Greetings:

Let us introduce ourselves. We are an organization of African-American men and women from unions, churches and community and business groups.

We are deeply concerned about the poor state of race relations between African-Americans and white citizens, particularly since nearly every study shows that the aspirations, values and goals of blacks and whites are basically the same, except for the issue of race.

Civil Rights

In regard to Civil Rights, we believe that there are forces in our society who gain from, and actively work to perpetuate this problem.

Our committee is determined to do what we can to publicly expose -- to white people -- the process and the perpetrator of this divisive, un-American activity.

We contend, and we believe we can demonstrate that, based on a nose-count, raw numbers, there are greater numbers of white Americans suffering from the corrosive economic forces that are at the heart of racial injustice, than the nose-count of blacks similarly situated.

Yet whites are the only clearly definable group, in the nation, that is able to - single handedly - overnight, fundamentally improve their economic condition.

Not by bloody revolution, nor by Pat Buchanan's "peasant army to storm the castle," but by quiet, legal and peaceful action, in the constitutionally protected privacy of the American voting booth.

Because in the total American electorate (Citizens of the United States, age 18 and over) blacks are only 18% -- whites constitute 79% of the eligible voting population of the United States.

Yet according to the public record, millions of white citizens, election after election, go to the polls and elect politicians, who publicly oppose, and when in office vote against the vital economic safety-net legislation that millions of white men, women and their children truly need. This is a troubling paradox.

Our Analysis

From our analysis we conclude that the present conservative voting pattern of whites results not from race, but from what we call "the political misperception of white voters." This misperception results from a process, strikingly analogous to that of a non-smoker, stricken with lung cancer from an environment polluted by second hand cigarette smoke.

For more than twenty years, white people in the United States have been born into, grew up, worked and lived in a social environment polluted by anti-Black, stereotypical propaganda, spread by white politicians, for the sole purpose of getting the vote of white people.

In his first campaign for president in 1980, Ronald Reagan obtained a snapshot of a black female, with a long history of welfare fraud. Reagan dubbed her the "Welfare Queen."

For the ensuing eight (8) years (two terms) in office, Reagan, by his shrewd political propaganda, joined-at-the-hip, in the perception of white voters, "Welfare and Blacks," then labeled democrats as "bleeding-heart liberals, pro-Black, pro-Welfare" - working and in cahoots with Big Labor Bosses "to push for" "Big Government" entitlement programs, which would result in skyrocketing taxes -- paid for out of the hard-earned paychecks of working white men and women in the United States.

But here is the sorted economic condition of white people during the period of Reagan political romance with the Welfare Queen.

As you can clearly see, the face of the poor and poverty is not Black it is White.

To our knowledge, no organization or group nor the media, seriously and publicly challenges the politician and disputes their propaganda; We know of no group who sought to provide white voters with official statistical information that would have exposed the political lies (such as we are doing here).

The statistical facts shown here would have been a significant backdrop against which white voters could compare and contrast, the political propaganda, and through this process, white voters could reach a balanced political decision.

But unfortunately, none of the above happened, and the Reagan propaganda machine was the only game in town.

Impact of Misinformation

Imagine the impact of the misinformation, which was never challenged or disputed seriously by anyone, beamed into the homes of white people for eight (8) years via T.V., radio talk shows and press.

This Reagan example is just the tip of the iceberg, of politicians across the country using race and white voters as stepping stones to high paying political offices. It is important for white citizens to know that this propaganda, referenced above, was not then, and is not now, spread by an unkempt group of skin-headed, tobacco chewing, snuff dipping, hillbilly "nigger haters."

The extent to which Right-Wing political propaganda has saturated the homes of white people over national television, radio talk shows, and the major press could not have been perpetrated by such types as referenced above. They don't have the money, credibility, power or access to pull it off. From them, the majority of white people just would not buy it!

Let me give you a verifiable example from the public record: When George Bush ran for president of the United States in 1988, he followed in the political footsteps of Ronald Reagan.

Accepting the appointment, Atwater promised George Bush, in reference to Michael Dukakis, Democratic candidate for president, "I'll scrape the bark of that little bastard, and make Willie Horton his running mate." (Life Magazine, February, 1991).

Then, throughout the national T.V. campaign, Willie Horton was portrayed as having been turned loose in white communities by the liberal, soft-on-black-crime, Michael Dukakis, Democratic candidate for president. It has been said that white women in middle America drew their blinds at sundown; Like Reagan and his welfare queen, George Bush rode to victory on the black back, of Willie Horton -- who was portrayed as the Poster Boy for crime-prone blacks.

In such a climate, there was no way that white people would vote for Dukakis -- and they did not.

According to Webster's New World College Dictionary (Fourth Edition), the definition of "manipulate" is "to manage or control ... by shrewd use of influence often in an unfair fraudulent way (to manipulate an election..) 3. To falsify (figures, accounts, etc.) for one's own purpose or profits." Clearly we are not making this stuff up.

