See how a real President led a nation with courage and commitment towards what was the correct moral choice regarding equality and who did not just follow his own distorted internal prognostications and politically paralyzing fears like Obama.
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“Tales of the abuse, violence, and persecution suffered by many African American veterans upon their return from World War II infuriated Truman, and were a major factor in his decision to issue Executive Order 9981, in July 1948, to back civil rights initiatives and require equal opportunity in the armed forces.
At the 1948 Democratic National Convention, Truman attempted to calm turbulent domestic political waters by placing a tepid civil rights plank in the party platform; the aim was to assuage the internal conflicts between the northern and southern wings of his party. Events overtook the president’s efforts at compromise, however. A sharp address given by Mayor Hubert Humphrey of Minneapolis — as well as the local political interests of a number of urban bosses — convinced the Convention to adopt a stronger civil rights plank, which Truman approved wholeheartedly. All of Alabama’s delegates, and a portion of Mississippi’s, walked out of the convention in protest. Unfazed, Truman delivered an aggressive acceptance speech attacking the 80th Congress and promising to win the election and “make these Republicans like it.”
Within two weeks, Truman issued Executive Order 9981, racially integrating the U.S. Armed Services. Truman took considerable political risk in backing civil rights, and many seasoned Democrats were concerned that the loss of Dixiecrat support might destroy the Democratic Party. The fear seemed well justified — Strom Thurmond declared his candidacy for the presidency and led a full-scale revolt of Southern “states’ rights” proponents. This revolt on the right was matched by a revolt on the left, led by former Vice President Henry A. Wallace on the Progressive Party ticket. Immediately after its first post-FDR convention, the Democratic Party found itself disintegrating. Victory in November seemed a remote possibility indeed, with the party not simply split but divided three ways.
Most civilians and military personnel opposed racial integration. One month before President Truman’s Executive Order, a Gallup poll showed that 63% of American adults endorsed the separation of Blacks and Whites in the military; only 26% supported integration. A 1949 survey of white Army personnel revealed that 32% completely opposed racial integration in any form, and 61% opposed integration if it meant that Whites and Blacks would share sleeping quarters and mess halls. However, 68% of white soldiers were willing to have Blacks and Whites work together, provided they didn’t share barracks or mess facilities.
“Many white Americans (especially Southerners) responded with visceral revulsion to the idea of close physical contact with blacks. Many also perceived racial integration as a profound affront to their sense of social order. Blacks, for their part, often harbored deep mistrust of whites and great sensitivity to any language or actions that might be construed as racial discrimination” (National Defense Research Institute, 1993, p. 160).
Truman went on to win his second term (1949–1953) as President after having assumed the office, after the death of Roosevelt, from 1945 to 1948.”
Primary Research source… http://psychology.ucdavis.edu/.....story.html
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MY TAKE ON IT:
It boggles the mind to imagine this current invertebrate in the White House, with obvious commitment issues, being willing to take a stand on any issue without soiling his underpants. Yet, he comes to New York during one of the most historic events in our movement and has the gall to ask both for handouts and for the GLBT community’s full political support, while he steadfastly refuses to openly support our community in return. He must really think that we are nothing but a bunch of saps and rubes who just fell off a turnip truck.
And he’s probably right because we let him take us for granted without demanding anything in return and by not threatening consequences like any other self-respecting constituent group would if they were offered anything less than full representation and honest advocacy for their issues.
All of this just begs the question: How many times do the Democrats have to lose before they start to fear their voter base as much as the Republicans do? It’s all about demanding accountability; nothing more.
