Cartoon Tuesday: “Nik Haley History White Out”
Continuing A Too-Long Tradition of Censoring Our Past
From Kevin:
“When asked by a voter at a New Hampshire town hall about the cause of the Civil War — the first shots of which were fired in South Carolina, where Haley was once governor — Haley did not say ‘slavery.’ Instead, she expounded on capitalism and freedom and states rights. More recently, Haley has stated that the United States has never been a racist country.”
“I want to say Nikki Haley knows better. I have to assume she’s aware of actual American history, at least broadly, warts and all.”
“However, to say one knows better is to say one is sensible enough not to do the wrong thing. Yet Haley is publicly, willingly white washing centuries of pain, trauma, inequity and inequality that have and still affect millions of Americans, all to try to syphon a few primary votes from TFG.
This is who Nikki Haley is. And all the corrective fluid in the world can’t cover that up.”
From me:
Kevin’s cartoon hit me especially hard, not just because of Nikki Haley’s comments, but in light of my post last week about the horrific Colfax Massacre and the case that followed—Cruikshank—which removed all accountability for those who committed the cold-blooded murder of up to 100 or more Black Louisianans asserting their political rights. That infamous Supreme Court decision helped set the table for nearly a century of violent Jim Crow.
Together, these events comprised a pivotal moment in our nation’s history.
Yet almost no one knows about them.
Just take a look at the results of the survey I included last week—where I asked if subscribers had heard of either the massacre or the case:
I don’t include these results as a dig at my subscribers, who are no doubt far more informed about our history than most Americans. Until a few years ago, with a pretty good education under my own belt, my understanding of both events was, at best, vague.
The sad truth is, so much history has already been whited out, long before Nikki Haley got into the business.
And this means we have not been challenged by our country’s worst moments. Nor forewarned about ongoing risks and ominous patterns.
It also means we have not been sufficiently inspired by the heroes who dedicated their lifetimes and very lives to overcoming our tragic low points. Whitewashing the worst moments means we still don’t appreciate the enormity of their struggle, nor the astounding scale of their triumph.
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David, I know how fervently to fight for voting rights and I just wanted to make sure you see this report. I do not know enough to evaluate their methodologies or interpretations, but I think you do
https://www.mapresearch.org/2024-youth-voting-report?refcode=01222024_TCC_MAPS_EN_1&emci=66973c63-66b6-ee11-bea1-0022482237da&emdi=66ce75de-4bb9-ee11-bea1-0022482237da&ceid=24793355
I love the cartoon. Thank you so much. Will share.