The Black Vote: African Americans As An Interest Group Essay, Research Paper
The Black Vote: African Americans as an Interest Group
The African-American community is comprised of 34 million people, and makes up about 12.8 per centum of the American population ( Barker, Jones, Tate 1999: 3 ) . As such, it is the largest minority group in the United States. Yet, politically, the black community has ne’er been able to sufficiently capitalise on that position in order to have the full benefits of life in America. Today, African-Americans, clasp less than 2 per centum of the entire figure of elective places in this state ( Tate, 1994: 3 ) and the figure of members within the community that really partake in voting continues to drop. In malice of these statistics, as of 1984, a telephone study found that 70 per centum of Black Americans polled & # 8220 ; strongly felt that the Black ballot could do a difference in who gets elected at both the local and national degrees, including & # 8230 ; president & # 8221 ; ( Tate, 1994: 6 ) . The black population still believes that elector engagement can consequence alteration in the authorities, and 75 per centum believe that whatever happens to the group affects them personally, and so it is necessary to hold a authorities that is sympathetic to the province of African-Americans in the United States.
As a consequence of this sensed common involvement, one could state that the American black community constitutes an involvement group of kinds, & # 8211 ; a group of people that portion the same involvements and are working toward common ends & # 8211 ; at least to a certain extent. At the really least, they have the possible to be an involvement group, because although the bulk of inkinesss feel that their hereafter is tied to that of the full race, there is a turning divide between inkinesss of different societal categories, every bit good as a deficiency of organisation, which is a cardinal factor to originating alteration. The black community relies on the strength of their ballot, but in order to capitalise on vote strength, and turn it into political power:
A group must be able to maximise elector enrollment and elector turnout, develop institutional constructions for enrolling supportive campaigners for public office and mobilise support for such campaigners. Once & # 8230 ; elected, the group must develop a system to keep the campaigners responsible to the group. ( Barker, Jones, Tate 1999: 73 )
In consequence, they must capitalise on their ability to come together as an involvement group and to make some signifier of answerability for whoever they support politically. Until late, the black community has non been able to make so frequently or systematically, because of their minority position ( due to miss of size they must trust on strategic vote and the black community hasn & # 8217 ; t ever been ideally located to capitalise on that ) , and intense party truenesss.
The Black Vote Historically
Ever since Lincoln & # 8217 ; s emancipation announcement, African-Americans had been Republican. The GOP was the party of Lincoln, the party that had given them the 13th, 14th and 15th Amendments. The Republican Party supported inkinesss, whereas the Democrat Party was the party of the South, and the Southern, White plantation proprietor. To the black community, the Republican Party represented & # 8220 ; the exalted, idealistic, Devout people, & # 8221 ; whereas Democrats & # 8220 ; dabbled in influence-peddling and frailty & # 8221 ; ( Weiss 1983: 3 ) . All inkinesss knew where to put their truenesss & # 8211 ; with the party that had given them their freedom & # 8211 ; non with the Democrats, who represented bondage and servitude, and coming into the twentieth century, Jim Crow and segregation. And so, black Americans followed the Republican Party from emancipation to the twentieth century, where it seems they got lost in the passage, because upon entryway to the new century authorities sanctioned segregation and favoritism seemed to progressively go the norm.. By the 1920 & # 8217 ; s, the Republican Party had alienated the black community by their & # 8220 ; involvement in cultivating lily-white Republicanism in the South than in beef uping the party & # 8217 ; s traditional ties to blacks. & # 8221 ; ( Weiss 1984: 5 ) .
Still, the black community remained with the Republican Party, because to remain seemed the lesser of two immoralities. Politically, they weren & # 8217 ; t strong plenty a force to derive political attending for themselves on a national degree, because the bulk of inkinesss still could non vote ( Weiss 1984: 39 ) , and as Robert R. Church said & # 8220 ; the Republican Party offers us small. THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY OFFERS US NOTHING & # 8221 ; ( Weiss 1984: 12 ) . So although disenchanted, inkinesss stayed with the Republican Party on a inactive footing, because they felt they had nowhere else to travel. By 1932 that would get down to alter as the Republican Party left them fighting economically with no manner out.
