THECHRISTIANRECORDER.COM
The Christian Recorder
OCTOBER 2021
PAGE | 21
OPENING PANDORA’S BOX: LARRY ELDER & THE FIGHT FOR REPARATIONS By D’Weston Haywood, Ph.D., Columnist
Larry Elder, the conservative author, radio show host, and gubernatorial candidate in California’s recent recall election, made statements recently that were certain to attract publicity to his campaign. Elder, who bills himself, the “Sage From South Central,” appeared on the right-wing Candace Owens Show, hosted by Candace Owens. The meeting marked a novel moment, perhaps, as the two represent the new cadre of modern black conservatives, who wield wide social media influence and have now emerged from or been reinvigorated by Trumpism. And it was on her show that Owens happily provided Elder the space to wax poetic, hammering a point that may have opened a proverbial Pandora’s Box. Elder asked, “When people talk about reparations, do they really want to have that conversation?” “Like it or not,” he continued, “slavery was legal. Slave owners’ legal property was taken away from them after the Civil War, so you could make an argument that the people who are owed reparations are not only black people but also the people whose ‘property’ was taken away.” Elder was even armed with a superficial citation to justify the argument, referencing Britain’s Slavery Abolition Act of 1833 that compensated British slave owners after its abolition. Yet, in his determination to reduce the owning of people to a simple equation of property rights, the “Sage” unwittingly blundered. For heuristic purposes, let’s entertain Elder’s proposition. The offer would necessarily demand a public accounting of who owned enslaved peoples, how many they owned when they owned them, whether they were sold off at any point, and if so, when and where they were sold. An appraisal of the sums of wealth they generated would also have to be documented, an effort that would
show the immense monetary value of the enslaved, points that the slaveocracy and Confederacy often downplayed. And the descendants of slaveowners would, of course, have to come forward to prove their authenticity in order to obtain the reparations. This public admission would root out and expose so many people’s longstanding denial of any involvement in the reprehensible institution. The meticulous and voluminous record-keeping this would likely entail might not only aid black people who are working to trace their family histories, but also open up avenues for descendants of slaves to bring legal cases against the newly financially empowered descendants of slaveowners. One of the leading scholars on reparations, economist William Darity, co-author of From Here to Equality: Reparations for Black Americans in the 21st Century, estimates that the cost of reparations for Black people could amass $10-$12 trillion. Ownership and property rights are mainstays of Republican and Libertarian thought, to be sure, but touting political ideology was not this Republican candidate’s point—rejecting and ridiculing the logic of black people’s legitimate claims on the state was—a classic page from the playbook of anti-blackness. Indeed, one of the arguments commonly raised against advocates of black reparations revolves around the question of who will pay and how. But Elder has provided at least one answer. ❏ ❏ ❏
ST. JOHN AME CHURCH, OMAHA, CELEBRATES FATHER’S DAY By Brenda “BJ” Watkins, 5th Episcopal District
Father’s Day is a holiday honoring fatherhood and paternal bonds and the influence of fathers in society. It is recognized as a public holiday in Lithuania. Arkansas-born Sonora Smart Dodd founded Father’s Day in the United States in 1909. Her father, William Jackson Smart Dodd, was a widowed American Civil War veteran. She and her father moved to Spokane, Washington, when she was 11. Dodd came up with the idea after attending a Mother’s Day Program at Central Methodist Episcopal Church. However, in 1924, President Calvin Coolidge urged the states to observe Father’s Day, and during his tenure, President Lyndon B. Johnson proclaimed every 3rd Sunday in June as Father’s Day. Finally, in 1972, President Richard Nixon made it an official legal day in the United States. Newspapers were not explicitly by the Rev. Keith D. Cornelius, shy or skillfully camouflaging their we continued this celebration and desire to exploit the new holiday; they the tradition by showing love to wanted to make money. One full-page our fathers on June 19, 2021. We told the story of a Spokane woman’s honored them through song, prayer, mission to give sons and daughters tambourines, and high spirits. an opportunity to express their Johnny Bluette, St. John’s own affections for their dads. So in big, YPDer, former Missionary Youth bold typed letters, the headline read, director, a teacher in the Omaha “Give Dad a Tie.” Ms. Dodd lived to public district for over 20 years, and see the fruition of her works. She died who recently earned his Ph.D. in on March 22, 1978, at the age of 96. Education (May 2021), started the So, here we are 112 years later, service with a rousing tribute to the still celebrating those we salute and living fathers and those who earned proudly call our dad, our adopted dad their wings. Our special guest speaker or foster dad, the brother, the uncle, was Emeritus Professor Dr. Carol the cousin, the youth community Taylor Mitchell, the twin sister of the leader, and yes, even the pastor who late 126th elected Bishop Sarah Francis Taylor Davis and the consecrated steps into the shoes of a father to fulfill presiding prelate of the 16th Episcopal an important role in a young child’s District in the African Methodist life. At the Historic St. John’s AME Episcopal Church, Bishop Marvin Church, Omaha, Nebraska, pastored
Cl d Zanders d II. Clyde Dr. Mitchell has been involved in the field of education, secular and Christian, for 53 years and she has taught and spoken locally, nationally, and internationally, including Jamaican Missionaries. She served with her sister in the 16th Episcopal District by conducting science and math workshops for teachers and students in Lesotho and Swaziland. In addition, she has written over 20 books. She is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority. Dr. Mitchell hails from Port Arthur, Texas, and earned her undergraduate degree from North Texas State University, her Masters from Southern University
d her h in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and Doctorate from the University of Nebraska of Lincoln. She taught chemistry and other sciences in the Omaha public district for 15 years. She later taught for 22 years at the University of Nebraska at Omaha in the College of Education, earning 21 awards, including The Legacy Award Empowerment Network from the University of Nebraska at Omaha. The theme for our Father’s Day celebration was “Leading by Example.” Dr. Mitchell tagged it as “Black Father’s Matter.” The scripture was Proverbs 4:11-12, and Deuteronomy 6:9-10. She definitely honored our fathers in grace and trust. ❏ ❏ ❏
