The Minority Messenger
August 2017
August 2017
Conserva-splain This! Why Are Black Conservatives Still Outside the Tent?
by Raynard Jackson
Special to the Minority Messenger
Two weeks ago I had lunch with two major leaders in the conservative movement. They wanted to discuss with me the issue of why Blacks are not more aligned with the conservative movement and/or the Republican Party.
My response was very direct and blunt: because the movement and the Party have done everything in their power to tell Blacks that we are not wanted or welcomed. That’s the simple answer.
Conservatives have put Blacks in a position where they are being asked to either be Black or be conservative. No, I can be both Black and conservative. It’s not a Hobson’s choice.
Too often, conservatives expect Blacks to agree with them on every issue; well, of course that is not very realistic.
For example, I am a big supporter of the “original” version of affirmative action for Blacks that was created in the 1960s. But now I oppose it because I cannot, in good conscience, support Hispanics, Africans, or Asians qualifying for this program when they have never been denied their constitutional rights as American citizens; they came here voluntarily, Blacks had no choice.
So, how do you get more Blacks involved in the conservative movement and Republican Party?
Well, you must begin with the Black entrepreneur. They are the gateway into the Black community, not the Black preachers!
These entrepreneurs are the hardest hit by all the burdensome regulations propagated by liberals; they want to have lower taxes, both business and personal, so they can grow their businesses; they are huge supporters of school choice and vouchers.
If you are a large business, you can maybe absorb the cost of some of these onerous regulations; but entrepreneurs can least afford dedicating full-time staff to fill out all the necessary forms to comply with these sundry groups of regulations.
High taxes prevent these entrepreneurs from growing their businesses as fast as they could with lower taxes. Lower taxes will help stimulate the U.S. economy.
These entrepreneurs are most negatively impacted by not having an educated workforce to hire. They think that school choice and vouchers are a way around the liberal teachers unions that want to relegate low income Blacks to non-performing schools.
Lastly, in the Black community, business leaders are usually head of the deacon board or chairman of the board of trustees at church. So, if you get the business leaders on your side; they will bring you the pastor of the church; and the pastor will bring you the congregation.
This is why Black entrepreneurs are key to getting more Blacks involved in the movement. They have the credibility, the respect, and the necessary relationships to influence other key decision-makers within the Black community.
Republicans control the House, Senate, and the White House; but when have you seen the leadership meet with a group of Black entrepreneurs? Isn’t it amazing that within two weeks of Attorney General Jeff Sessions being confirmed, he met with Al Sharpton and National Urban League president Marc Morial; two extremely liberal Black Democrats who have repeatedly called Sessions a racist?
Sessions has yet to meet with a group of Black Republicans or conservatives.
Can someone explain this decision to me?
The House and Senate rarely, if ever, invite Black business leaders to testify before their committees on issues like taxes, government regulations, or homeland security. Why?
Conservatives and Republicans never engage or interact with the Black media. There are over two hundred Black newspapers in the U.S. and they are never reached out to. Why?
If you really believe so much in your message; if you really believe that conservative solutions will address many of the problems in the Black community; then why do you refuse to take your message directly to them?
There are over one hundred Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) in the U.S. Why are there no internships offered to these students?
I am a graduate of Oral Roberts University and Oral would always tell me: “Go into every man’s world and meet them at the point of their need.”
If conservatives and Republicans really believe in their ideas, when will they take their message to the marketplace of ideas within the Black community?
If the Black community is thriving, America is thriving.
The Black community is very open to the conservative message and always has been; but no one has invited us into the tent.
Paraphrasing Winston Churchill, “What a tragedy if this moment finds conservatives unprepared or unqualified for the moment that could be its finest hour.”