The 1928 Hoover presidential term had been lay waste toing to inkinesss, as he demonstrated no attention or concern for them, in add-on to his inability to adequately cover with the economic load of the Depression. Although finally inkinesss began to switch parties due to economic concerns, his policy to displace African americans from their occupations and workplaces & # 8220 ; to cut down unemployment among Whites & # 8221 ; was unacceptable, as inkinesss suffered disproportionately from the strains of economic crisis, particularly in topographic points like Baltimore where inkinesss made up merely 17 per centum of the population, but constituted 31.5 per centum of the unemployed. By his footings end, inkinesss were enduring, but still did non desire to go forth the & # 8220 ; party of Lincoln & # 8221 ; behind, because & # 8220 ; no affair how far short of black outlooks Hoover had fallen, his was the party responsible for the [ 13th, 14th and 15th ] Amendments, and the Democrats were the party of disfranchisement. & # 8221 ; ( Weiss 1984: 18 ) . So although inkinesss began to switch democratic, in 1932 they had the lowest figure of deserters to the Democratic party than any other Republican group, with the Republicans retaining the big bulk of the black ballot in the major black territories, with the exclusion of New York ( Weiss 1984: 29-30 ) .
Throughout this clip, black newspapers such as the Savannah Journal, and the Philadelphia Tribune were recommending a split in the black ballot, a motion off from the Republican party, promoting inkinesss to split their ballot reasoning that:
So long as inkinesss were blindly loyal to the Republican Party, it was no admiration that neither Republicans nor Democrats paid them any particular attentiveness. The lone hope for inkinesss politically was to go & # 8216 ; an unsure factor to be sought and wooed. & # 8217 ; & # 8230 ; neither party could any longer take them for granted, [ by coercing both parties ] to offer for black support their ballots would get down to number and their political prestigiousness would get down to rise. & # 8221 ; ( Weiss 1984: 27 )
The differences between the GOP and the Democrats had become so undistinguished as be & # 8220 ; the difference between tweedledee and tweedledum & # 8221 ; ( Weiss 1984: 27 ) , that inkinesss would hold a better opportunity at deriving acknowledgment and success by altering sides, because & # 8220 ; nil could be worse than Hoover & # 8221 ; ( Weiss 1984: 27 ) . Both outstanding black leaders such as James Weldon Johnson and Walter White supported and encouraged a move, and Robert Vann & # 8217 ; s statement & # 8220 ; I see 1000000s of Negroes turning the images of Abraham Lincoln to the wall & # 8221 ; ( Weiss 1984: 28 ) symbolized the forsaking of the GOP, but the bulk of African-Americans chose to wait. Black Republicans were traveling to wait to judge Roosevelt and the Democratic Party on the success of his & # 8220 ; New Deal & # 8221 ; economics policy. Merely after seeing if it would work for them, would they alter their ballot.
The Voting Shift
In 1936, the black community began its desertion to the Democratic Party en masse. Roosevelt & # 8217 ; s New Deal had worked, and was working for them. Blacks were delegated to a portion of the national population, because their job was seen to be one chiefly of economic sciences, and their promotion was perceived to be closely linked to white America, so success was to be achieved through broad-based general economic and societal reform ( Weiss 1984: 37 ) . Although it did non aim them specifically because inkinesss were non powerful plenty a constituency to justify personal attending, inkinesss were profiting from the New Deal, and they needed all the aid they could acquire. Said one newspaper, & # 8220 ; if any group needs the New Deal & # 8230 ; it is black Americans & # 8221 ; ( Weiss 1984: 45 ) . And so, by the clip election came about, many black Republicans had defected, non to the Democratic party per say, but instead to Roosevelt and his New Deal economic sciences.
Race and civil rights issues were ne’er a primary concern of the Roosevelt disposal, but at that place was communicating between the White House and black leaders such as Walter White. The New Deal epoch, & # 8220 ; transformed the methods of the two oldest state organisations for racial promotion, the national Association for the Advancement of Colored People ( NAACP ) and the National Urban League & # 8220 ; ( Weiss 1984: 62 ) .
In the yesteryear, beat uping inkinesss to political causes had been hard, because political relations had small relevancy to most black people, because neither party of all time focussed on racial issues, but with the coming of the New Deal, & # 8220 ; the federal authorities daily made determinations that straight affected the wellbeing of single black Americans & # 8221 ; ( Weiss 1984: 63 ) . This became the footing for acquiring the black community involved politically, and for forming them as a group to set force per unit area on the authorities. Although the NAACP had been buttonholing and executing the portion of an involvement group for a quarter-century, now it was able to really acquire black Americans involved and have a opportunity at securing rights for the black people.