According to the 6 p.m. evening news, January 18, 1996, the Bush 1998 campaign paid $180,000 to air on national television the Willie Horton ad.

Pretty soon after the Bush victory, Lee Atwater was stricken with brain cancer and from his death bed, he issued a public apology to the late Ron Brown, Chairman of the National Democratic Committee, for his "scurrilous" use of race in the 1988 Campaign (Life Magazine Feb. 1991).

But by that time, the false, stereotypical image of Blacks was already imprinted in the perception of well-intentioned white voters and they had acted it out in the voting booth -- which elected George Bush; this was an exact replica of the tactic that elected Ronald Reagan for two terms as president of the United States.

"Where is the quid pro quo?"

The public record is clear, that white voters carried out their side of the political bargain (two full terms for Reagan and one term for George Bush). So my question to white voters is, "Where is the quid pro quo?" According to Webster's New World College Dictionary, (Fourth Edition), the definition for "quid pro quo" (a noun) is "Something for something."

To rephrase my question -- what is and where is that "something" that white people received for their loyal vote? Under our analysis, the answer is zero as far as the eye can see. Of course there are several rationales: #1 Whites did not have any serious economic problems; #2 If they did, politicians were not aware of them; and #3 Politicians were aware of the problems of white folks, but like Clark Gable, in "Gone with the Wind," they just didn't give a damn. But this is a judgement for white voters to make.

The obligation for our Committee, given its mission, is to highlight the facts from the record, which shows that white people did have serious economic problems, then and now.

From 1987 - 1991, 12.2 million white-collar workers, 95% white, lost their jobs, due to downsizing by American corporations, and for the first time in the history of our nation, there were more white-collar workers unemployed than blue-collar workers. (Chicago Tribune 8-20-96.)

But at no time during this hemorrhaging job loss, did the politicians raise a timid finger of protest against the corporations, on behalf of the fired employees, nor is there a single line in the legislature history, where an effort was made to require the downsizing corporations and industries to use fairness, equity and social responsibility in that process.

Affirmative Action

Instead, the politicians saturated the white communities with the propaganda that the jobs of white people were given to blacks due to affirmative action, quotas and racial preferences. There is an old saying that "the best way to kill a lie is to nail it to the wall with the truth." We will try to do that here.

Please note: Within twenty-four hours after the Count Down, and the Big Ball was dropped in Times Square, Midnight, December 31,1995, heralding the birth of the New Year, 1996, AT&T fired 40,000 white collar workers, 95% white. For the beleaguered white middle-class, their Happy New Year from AT&T was an economic slap in the face.

According to Webster's New World College Dictionary (Fourth Edition) "Paternalistic" is a relationship "suggestive of that of a father to a child."

It is particularly significant to note here, that Bob Allen of AT&T did not say that a single one of those 40,000 jobs were taken by blacks due to Affirmative Action, quotas, or preference. Furthermore, throughout that entire economic orgy of downsizing, not one of the Chief Executive Officers of any of those corporations, claimed that "race" was the cause for the firing, but the politicians did.

Politicians

Well-meaning white people elected these politicians (U.S. Senate, U.S. House of Representatives) to office where they receive a guaranteed annual salary of $133,600.00. In the last session of Congress in 1999, practically without discussion voted themselves an annual increase of $3,000.00. The total salary, now is $136,673.00.

In addition, the benefits of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, which are fully paid by black and white taxpayers, include total health insurance and comprehensive medical care, from the cradle to the grave -- for the entire family. For them, there are no such things as "co-pays" or "Out-of-pocket" medical expenses. But in 1994, they killed the effort to modestly improve Health Insurance for the truly needy. As a direct result today, there are 33,275,000 white men, women and their children in the country with no health insurance.

As you can plainly see, the only quid pro quo -- the only "something" that white people received for their vote was another blast of propaganda about blacks taking the jobs of whites due to affirmative action. But this does not remove a single person from the "white" column of the attached statistical profile.

Because without their decoy, the black Straw Man of race, to lure and divert, the attention of white voters, away from their own problems -- politicians will be forced to face directly, 33,257,000 white men, women and their children, who do not have health insurance and 22 million white people in poverty -- the majority of whom, are working hard every day, on several part-time jobs with a total income below the federal poverty line of $17,000 for a family of four.

By this development, the political reins in this country, would finally be in the hands of the right people, the people with the majority of the problems and who constitute 79% of the American electorate. In short, "a government of the people, by the people and for the people,"

Political Code Word System.

Let me take a shot at the political code word system.

But particularly, since 1980, with Reagan and his "Welfare Queen," race-card politicians have co-opted and exploited this core value and portrayed "deadbeat," on the media, as stereotypical of all blacks; and in addition, politicians have cleverly folded into their political propaganda, that "Liberals," when elected to office establishe big government, give-away, welfare program, which results in skyrocketing taxes, that hard working white men and women (who are not on welfare) are forced to pay out of their hard-earned paychecks.

