Racial slurs, Death threats on Congressmen: Violence, Intimidation, Enter U.S. politics

Can the United States advocate non-violent political process in Third World nations – democratic or otherwise - after the entire nation witnessed death threats to U.S.

Congressmen, vandalizing Democratic Party political offices, racial slurs on Black Congressmen who were civil rights leaders in the sixties, intimidation of political opponents, spiting on a Black Congressman while entering the Congress Hall past few days following the historic legislation that overhauled the nation’s healthcare which was overdue six to eight decades?

The threats to lives of congressmen and their supporters, openly advocating targeting political party offices and e-mailing threats has not subsided; instead they are on the increase in a nation that elected a non-white president who has pledged to implement a centrist-liberal agenda that would benefit the middle class and the working people who are economically depressed due to the recession that started two years ago.

With the Corporate America well behind the campaign to disrupt the ‘peoples agenda’ of the Obama administration, America’s Right Wing has stepped out of the peaceful political agitation to violently threaten the centrist-liberal-left ‘Main Street’ agenda which has distinguished itself from the eight-year ‘Corporate’ and ‘Wall Street’ friendly agenda of the Bush administration.

With the revival of ‘racial epithets’ of the ignominious sixties the United States’ political process is slowly but steadily entering in to an intolerant and violent era even questioning the legitimacy of Barak Obama and occasionally throwing racial slurs on him by popular right-wing political commentators in national television.

On Sunday March 21 when U.S. Congressmen who belong to the Democratic Party Caucus were walking in procession in to the Capitol building to cast their historic vote on the Obama administration’s Health Care Reform Bill the protesters, who were largely white, were hurling racial slurs on Black Congressmen ignominiously taking America back to the ugly sixties of racial discriminations.

Here in the U.S. people refer to such slurs as using the ‘N’ word. The complete word ‘Niger’, a derogatory term for the Blacks or African-Americans to reduce them to the level of dirt, is never used. ‘Spitting’ on Blacks while calling them ’Niger’ was done in the ignominious past in the sixties.

Civil rights icon and veteran Rep. John Lewis, D-Georgia, said anti-health care bill protesters Saturday repeatedly yelled the "N" word at him as he left a heath care meeting and walked to the Capitol.

"I haven't seen heard anything like this in more than 40 years, maybe 45." Lewis said. "Since the march from Selma to Montgomery really."

"Yeah, but it's okay," Lewis added. "I've faced this before. So, it reminded me of the 60's. There's a lot of downright hate and anger and people are just being downright mean."

The incident was confirmed by Rep. Andre Carson, D-Indiana, who was walking with Lewis at the time. Protesters were yelling, "'kill the bill, kill the bill' and the 'N' word several times," Carson said.

Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, D-Missouri, released a statement late Saturday saying he too was called the "N" word as he walked to the Capitol for a vote and that he was spat on by one protestor who was arrested by U.S. Capitol Police. Cleaver declined to press charges against the man, the statement said.

With the revival of racial politics, racial epithets, death threats to lawmakers especially the Blacks, moving away from peaceful dissention has made this nation in the eyes of the world a blood sprinkled nation.

If allowed this process to continue, spearheaded by the right-wing Republican Party operatives who serve the Wall Street ignoring the sentiments of the Main Street, can the United States lecture to the Global Community on issues such as human rights, peaceful agitation and tolerance of political dissention? Can the public diplomacy arm of the United States – U.S. State Department – continue to advocate racial harmony, the importance of political dissent and democratic governance to the Third World developing nations.

Last week, these incidents have projected the United States to the global community in a very different way.

The series of incidents last week, and still happening, cannot be considered as isolated once.

House Majority Whip James Clyburn, an African America, found himself the target of offensive pictures and racial slurs after Sunday's passage of the Healthcare Reform Bill.

Clyburn reports having several faxes of nooses sent to his office and letters littered with racial slurs.

Speaking with MSNBC's Keith Olbermann he describes the offensive material saying,
“If you look at some of the faxes that I got today, racial slurs, nooses on gallows, and I'm telling you, some very vicious language. This stuff is not all that isolated. It's pretty widespread. I hope it's not too deep."

A coffin was placed in front of a Missouri Democrat’s house, another in a string of incidents against lawmakers after their vote Sunday on a health care overhaul.

Rep. Russ Carnahan (D-Mo.) had a coffin placed “near his home,” a spokesman said Wednesday evening.

The coffin was from a prayer vigil, and protesters say that the coffin symbolized babies who would be aborted due to the health care law and was not a threat to Carnahan.