By publicising the committednesss it was able to obtain, the Association sought to educate black electors to keep campaigners accountable when they went to the polls & # 8230 ; [ they ] besides urged the importance of elector enrollment and encouraged inkinesss to measure up to exert their franchise, even in the Deep South. As the NAACP & # 8217 ; s rank secretary [ said ] & # 8216 ; We & # 8230 ; began to seek to construct the image of the Negro as a vote personality, as a individual Ho would act upon his authorities by his ballot. ( Weiss 1984: 64 )
This tactic proved effectual, taking to the licking of certain senators in 1930 after runing by the NAACP, every bit good as a greater consciousness among inkinesss of their possible political power. And in its push for organisation and political consciousness, the NAACP was non entirely. The National Urban League besides took portion in the organisation of the black community toward doing them a more politically minded, organized involvement group, but it focussed more on the economic facets, forcing for a response to its prayers through loud, public protest. With the vote displacement, came the consciousness of the possible power that inkinesss held among them, together as a group. But, it was still ne’er
to the full capitalized upon.
Throughout the Roosevelt disposal, his support of the African-American community and their demands was token ; the bulk of their achievements were symbolic, because non even Roosevelt would sway the boat. Roosevelt was more concerned with go throughing statute law to get the better of the Great Depression, than in guaranting equality for all, but that did non halt inkinesss from voting for him. In every subsequent presidential race after 1932, inkinesss voted for Roosevelt ; they were so used to holding nil, that when they got a small something they kept it. This support did non intend though that they left their lobbying and demands behind, they were still at that place, but they were secondary ; foremost to the economic crisis, and so to the war. But for all their lobbying and demands, they still accomplished small, because Roosevelt in order to force through his ain docket, he needed the support of the South, and they would non back up him, if he openly supported inkinesss. In his four footings as president, Roosevelt signed less than 1/3 of the 150 pieces of Civil Rights statute law that crossed his desk.
The displacement to the Democratic Party was ne’er meant to be lasting, which is why many inkinesss referred to themselves as & # 8220 ; Roosevelt Republicans ; & # 8221 ; it was a alteration Born of economic necessity. Although his presidential term had in many ways allowed inkinesss to turn politically, they were still oppressed, and so with both parties still hesitating on the race issue, neither taking a base, the black ballot wavered excessively. From 1948 until 1964 the black ballot was split between the Republican and the Democratic parties, although it leaned Democratic. After 1964 and the coming of Civil Rights, the black ballot became unquestionably Democratic.
In 1964, the functions were reversed between the two chief parties. The Democrats came to be seen as being pro-black, and the Republicans anti-black, and this had to make with several factors. One of import factor was the Great Northern Migration which began with the Depression, and ended after World War II. During this period many Blacks moved northerly, and so became concentrated in the large metropoliss such as Chicago, New York and Philadelphia, which meant that & # 8220 ; for a Democratic presidential campaigner to win Illinois & # 8230 ; he had to win large in Chicago, which meant he had to make really good among black electors in the metropolis & # 8221 ; ( Carmines and Stinson, 1989: 33 ) . The 2nd, more deciding factor lies in the fact that whereas before, race had been a non-partisan issue, Senator Barry Goldwater ( one of six senators who voted against the 1964 Civil Rights Act ) turned it into a extremely partizan issue, & # 8220 ; with Democrats forthrightly busying the pro-civil rights side, and Republicans in the anti-civil rights cantonment & # 8221 ; ( Tate 1994: 54 ) . The Democratic Party was more racially broad, and so garnered the support of black America.
The Black Democrat
The black elector changed well after the 1964 elections. He has become overpoweringly democratic, and has given more than three-fourthss of his ballot to the Democratic party of all time since, but that is non adequate:
Since 1968 inkinesss have given no less that 82 per centum of their ballot to the campaigner thought to be more supportive of their involvements [ the Democratic campaigner ] , but except for 1976, 1992 and 1996, its campaigner has been soundly beaten in every election ( Barker, Jones and Tate 1999: 23 )
because the & # 8220 ; American & # 8221 ; elector has became more conservative. After 1964, the electorate turned off from issues of civil rights and race, and returned to economic concerns. During the Civil Rights epoch, the black community made many stairss toward equality with statute law brought about through lobbying and protest and the black ballot was important, because the authorities was appealing straight to race. But that entreaty was ephemeral because after statute law was passed the American electorate felt that it was over ; inkinesss now had equality. And so, they moved off from it.
African americans as a group, have remained firm loyal to the Democratic party, particularly in big metropoliss and the South, unluckily, that has non been plenty, because the Democrats who tend to appeal to the black population seldom do good among more conservative white America. Due to this, inkinesss have become discourage, the elector turnout has dropped significantly, and continues to make so although the ballot is still Democratic.