Politicians and their hired, propaganda botanist, have cross-pollinated these two sentiments (anti-deadbeats and anti-taxes), from which, beneath their hands has flowered a lexicon of political code words - which are race-based -- but have a neutral face.

During the electoral process, these code words are, the political equivalent of the dreaded, "Skull and Crossbones," the universally recognized symbol of lethal poison. If you read the label, you will not examine the contents.

The tragedy in label-driven, code word voting is that there is no serious examination or discussion of issues nor the merits and qualification of fair-minded candidates for public office.

After electing conservative republicans to a majority in both houses, for the first time in 40 years, this was Newt Gingrich's "Thank You" to white voters -- and his way of implementing his revolutionary "Contract with America."

We pointed out earlier in this letter, that under Ronald Reagan, 11,000 PATCO white middle-class employees were fired, their union broken and their jobs given to scabs.

In the National section, Page #18 of the Sunday New York Times, December 26, 1999, is a two column article entitled, "A 15 Month Labor Dispute Turns Into a War of Attrition."

In 1984, Kaiser Steel Workers agreed to a $4.50 an hour cut in wages and benefits to keep Kaiser competitive. In 1994, the workers agreed to new concessions amounting to another 50 million dollars.

On September 15, 1998, the steelworkers went on strike against Kaiser's five aluminum plants, after rejecting the company's demand to cut health benefits and eliminate 240 jobs by contracting work to non-union companies.

After a four month strike, the workers offered to return to work while the two sides continued to bargain.

The article stated... "But Kaiser took an unusual step, imposing a lockout and refusing to let any of the union's members return unless the union accepted Kaiser's demands."

So here we witness again the "One-Two punch," - "Lock-Out" and "Scab" against the steelworkers and their unions.

The question is, how are these big companies able to wreak, with impunity, such havoc on their employees and the unions?

The answer: Labor laws are written in favor of the corporations. Their ability to use scabs against striking workers, is the economic equivalent of a pistol at the heads of both striking employees and the unions.

So, what is the remedy? Labor legislation that will level the playing field. It is at this point the problem begins.

There are honest, well-meaning candidates for political office and elected officials - both Democrat and Republican-who are personally in favor of progressive labor reform legislation - but vote against it. Why? They are "gun-shy" of the "warm, wet kiss of death" to be labeled a "Liberal." They are in fact-political hostages of the reactionary political code word system.

What additional evidence is necessary to show that the race-based political code word system-has broken across its black boundaries, and its intimidating impact on elected officials constitutes a potential road block to the passage of any legislation, whether it is labor reform or on Health, Education or on Welfare. If it's labeled "Liberal," it's dead.

White people should develop a healthy skepticism of any politician using political code words in the process of vote-getting, and never forget, that political code words are used exclusively against programs for the truly needed-the majority of whom, based on a nose count, are white, not black.

This is a capsulized overview of the evolution and development of political code words - who uses them - and against what and whom they are used, and the tragic negative impact on the truly needy. We hope you find it useful.

Issue of Race

We believe that white people are sick and tired of the interminable, dumbed-down discussion of the issue of race, at the juvenile level of the "Birds and the Bees." White folks are grown-ups; and they are fully capable of discussing publicly, sensitive subjects, in a mature manner. We should accord them that respect and work to provide them realistic opportunity to do so.

Moreover, we do not need a "Don't ask, Don't tell" policy in regards to race. That ugly, black "scarecrow" of race, should be dragged "out of the closet" by the seat of its ragged pants, along with its political sponsors and perpetuator; defrocked and paraded publicly-in all of its ugly nakedness, beneath the hot spotlight of the whole truth on race-and the clear eyed scrutiny of the white people of the United States.

This approach, I believe, will be understood and appreciated by the majority of white people in this country. And, it can be a positive, first step, to burn out, by its roots, and remove, for all times, that lingering and festering racial sore, from the otherwise fair face of America the Beautiful.

It is with this thought in mind that we have sent a copy of this letter, along with the fact sheets to your Michigan State Senator, David Jaye (District #12) and have requested that he call a Town Hall meeting in his District, perhaps at a High School, for the purpose of having a full and open discussion (not a debate) on affirmative action - and any other issues relating to race, or race relations; and that a full opportunity be given to people in attendance and to representatives of our committee to state their opinions or ask whatever questions they may have.

It would be helpful, and probably appreciated by Senator Jaye, if you and some of your neighbors drop him a note saying that you are in favor of such a Town Hall Meeting.

We have made a wide mailing of this letter to people in your community. It would also be quite helpful if you check with some of your neighbors. If they have not received their copy, please drop me a note and I will put additional copies in the mail to you.

I want to thank you, on behalf of the Committee, for taking the time to read this letter and urge you to study the fact sheets.

If you have any questions or a different point of view, please feel absolutely free to let us hear from you. Your feedback will be helpful for us to change and/or improve this program.

Hope to hear from you soon.

Sincerely,

Ernest C. Dillard Sr.