By Jeff Charles –
If you have been a conservative for any length of time, you have probably heard it said that the Republican Party cannot possibly hope to win votes in urban America. It’s a common refrain that arises during conversations about black people and the Democratic Party. Many conservatives seem to believe that Republicans earning votes in the inner city is like filling up a pool with an eyedropper.
Discussions on this subject tend to veer towards complaints about people who seemingly enjoy living on the government’s largesse while believing that all of their problems are due to racism. You may have even heard the term “Democratic Plantation” bandied about as an explanation for why minorities reject the Republican Party.
As a conservative who happens to be black, I can assure you that much of what conservatives believe about the inner city and minorities is utterly erroneous, and if we want a chance at earning converts, we have to change the way we approach the issue. Indeed, it will require quite the paradigm shift in the predominant thinking of those who embrace conservatism if we want to affect change.
I recently watched a video with Maj Toure, founder of Black Guns Matter, answering questions at CPAC regarding how the conservative movement can make inroads in the inner city. His answer was not the typical message you hear from conservatives:
“The conservative movement has failed where we have not created enough and supported enough urban liaisons. The Left has done an amazing job of convincing urban America that the conservative room is a Klan rally. They’ve done it, [They’re] saying these things to say they don’t trust you. People, right now, Urban America, under a falsehood, does not trust you. What liaisons have you linked with that are already doing the work in urban America to highlight and spread our ideals of freedom?”
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