One could reason that inkinesss have returned to taking between the lesser of two immoralities, because Jesse Jackson & # 8217 ; s two presidential commands in 1984 and 1988, increased black elector turnout for the Democratic Party, and, as Tate points out, could be responsible for the return of many inkinesss & # 8217 ; support for the undermentioned election old ages.
Jackson may hold acted as a agency to do anew & # 8220 ; the compact & # 8221 ; between the Democratic Party and black America like he intended, but inkinesss still were non satisfied with their party in 1988, 65 per centum stating that they would back up an independent command by Jackson ( Tate 1994: 66 ) . The Jackson command for president opened new options for inkinesss and allowed them to recognize that they had more picks, but every bit far as black leading went, they didn & # 8217 ; Ts have anyplace to travel with it, because black leaders would non travel to or back up an independent or 3rd party for fright of going even more marginalized within the political domain ( Tate 1994:71 ) . So black Democrats are left to work within the party to accomplish political power and clout.
The Great Divide
Black electors and lobbyists did non hold the wealth needed to maintain governmental attending, but they had the Numberss, yet it still was non plenty, because like the pre Roosevelt Republican party, the Democrats had learned to number on black ballots. The black ballot has become loyal to the Democratic Party because of the many achievements of the Civil Rights Movement ( rather a figure of which were symbolic accomplishments merely ) , yet it has been marginalized. They no longer felt the demand to appeal to inkinesss because they had done what needed to be done, & # 8211 ; accomplished societal equality, put a prohibition on favoritism and racism & # 8211 ; party trueness was merely a logical decision.
In add-on, the African American community has become divided within itself. The bulk of African-Americans remains Democratic, but there is a turning divide within the community. As Katherine Tate points out in From Protest to Politics the black community does non really divide conservativism or liberalism along the boundaries of category or age or instruction, but instead along the boundaries of race-consciousness and race designation & # 8211 ; the thought of a common destiny ( Tate 1994: 24-25, 45-49 ) . A turning figure of inkinesss are once more concentrating their concerns non on civil rights issues, but issues of economic sciences, the jobs of poorness and unemployment, instruction and offense, although a big minority still experience that equal advancement in race dealingss has non been achieved ( Tate 1994: 46 ) . But they are go forthing civil rights entirely, and concentrating more on immediate issues at manus, that they have disassociated from race. This turning figure of inkinesss that do non place with race are more conservative, and less likely to vote broad, and Tate besides notes that race designation is going a strong challenger of party and ideological designations as a beginning of black policy places ( Tate 1994: 46 ) .
With a divide such as this within the African-American community, it is hard for inkinesss to capitalise on their vote potency. On the one manus, they have all the loyal followings of the Democratic Party that gave them their rights, and on the other there is a turning figure of people that do non place with being black as being affected in the same manner by policy as all other inkinesss, and so be given to be more conservative
.
Decision
The jobs that the Black American faces today with authorities, about mirror precisely the jobs he faced in the 1920 & # 8217 ; s. Today, the ballot is once more taken for granted due to old ages of blind, unfailing party trueness, and still he is being ignored. Race is once more being delegated to the peripheral, while more serious economic jobs once more rise to the bow ; inkinesss, along with other minorities, still bear the brunt of this state & # 8217 ; s economic weaknesss. Both parties are once more traveling toward the centre ; Democrats are going more conservative, intending that the radicalism that led to the 1964 Civil Rights Movement no longer exists. Social justness and equality are once more secondary in the face of economic jobs.
Blacks must look to a common land upon which to establish their ballot. They could split up and aline themselves along category lines or instruction, or some other factor, but they would be uneffective, I feel, as the United States has yet to supply entire equality for any but the bulk. Alliances along those lines would once more go forth inkinesss marginalized, and more than that, divided among themselves.
The Afro-american community must make today what it failed to make in the 1930 & # 8217 ; s. It must follow the seventy-year-old advice of those such as A. Philip Randolph and Oscar DePriest every bit good as the advice of more recent analysts such as Katherine Tate and Ronald W. Walters. They prompt voting without respect as to what party one is voting for, but instead with concern as to what the campaigner himself represents. African americans must come together and utilize their ballot as a bargaining tool. They demonstrated its worth in the 1976 presidential election of Jimmy Cater, and most late in the 1996 election of President Clinton. By dividing themselves from any lasting association with any party, African-Americans will coerce those parties to appeal to them as a group for their ballot, and upon having it, that party will be more certain to bring forth consequences in policy and statute law favourable to the Black community.
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