Sunday, July 12, 2020

Bill Crawford: Hard-Won Change Comes to Reluctant Mississippi

These are still “times that try men’s souls” Mr. Paine, but not as they did in your time.


When you penned these famous words in your pamphlet “The Crisis,” the passionate issue was freedom from English tyranny. “Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered,” you wrote, as you belittled the “summer soldier” and “sunshine patriot” who “shrink from the service of their country.”

Not all agreed and heeded your words, but enough people did that independence was won and the United States born.

Today, the passionate issue is freedom from the tyranny of racism. Not all agree, but enough do that change, at long last, is spreading across America (and Mississippi). Racism, like tyranny and hell, is not easily conquered. And the enemy is not a wayward king on a distant island, but our own wayward brothers and sisters.

As American independence was not won quickly or easily, American unprejudicedness will not be either. The last 150 years have shown us this change will take much longer.

As in Thomas Paine’s time, winning takes the sacrifices and perseverance of many patriots. We have seen that since Reconstruction in oh-so-reluctant-to-change Mississippi from black martyrs of the civil rights movement like Medgar Evers, Rev. George Lee, Herbert Lee, Vernon Dahmer, and Wharlest Jackson; from thousands of black Americans shot and lynched, often for no more reason than the color of their skin; from whites standing up to racism being ostracized, run out of town, or their businesses boycotted; and from white politicians thrashed at the polls because they were perceived as soft on race.

Federal actions in the 1960s could force change quickly on Mississippi, but not in prevailing white attitudes. But change they have as leaders, black and white, persevered. By the late 1970s white politicians with “moderate” views on race could get elected, e.g., William Winter as governor in 1979, and conservative House Speaker Buddie Newman in 1977 could appoint Robert Clark, the House’s first African-American member elected in 1967, as the first black committee chairman. By 1985, Gov. Bill Allain could appoint Reuben Anderson, the first black Ole Miss law school graduate in 1967, as the first black justice on the Mississippi Supreme Court.

In the late 1990s more white leaders felt able to join William Winter as champions of “racial reconciliation,” e.g. former federal judge and conservative Republican leader Charles Pickering. Chancellor Robert Khayat could ban the rebel flag and Dixie at Ole Miss and establish the William Winter Institute for Racial Reconciliation.

Still, racism in Mississippi persisted, though more in hearts and minds than the public arena, e.g. in 2001 64% of voters chose to retain the state flag bearing the divisive Confederate battle flag.

When House Speaker Philip Gunn, a conservative Republican, courageously pushed changing the flag to the forefront this year, you could see the issue still trying the souls of many white legislators. But most did not shrink and, so, struck a resounding blow against the tyranny of racism, a remarkable win for all those who sacrificed and persevered in reluctant Mississippi.

"Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven” – Matthew 5:16.

Crawford is a syndicated columnist from Jackson.


12 comments:

Anonymous said...

Like a late summer hurricane, Bill Crawford just blows and blows moist hot air.

Anonymous said...

He avoided anything related to 2020 racism.

( Dare I mention Black Racism )

But yeah, moist hot air is an appropriate
description of Crawford.

He's very similar to that other dude from Mississippi State that opines in a few rural weekly papers.

Give me Robert St. John and one of his entertaining stories about the Pascagoula River, followed up by a recipe for seafood.


Anonymous said...

Those whites who are racist point to those in African American community who they say hare whites, commit crimes, are dependent on the State and generally lack morals.
Here’s an idea, start by setting a good example. Show how by doing it yourselves .
No more white collar crime or corrupt politicians, no more getting off with a light sentence. We could make all free for criminal defense lawyers be the same and they get paid by type of crime. Then let’s see what the prison population looks like. And , the defense lawyer is responsible for 10% of the bail if the arrested person doesn’t show up.

Anonymous said...

So 5:12 you are saying only whites commit white collar crime (Legal Definition of white-collar crime. : crime that is committed by salaried professional workers or persons in business and that usually involves a form of financial theft or fraud (as in securities dealing) and only white politicians are corrupt politicians? Lawyers are provided for by the Constitution, reference Miranda. If provided the fee is set by the courts not the type of crime. Sentences and Bail is set by court and it is the responsibility of the Bonding Agent to make sure his client (accused) shows up in court. Bond is a form of insurance and the court can request a Rule Nisi.

Anonymous said...

@5:12- you should research "logical fallacies" because your comment was the definition of false equivalence.

