Opinion
A Case for Conservatism in Black Society
By Emmanuel Musaazi
A rule of thumb in American politics is that if you are conservative, then you are more likely to be white and vote Republican, while if you are black, you’ll more likely be a liberal and vote Democrat. This stereotyping is bolstered by voting patterns from the last 50 years and as evidenced by exit poll data from the last two presidential elections of 2004 and 2008.
A close analysis of racial voting patterns from the exit polls further reveals that African Americans are the most skewed voters, overwhelmingly voting for the Democrats. This voting pattern is tantamount to trusting in the philosophy of ‘putting one’s eggs in one basket.’ Is this a wise way to vote? Does conservatism as an alternative political ideology, have a place in today’s African American society?
Conservatism is a political and social philosophy that promotes the retention of traditional social institutions, values and attitudes. In the context of American political history, it was the conservatives who wanted to keep slavery in place during both the 18th and 19th centuries. The same conservatives who supported the ‘Jim Crow’ laws that kept freed slaves as second class citizens in the 20th century, and conservatives, once again, opposed the Civil Rights Movement during the 1960s – culminating in the Civil Rights Act which ended legal discrimination in America. In this respect, it might be obvious as to why a black person America would not want to be acknowledged or identified as conservative.
I would argue, however, that the philosophical narrative of the term “conservatism” is best understood when viewed in the proper historical context. The ideology of modern conservatism is based on the Reagan model. America’s 40th president, Ronald Reagan, is the father of modern conservatism. His ideas of limited government, tax cuts, increased defense spending, deregulation, and family values based on conservative Christian principles have constituted the core of every Republican Party platform since 1980.
Subsequently President George W. Bush’s championing of school choice as an alternative to failing public schools as well as his freedom agenda have also become popular with conservatives.
It can, thus, be deduced that 21st century conservatism is not equivalent to 18th or 19th century conservatism; which earlier conservatism is an anachronism in comparison.
The abolitionist (anti-slavery) Republican Party of President Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass, was formed to oppose the Democratic party of slavery supporters, and segregationists in the 19th century. Politics, like history changes with time.
The question then becomes: Has African American loyalty to the Democratic Party been rewarded? Well, the post Civil Rights era has been considered the most successful time period for African Americans both politically and economically – with the biggest success being the election of President Barack Obama in 2008.
However it is also said that to whom much is given much is expected. In recent times, the rate of unemployment among African Americans in the U.S. is approximately twice the national average and the highest of the major races (Black, White and Latino). It is also documented that schools in black communities are the least equipped and among the worst performing despite Bush II’s strategic efforts and Obama’s progressive ones. Some of the worst performing schools are in Democratic Party controlled districts and municipalities. Crime rates in black communities like Chicago’s South Side are also a major concern; and African American males are disproportionately incarcerated versus other races. Finally the breakdown of the African American family has resulted in about 70 percent of homes being headed by single mothers.
Despite years of voting for Democrats, these issues have gone un-addressed for a long time and there is a growing disillusionment in African American societies. Allen West (R) (Florida Congressman – Elected 2010) and Tim Scott (R) (South Carolina Congressman – Elected 2010) are the first conservative and Republican African Americans elected from their states since the Reconstruction Era.
These two gentlemen belong to the Tea Party Movement, an even more conservative wing of the Republican party. Both West and Scott as members of the Tea Party advocate strict adherence to the American constitution. Congressman West has said that the black vote has been taken for granted by the Democratic Party and considers himself the modern day Harriet Tubman; one who offers Republican conservative principles as the better way for African Americans to progress. For his part, Rep. Scott speaks of the need for tough love and a move away from over reliance on government assistance and programs toward the freedom and discipline of being in charge and taking responsibility for one’s life. Another prominent black conservative is Mayor Mia Love of Utah. Also a ‘Tea Partier’, Love is the Republican Party candidate for a Utah Congressional seat and her campaign is based on conservative themes like lower taxes, individual liberty, personal responsibility, and fiscal discipline. If she wins, a premise which is almost a foregone conclusion, she’d become the first Republican African American woman in the history of the United States House of Representatives.
What might be a paradox and ironically significant is that there’s, apparently, a meteoric rise of black conservatism in the era of a black American president.
At this juncture, I daresay that conservative principles were more rooted in African American homes than white homes in the 1960s and earlier. Indeed in the 19th century and into the first half of the 20th century, majority of the elected African Americans at all levels of government were Republicans. Conservatism has had a place in African American societies. There’s no disputing the fact that modern African American politics is rooted in the Civil Rights Movement of the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s – driven by people and ideas emanating from the church. The church pulpit was the rallying point from which leaders of the movement (most of them reverends like Martin Luther King, jr) advised and guided their follower-ship.
In the present day, activists like the Rev. Bill Owen, President of the Coalition of African American Pastors avers that as far as he was concerned, ‘… the Democratic Party is not pro-African American!’ He further says that Democratic Party used African Americans as pawns because they (African Americans) automatically assume that the Democratic Party supports their interests. He goes on to lament the decline of the family and [the increase] in crime and joblessness in African American communities.
One of the greatest things about democracy and pluralism is that one of choice. It may be time for African Americans to consider exercising that freedom of choice to test the water on the other side and perhaps, get the attention of politicians and government. Recent polls and studies show that younger African Americans – particularly younger African American men – are increasingly independent-minded politically and may be more inclined to be receptive to some conservative fiscal ideals and social policies. These could, therefore, be the ones to make the case for Black Conservatism.
Emmanuel Musaazi is a college professor based in Toronto, Canada.
emusaazi@thehabarinetwork.com
Editor’s Notes:
1. Bush II was considered a Compassionate Conservative
2. Conservative Democrats from the South vehemently opposed the Civil Rights Movement between 1940 and the late 1960’s and eventually split from the Democratic Party by 1968