This came after Rep. Tom Perriello’s (D-Va.) brother’s gas lines were cut, Rep. Bart Stupak (D-Mich.) received death threats and Rules Committee Chairwoman Louise Slaughter (D-N.Y.) received a message saying snipers were being deployed to kill children of those who voted for health care overhaul.

Several other Democrats have had threats leveled against them, prompting a closed-door briefing of Democratic members by the FBI, Capitol Police and the House Sergeant at Arms.

As many as ten Congressmen have allegedly received death threats over their votes on health care reform.

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer is warning that some of his Democratic colleagues are being threatened with violence when they go back to their districts — and he wants Republicans to stand up and condemn the threats.

The Maryland Democrat said more than 10 House Democrats have reported incidents of threats or other forms of harassment about their support of the highly divisive health insurance overhaul vote. Hoyer emphasized that he didn’t have a specific number of threats and that was just an estimate. The Federal Bureau of Investigation, Capitol Police and sergeant at arms briefed Democrats behind closed doors today about the incidents of violence — the most high profile of which have been toward Democratic Reps. Thomas Perriello of Virginia, Steve Driehaus of Ohio and Louise Slaughter of New York.

Hoyer hinted that Republicans should do more to condemn these threats of violence. “I would hope that we would join together jointly and make it very clear that none of us condone this kind of activity,” Hoyer told reporters. “And when we see it, we speak out strongly in opposition to it. And I would hope that we would do that going forward.”

Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.), the majority whip, said Democrats and Republicans should continue to speak out on these threats. “Silence gives consent,” Clyburn said.

Unrest over sweeping federal health care legislation has turned to vandalism and threats, with bricks hurled through Democrats' windows, a propane line cut at the home of a congressman's brother and menacing phone messages left for lawmakers who supported the bill.

The FBI is investigating the instances, which include shattered windows at four Democratic offices in New York, Arizona and Kansas. At least 10 members of Congress have reported some sort of threat as of Wednesday, and no arrests have been made.

The brick flung through the window of a county Democratic Party office in Rochester, N.Y., over the weekend had a note attached: "Extremism in defense of liberty is no vice," roughly quoting 1964 Republican presidential nominee Barry Goldwater.

A New York congresswoman whose office window also was smashed with a brick accused the Republican leadership of failing to denounce attacks against lawmakers who supported the legislation. The vandalism was at Democratic Rep. Louise Slaughter's district office in Niagara Falls early Friday, two days before the House passed the health care overhaul bill.

"It's more disturbing to me that Republican leadership has not condemned these attacks and instead appears to be fanning the flames with coded rhetoric," said Slaughter, a key supporter of the bill.

Here are some reports from around the country on the mini-epidemic of brick-throwing:

• Early on the morning of March 19, someone threw a brick through the window of Rep. Louise Slaughter's office in Niagara Falls, New York, doing $350 of damage, the Buffalo News reported. Slaughter (D-NY) briefly attracted the ire of conservatives over the "Slaughter Solution," a procedural maneuver that was considered (but, ultimately, not used) to pass health reform.

• Also in Slaughter's district, a brick was thrown through the glass doors of the Monroe County Democratic Committee office in Rochester, NY, over the weekend, the Democrat and Chronicle reported. A note attached to the brick bore the Barry Goldwater quote, "Extremism in defense of liberty is no vice," a spokesman for the committee told the newspaper.

• In the early hours of the morning on Monday just after the House health care vote, someone smashed the glass front door of the Tucson office of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ), the Arizona Daily Star reported. "The perpetrator likely had to hop the gated fence to get access to the door, since it's not viewable from the parking lot," the paper reported.

• On Friday night or Saturday morning, a brick bearing unspecified "anti-Obama and anti-health care messages" was thrown through a floor-to-ceiling window at the Sedgwick County Democratic Party headquarters in Wichita, Kansas, CNN and the Kansas City Start reported.

• After the passage of the bill Sunday night, a "fist-sized" rock was thrown at a window at the Hamilton County Democratic Party in Cincinnati, in the district of Rep. Steve Driehaus (D-OH), the Enquirer reports.

Pinson, Alabama-based blogger Mike Vanderboegh has been tracking the breaking of windows at Dem offices after issuing a call Friday: "To all modern Sons of Liberty: THIS is your time. Break their windows. Break them Now."

It's far from clear whether Vanderboegh's call to arms has anything to do with the incidents around the country.

The Kansas City Star identifies Vanderboegh as a former leader of the Alabama Constitutional Militia.

His blog, Sipsey Street Irregulars, identifies with the so-called "Three Percenter" doctrine: "During the American Revolution, the active forces in the field against the King's tyranny never amounted to more than 3% of the colonists."

- Asian Tribune -