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CHATTANOOGA TENNESSEE A CASE STUDY IN RACISM AND BLACK ON BLACK DISCRIMINATION (Updated 6 August 2006)

Contemporary Sodom and Gomorrah: 'Vice, Infamy, Judgment

Part 2: The Historical Development of Racism and Control

The presence of Black people in electoral politics was first witnessed during the Reconstruction era, 1865 to 1875. The decade after the Civil War saw Blacks elected to serve in government on the local, state and national levels.

In Chattanooga, as elsewhere in the South, Black electoral participation became restricted and non-existent after the Reconstruction era. The coming of Jim Crow after the ten-year Reconstruction era legalized discrimination and segregation in most southern cities and Black political potential was harnessed. But, in Chattanooga Blacks had some degree of independent political activity until 1911.

In view of the increasing Black political potential after Reconstruction, a system arose that (motivated by the economics of racism and Jim Crow) would cause the control and manipulation of the Black vote. If not for the Black Conspiracy this effort to control the Black vote would not be successful. Over the years the Black Conspiracy has been spearheaded by ward chairmen, precinct chairmen, Black appointed leaders, ministers and Black elected officials.

The contemporary political scheme continues to involve the Black Conspiracy in an ongoing effort to exploit the Black electorate. A series of court decisions that give constitutional guarantees to Blacks eventually would redefine the role of the Black Conspiracy. Thurgood Marshall headed an NAACP legal team that made successful arguments to the Supreme Court. In the process segregation and separate but equal was ruled unconstitutional by the court on May 17, 1954.

By 1960 the Democratic and Republican Party platforms all alluded to the essence of equal access. The Democrats were firm in their campaign rhetoric. They pledged to use the full powers provided in the Civil Rights Acts of 1957 and 1960 to secure for all Americans, the right to vote. They further agreed to support whatever action that was necessary to eliminate literacy tests and the payment of poll taxes as requirements for voting.

On the local level, a sit-in demonstration held on February 15, 1960 in Chattanooga, led to a race riot. Eventually, the right to public accommodations and employment were legalized for Blacks with the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The following year the U.S. Congress passed the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which eliminated all qualifying tests for registration.

Civil Rights legislation thus, had a major affect on political adjustments in Chattanooga. By 1971 Blacks in Chattanooga had moved to hold elective office once again. In so doing the Black Conspiracy moved to exploit and harness the Black electoral potential. Meanwhile the manipulation of Black leadership and the Black electorate became a subtle reality.

In making an analysis of Black elected officials in Chattanooga and their supporters, one can pose two questions that give credence to the Black Conspiracy: Has the socioeconomic and political status of Blacks improved with the advent of Black elected officials? If not, what is the utility of electoral politics for improving the socioeconomic and political status of Blacks?

A review of the record raises questions regarding the evidence of the Black Conspiracy: 1. Black elected officials and Black political leaders have over time sought to deny Blacks in the 29th Legislative District equal representation. In so doing Black political leaders have supported and campaigned for White candidates whose interest conflict with the interests of the Black majority that once made up the 29th District. 2. Black elected officials on the state and local levels in 1981 were part of a conspiracy to redraw the district lines of the 29th Legislative District. This tactic had been widely used throughout the South to exclude Blacks from equal representation. The restructure of the 29th District has resulted in a White voting majority, thus limiting the potential for Blacks to have more than one representative in Hamilton County.

Cont. Part 3: The Establishment of a Racist Political System

Also see: The Black Preacher: The Shame of the Ministry http://home.joimail.com/~carlpatton/shameblackpreacher/

FreedomJournal Censorship http://home.joimail.com/~carlpatton/

About the Author

Carl Patton believes that all citizens have the right to Free Speech.