Democrats should pull the Jesus card

[thucythucy]

44. There was nothing inevitable about the triumph

of the civil rights movement in the 1960s. It was the result of an incredible amount of work, dedication, and sacrifice by people, some of whom gave their lives for the cause. Remember that after the triumph of the abolitionists in the 1860s, won with the support of more than a hundred thousand black soldiers, we had close to a hundred years of backlash and Jim Crow. Every step forward comes with the risk of two steps backwards. Contrary to what Marx says, nothing in history is "inevitable." It all depends on what people do--as individuals, and as societies.

And to say that Rev. King "was just in the right place at the right time" is pretty demeaning to King and all that he did and all that he sacrificed. Things didn't just magically happen in the 1950s and '60s because of "people's frustrations." Do you think African Americans weren't frustrated in the 1920s, the 1930s, the 1940s? A lot of incredible work went into achieving what was achieved, and at any point something could have changed the outcome. The Supreme Court could have ruled against the plaintiffs in Brown v. Board. The family of Emmit Till could have opted for a closed casket funeral. The Montgomery bus boycott could have failed (as similiar boycotts before it did). Richard Nixon came close to winning the election in 1960--in which case I doubt the 1964 Civil Rights Act would ever have been signed, let alone the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Every step of the way was fraught with the chance of failure, and there were not a few moments (after the bombings in Birmingham, for example) when people were close to despair.

Anyway, I certainly agree with the separation of church and state. I just don't think alienating religious lefties is a particularly smart move on the part of Democrats.

I guess we'll just have to agree to disagree on the rest of this.

And so, best wishes until we meet here again.

ThucyThucy