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8 | THE MAROON TIGER
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 28, 2003
LIFE
Republicans: seek to possibly appeal to more African American voters
REPUBLICANS continued from page 7
much to help our community.”
A Case Study
Quadricos B. Driskell is the
chairman of the Morehouse Young
Republicans.
Daryl Hannah: How did your
organization come about on
campus? Who are you advisors?
Quardricos Driskell: Our
organization was founded in the
early-to-mid 1900s, but the first
recorded information indicates that
we were officially chartered in
conjunction with other college
organizations during the 1950s.
Currently our advisors are Dr. S.
Alan Aycok, assistant professor of
finance, and Dr. John Egan,
associate professor of business and
economics.
DH: What is the vision of your
organization?
QD: Our vision is simply to
educate the black community about
our conservative ideals and to afford
students of Morehouse College the
opportunity to view politics from a
different perspective aside from the
closed one to which they may have
been exposed. Our objective is to
bring in prominent men such as
Herman Cain, and Johnny Tuscan
to educate not only Morehouse
students, but all black people about
black Republicans.
DH: What is the difference
between a Democrat and a
Republican?
QD: Organization. The
Republican party prides itself in its
grass-rooted tactics, tactics that
articulate our vision with sensitivity
that resonates to minority votes.
Republicans possess the ability to
move beyond glossing the wrongs
of the past and disparities of the
present. We have expanded our
constituent base by sharing the
message that our vision is really for
everyone.
DH: In your opinion, what
would strengthen the relationship
amongst African-Americans and the
Republican party?
QD: The Republican party
must cultivate and support
leadership within the black
community. Republicans must also
take an honest look at why the
conservative point of view is often
unappealing to the black
community, the reasons many
blacks are opposed to government
assistance programs. White
republicans, especially, must
understand the strength of the black
family and traditional values that
empower blacks to not only survive
but thrive. On the other hand, not
diverging from the fact that this is a
two-part effort, African-American
leaders who share in the GOP
philosophy of limited government,
lowered taxes and individual
responsibility must be visible and
hold positions of significant
influence within the party and in
elected and appointed positions at
the national and local levels.
The Black Republican:
Oxymoron, token, neither,
both?
High-profile Republicans like
Colin Powell. Condoleeza Rice, and
J.C. Watts have made a name for
themselves as African-Americans
who have risen near the top of the
ranks. These figures, however, often
receive harsh criticism for their
political affiliation.
Last October, popular musician
Harry Belafonte took the secretary
of state to task on a San Diego radio
programme: “There’s an old saying.
In the days of slavery, there were
those slaves who lived on the
plantation and were those slaves
that lived in the house. You got the
privilege of living in the house if you
served the master... exactly the way
the master intended to have you
serve him. Colin Powell s committed
to come into the house of the master.
When Colin Powell dares to suggest
something other than what the
master wants to hear, he will be
turned back out to pasture. ”
J.C. Watts, the only black
Republican in Congress for many
years before he retired in January,
was the fourth-ranking Republican
in the house. Though Watts has since
remained supportive of the party
and the Bush administration,
sources close to him indicate that
his decision to retire was based on
the government’s lack of respect for
the Oklahoma congressman. “They
said Watts’ inability to persuade the
Bush administration to consult him
before it decided to cut from its
budget the Oklahoma-built
Crusader artillery program added
to his frustration and cemented in
his own mind his alienation from
other Republican leaders’’
(ABCNews.com).
Can an African-American call
himself a Republican and not be a
“traitor, ” “sell-out, ’’ “oreo, ” or
“Uncle Tom ’’ ? Though the majority
continues to say nay, a number of
black Republicans at Morehouse
and around the country continue to
argue the opposite. Perhaps the only
way that question may be answered
with any satisfaction, however, is if
it is ultimately approached on the
level of the individual.
“In Africa, there are no
niggers; and I will die
before I become a nigger
for your entertainment.”
-Vernon Reid
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