[Peace-discuss] Re: [Peace] Fwd: Affirmative Action speaker

[C. G. Estabrook]

[Poet and novelist Ishmael Reed writes as follows of Ward Connerly and 
the people whom he represents.  --CGE]


...even Shelby Steele isn't as popular with the right as Ward Connerly 
who is so firmly associated with proposition 209, the measure that ended 
Affirmative Action in California, that lazy journalists claim he started 
the drive that led to its being passed. He didn't. He was brought on 
when the real sponsors suffered a lapse in their notion of a color-blind 
society long enough to realize that a black face on their proposition 
would aide in its adoption. Before Connerly came on, the proposition was 
failing. (One of the two white founders of the proposition said that he 
did so because a woman got the job that he was qualified for (Lydia 
Chavez, the author of "The Color Bind: The Campaign to End Affirmative 
Action" Paperback, April 1998) an excellent book about the sinister 
maneuvering that led to proposition 209 says the woman has never been 
found.)

Connerly, viewed as by the media as as martyr who braved the scorn of 
his black accusers to follow his conscience, only agreed to support the 
proposition if its supporters raised $500,000. Newt Gingrich helped to 
raise the money. He was also supported financially by President 
Clinton's nemesis Richard Mellon Scaife. Rupert Murdoch contributed 
200,00 dollars and the Pioneer fund contributed thirty five thousand 
dollars to the campaign to end Affirmative Action in California, so that 
now Duke University and "Ole Miss" have a higher black enrollment than 
the University of California and California State University.

In his book, The Nazi Connection, Stefan Kuhl says that "Today, the 
Pioneer Fund is the most important financial supporter of research 
concerning the connection between race and heredity in the United 
States." Its largest contributor, until the 1960s, was textile magnate 
Wickliffe Draper, who worked with the United States House Un-American 
Activities Committee to demonstrate that blacks were genetically 
inferior and ought to be 'repatriated' to Africa."

The Pioneer Fund also supported Charles Murray's "The Bell Curve," the 
book beloved by publications that hate Minster Louis Farrakhan so much. 
In this book, Charles Murray floats some of the same stereotypes about 
blacks that were once aimed at his Scots-Irish ancestors.

Another supporter was Andrew Sullivan, who came to the attention of the 
mainstream electronic media after he did such a good job bashing blacks 
at the New York Times Magazine section, which describes blacks as 
cannibals and crack addicts.

Obviously Ward Connerly, who has made millions from being associated 
with proposition 209, is supported by such ultra right individuals and 
groups that he has been reluctant to list his contributors...


Alfred Kagan wrote:
> FYI, something to be aware of. I haven't yet heard if anyone is 
> organizing a protest.
> 
> Begin forwarded message:
> 
>     *From: *"Erin Jones" <renz85 at gmail.com>
>     *Date: *April 13, 2006 8:13:17 PM CDT
>     *
>     Hello, I am a representative from the Illini Conservative Union.
>     Next Tuesday, April 18th, we are going to be hosting guest lecturer
>     Ward Connerly. He will be speaking against Affirmative Action. Now I
>     realize that all may not share his views, but I think his lecture
>     will be very informing and interesting to all. Please pass this on
>     to anyone you may think would be interested and please consider
>     coming. I have attached the flyer that contains all of the
>     information needed. Thank you.
>