Rape, murder, drug dealing, pimping, armed robbery, human trafficking, gang banging, drive by shootings, and home burglary are endemic socially destructive behavior in urban ghettos.

Very unlike financial crimes or accepting political bribes.

Get a grip.

Anonymous said...

6:21 here and I want to clarify my point. You might find someone offwring political bribes or committing a ponzi scheme in a rich neighborhood in Flowood, but you won't get your savings scammed just by living in that neighborhood. Alternatively in the wrong neighborhoods of Jackson you will get robbed, shot, solicited for prostitution, offered drugs, and a myriad of other dangerous situations.

Anonymous said...

“Still, racism in Mississippi persisted, though more in hearts and minds than the public arena, e.g. in 2001 64% of voters chose to retain the state flag bearing the divisive Confederate battle flag.”

So if you voted to keep the state flag in 2001 you are a racist by default?

That’s like saying if you eat in a restaurant that is t wheelchair accessible then you hate disabled people.

Bill Crawford (I have no idea who he is) simply seems to suggest that if you accuse someone of something then it must be true.

F*cking clown.

Anonymous said...

I see Bill Crawford’s headline is only two below the “2 14 Year Olds: 1 Dead, 1 Shot” headline on this blog.

I’m not sure how old Mr. Crawford is but wonder if he still has enough time to acquire the courage required to start writing about ways to save the lives of these innocent children being killed in all of these cities being controlled by his beloved leftist Democrat Party.

On April 20, 2020 there was an article on WLBT’s website stating “
‘We’re (Jackson, MS) being known as the child-killing capital’: 2nd child killed in Jackson in 10 days.”

The article was specifically about innocent 5-year-old Queenyana Davis who was doing nothing at all but living inside of an apartment when violence claimed her young life.

Yesterday there was an article about the NAACP blaming the African American Mayor of Atlanta for the murder of an 8-year-old girl Secoriea Turner that was killed when violent criminals opened fire on a car that her mother was driving as she was trying to pull a U-turn to get away from rioters that killed the 8-year-old girl…because the Mayor had not met with the criminal rioters.

I hope there really is a Hell and every leftist enabler like Bill Crawford and William Winter ends up reaping what they’ve sown for years with their choice of divide and conquer politics over the saving lives of innocent children.

Anonymous said...

@9:09

I hope there is a Hell for the leftist and rightist too. They both subscribe to this divide and conquer BS. Look no further than a significant number of R and D politicians around this great nation of ours. While I do not subscribe to either side, both have let the extreme elements of their parties start to rip away at the fabric of our country. Both sides have done this. Let us get off this leftist and rightist crap and be about the business of building a better nation for all Americans, not just D's and R's, but all Americans.

Anonymous said...

In my opinion, Bill Crawford and William Winter have much in common. Neither has ever done a hard day"s work or held a job that was earned.

Anonymous said...

10:33AM, I’m with you…if you or someone else can figure out how to wrestle power away from both parties. We tried this in 1992 with a great man, Ross Perot, but failed.

Unfortunately for now though, we must choose between a party that’s willing to put up with the recent lawlessness that has resulted in the sacrifice of innocent children…and the party that will not.

Unlike Democrats, there is no way in hell Republicans would stand for the riots and lawlessness from their constituents, that we’ve recently witnessed from these animal like leftist thugs.

Today I read that a one-year-old baby was killed by gunfire at a NYC cookout yesterday, the exact same day AOC “rationalized” the crime uptick.

Leftist always have a good excuse, don’t they?

Leftist Democrats…literally have become the Party of Evil.


Nobody I know cared one bit about that damned state flag; but everyone knew that as long as people like Bill Crawford, Sid Salter, and ole lie like a broken clock William Winter are alive, they will never stop talking about it…so why change it?

Because, as one Democrat campaign volunteer told me last year, Blacks don’t vote unless they’re mad about something.

So, just like we will keep hearing about slavery, that ended over a century and a half ago, ole Bill Crawford et al will now move on to bitching about why it took so long to get the flag changed, in order to keep making Blacks mad enough to vote.

And while Crawford and his leftist allies continue to stir up division in order to get out that vote, innocent children will literally keep dying in their homes, in parks and on streets, due to their tolerated lawlessness within these leftist controlled cities.

And I’m betting that their silence will continue to be deafening, and I just cannot understand how they can get one wink of sleep at night.

Anonymous said...

What we tolerate, we condone. What we condone, we encourage. Therefore, Jackson. Unfortunately, like the organ grinder and his monkey on the Titanic, we have Salter and Crawford to keep us distracted.



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