The Message from the Margin: We interrupt our regularly scheduled program…
By Kelvin Kelley/Director of Ministry at Hardin-Simmons University
I really can’t believe these things are happening in America. Yes, those are actually my words as I reflect upon the daily news that the republic that was built on democratic principles is now, before our very eyes, being dismantled!
Kelvin Kelley
I shake my head incredulously as I contemplate each act, each decision, and each step to essentially minimize the participation of Blacks in American politics. Yes, this is an outright attack on the quality of life for Black Americans; Latinos and women are next.
I read Justice Elana Kagan’s dissent on the recent ruling regarding the voting map in Louisiana. It appears the officials in that state were trying to create a more equitable representation based on their voting history. It was stated that Louisiana has a long history of “racial segregation and barriers to voting” for African Americans (Blacks). “The Voting Rights Acts is — or, now more accurately, was — ‘one of the most consequential, efficacious, and amply justified exercises of federal legislative power in our Nations’ history.’” Kagan wrote.
Her dirge speaks loud and clear. She continued her diatribe in noting Florida, Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi and Tennessee as states poised to “potentially wipe out every district that has provided an opportunity for Black voters and, in some cases, Latino voters as well.”
Whatever the motivation of the Supreme Court, it is clear that a government of the people, by the people and for the people, is not what we are engaged in from this point forward. Blacks, primarily in Southern states, will no longer be represented by people who look like them.
And maybe that was the plan all-along. The record indicates that since 2013 the court has systematically and strategically eviscerated those concepts and sections of Law that provided safeguards for Black participation in the national political discourse. That safety is coming to a rapid close.
These are dire times for Black people in America, and really for anyone who is not a white male. The call to “make America again” is actually a dog whistle for white males to do their due diligence in eliminating anyone and anything that is not like them.
This political bullying, gerrymandering tactic, may stand in the court of public appeal, but there is one who watches over all things. It is difficult for me to believe that individuals who participate in such structural schemes can identify themselves as Christian, but they do.
And maybe that “is” the issue, a person identifies as something doesn’t make them that! A culture bent on social media posts and vitriol is devoid of substance and character. Social media handles, avatars and click bait are insufficient content to garner a community consciousness. All these policies that have become law are affronted under the guise to make America again, only to disenfranchise others who are different.
This entire enterprise of separation of power is now a farce in political parlance. The elected officials do not represent the disposition of their constituents; they are seeking to “elect” their constituents, representing their own interests.
Kagan concluded her comments, “I dissent because Congress elected otherwise. I dissent because the Court betrays its duty to faithfully implement the great status Congress wrote. I dissent because the Court’s decision will set back the foundation right Congress granted of racial equality in electoral opportunity. I dissent.”
Now is no time for platitudes or nostalgia over where we have come from. What we need now is the resolve to face the reality of a nation that seeks to erase a presence and mute a voice that matters. From 1865 to 1870 Freedmen made legislative progress: The 13th Amendment abolished slavery (except for a crime: prison system); the 14th Amendment granted citizenship (equal protection under the law: Civil Rights); and the 15th Amendment Right legalized my right to vote (real political power). These steps, buttressed by actions in the 1960s to confirm these rights upon Blacks, are now all but stripped away.
The Message from the Margin is “not that we would dodge adversity or difficulty.” No, the message is that we would endure the betrayal in order to embrace the blessing. It is humility, sobriety and courage that enable us to serve with obedience when called upon. History is not a fossil of the past to be studied and analyzed, it is the reality and outcome of human energy to authentically engage the present.
That is the record, that is the receipt we leave to our children.