_________________________________________________
Raynard Jackson is founder and chairman of Black Americans for a Better Future (BAFBF), a federally registered 527 Super PAC established to get more Blacks involved in the Republican Party. BAFBF focuses on the Black entrepreneur. For more information about BAFBF, visit www.bafbf.org. You can follow Raynard on Twitter @Raynard1223.
by Raynard Jackson
Special to the Minority Messenger
- Who Holds the Keys to Reaching Black Conservatives? Hint: It’s not Black Pastors
Two weeks ago I had lunch with two major leaders in the conservative movement. They wanted to discuss with me the issue of why Blacks are not more aligned with the conservative movement and/or the Republican Party.
My response was very direct and blunt: because the movement and the Party have done everything in their power to tell Blacks that we are not wanted or welcomed. That’s the simple answer.
Conservatives have put Blacks in a position where they are being asked to either be Black or be conservative. No, I can be both Black and conservative. It’s not a Hobson’s choice.
Too often, conservatives expect Blacks to agree with them on every issue; well, of course that is not very realistic.
For example, I am a big supporter of the “original” version of affirmative action for Blacks that was created in the 1960s. But now I oppose it because I cannot, in good conscience, support Hispanics, Africans, or Asians qualifying for this program when they have never been denied their constitutional rights as American citizens; they came here voluntarily, Blacks had no choice.
So, how do you get more Blacks involved in the conservative movement and Republican Party?
Well, you must begin with the Black entrepreneur. They are the gateway into the Black community, not the Black preachers!
These entrepreneurs are the hardest hit by all the burdensome regulations propagated by liberals; they want to have lower taxes, both business and personal, so they can grow their businesses; they are huge supporters of school choice and vouchers.
If you are a large business, you can maybe absorb the cost of some of these onerous regulations; but entrepreneurs can least afford dedicating full-time staff to fill out all the necessary forms to comply with these sundry groups of regulations.
High taxes prevent these entrepreneurs from growing their businesses as fast as they could with lower taxes. Lower taxes will help stimulate the U.S. economy.
These entrepreneurs are most negatively impacted by not having an educated workforce to hire. They think that school choice and vouchers are a way around the liberal teachers unions that want to relegate low income Blacks to non-performing schools.
Lastly, in the Black community, business leaders are usually head of the deacon board or chairman of the board of trustees at church. So, if you get the business leaders on your side; they will bring you the pastor of the church; and the pastor will bring you the congregation.
This is why Black entrepreneurs are key to getting more Blacks involved in the movement. They have the credibility, the respect, and the necessary relationships to influence other key decision-makers within the Black community.
Republicans control the House, Senate, and the White House; but when have you seen the leadership meet with a group of Black entrepreneurs? Isn’t it amazing that within two weeks of Attorney General Jeff Sessions being confirmed, he met with Al Sharpton and National Urban League president Marc Morial; two extremely liberal Black Democrats who have repeatedly called Sessions a racist?
Sessions has yet to meet with a group of Black Republicans or conservatives.
Can someone explain this decision to me?
The House and Senate rarely, if ever, invite Black business leaders to testify before their committees on issues like taxes, government regulations, or homeland security. Why?
Conservatives and Republicans never engage or interact with the Black media. There are over two hundred Black newspapers in the U.S. and they are never reached out to. Why?
If you really believe so much in your message; if you really believe that conservative solutions will address many of the problems in the Black community; then why do you refuse to take your message directly to them?
There are over one hundred Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) in the U.S. Why are there no internships offered to these students?
I am a graduate of Oral Roberts University and Oral would always tell me: “Go into every man’s world and meet them at the point of their need.”
If conservatives and Republicans really believe in their ideas, when will they take their message to the marketplace of ideas within the Black community?
If the Black community is thriving, America is thriving.
The Black community is very open to the conservative message and always has been; but no one has invited us into the tent.
Paraphrasing Winston Churchill, “What a tragedy if this moment finds conservatives unprepared or unqualified for the moment that could be its finest hour.”
_________________________________________________
Raynard Jackson is founder and chairman of Black Americans for a Better Future (BAFBF), a federally registered 527 Super PAC established to get more Blacks involved in the Republican Party. BAFBF focuses on the Black entrepreneur. For more information about BAFBF, visit www.bafbf.org. You can follow Raynard on Twitter @Raynard1223.
