, Cohen is now facing a difficult primary challenge from black female candidate Nikki Tinker.
Now an African-American minister from Murfreesboro, TN, has launched a despicable flyer stating:
Memphis Congressman Steve Cohen and the JEWS HATE Jesus
see to it that one and ONLY one black Christian faces this opponent of Christ and Christianity in the 2008 election
This is really a despicable practice. This is hatemongering, anti-semitism and racism in one. It's double sad coming from a person who is part of a minority who, having experience in being discriminated, should know better. Besides as a clergyman he should know better that entice hatred.
It's not the first time Steve Cohen faces such attacks but none as open and bigotted as this one. For instance, last summer Rep. Cohen was attacked by black ministers who challenged the congressman's support for federal hate crimes legislation to protect gay rights. According to a local paper Commercial Appeal however the "real motive" behind the ministers' attacks was revealed later by Rev. Robert Poindexter who said of Cohen that
"he's not black and he can't represent me, that's just the bottom line."
Cohen had already to battle racial and religious innuendo in his 2006 campaign for Congress, when he won the nomination as the "black vote" was splitted over multiple candidates. After winning the election and succeeding failed Senate candidate Harold Ford, he tried unsuccessfully to become the first white member of the Congressional Black Caucus but was rejected because of his skin.
You'll find the articles from the Commercial Appeal:
http://www.commercialappeal.com/...
http://www.commercialappeal.com/...
This is a practice Democrats unworthy. We are the party of inclusion. We shouldn't care wether a candidate is a man or a woman, a caucasian, hispanic or black, a jew, muslim or a christian. We should care about what our candidates stand for and what policy they advocate and not the colour of their skin.
We should all vociferally denounce this practice. Not only does this flyer make an outrageously false claim about Jews' attitudes toward Christ and christianity, it attempts to drive a potentially dangerous wedge and incite tensions between various groups of Democrats.
So people have to standup and give a sign that regarding this practice: we're mad as hell and won't take it anymore!