Ohio First Plays the Race Card

I am white, I'm a Democrat, and I'm sickened by the racists overtones of the Columbus Dispatch cover story on the Reform Ohio Now amendments (www.dispatch.com -- registration required).

According to the logic of Republicans in Ohio First, only minorities vote for minority candidates.  And only minorities are Democrats.  Ergo, draw competitive districts where General Assembly members actually have to campaign and only whites will win.  

I grew up in Mississippi.  Even closet racists in the state legislature there wouldn't say something so blatantly bigoted in the paper!  

More importantly, the story does not challenge any of these hypotheticals.  It even makes it look like the Black Caucus shares Ohio First's "concerns."  It appears that Ohio First simply did a good job of convincing a reporter to make front page news out of smear and innuendo.  

The fact is that neither Republicans or Democrats should have sole power over legislative districting.  One need only look at the presidential vote in Ohio last year to see that we are a purple state, evenly divided between Democrats and Republicans.  Yet, our General Assembly is overwhelmingly Republican because legislative districts are draw to assure Republican dominance regardless of who runs where.  

We need to call out the blatant racism of Ohio First in their desperate attempt to hold on to power.  If this pathetic story makes its way to your local newspaper, please send an LTE in response.  

If this doesn't get the lefty blogs on fire for RON, what will?