A number of Blacks have bought into that flawed belief that when it comes to Black Americans there is a difference in the two major political parties. Democrats are good to Blacks and the Republicans don’t care about Blacks. I could recite the deplorable conditions of Blacks in other cities that have been dominated by the Democratic Party over for the last 50 or more years, but I’d rather reflect on Allegheny County. In the history of Allegheny County outside of Pittsburgh there has never been a Black person elected to the Pa. House of Representatives. In the history of Pittsburgh only eight Blacks have been elected to the Pa. House of Representatives. Only one Black person has ever been elected to the position of president of Pittsburgh City Council. There has never been one Black in western Pa. elected to the Pa. State Senate or U.S. Congress. The Republicans did nominate a Black man for the U.S. Congress, his name was Algia Gary. Have we forgotten in 1996 the Democratic candidate for Allegheny County Commissioner made the insulting statement, “I don’t need Black votes.” Neither the candidate nor the Democratic Party apologized or retracted the insulting statement; they just knew we would take it lying down. However we shocked the Democratic Party by waging a campaign asking the Black voters to fight back by voting for the Republican candidates, Bob Cramner and Larry Dunn, and they responded by electing the first Republican commissioners in AlleÂgheny County in over 60 years.
However eight years later Black voters returned to the Democrat reservation, and here we are in the year of 2013 not only being taken for granted, but allowing ourselves to be totally disrespected again.
I see a parallel between 1996 and 2013, the Democratic Party candidate in the 1996 election totally disrespected the Black voters and the party officials said absolutely nothing.
In 2013 William “Jack” Simmons and William “Bill” Robinson were thrown out of their respective positions and the Democratic Party duplicated their identical attitude they did in 1996 they have said absolutely nothing.
For Blacks throughout Allegheny County to sing the praises of the deserving Nelson Mandela is hypocritical, because we are not a people of action, but people of conversation and that is definitely not good enough.
The holiday season is upon us let’s remember Kingsley Association.
(Louis “Hop” Kendrick is a weekly contributor.)
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