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MESSAGE BOARD Flag flak
This week, Howard Dean spent a lot of time on the defensive after making a statement that he wanted to be the "candidate for guys with Confederate flags in their pickups." Has the controversy over Dean's remarks referencing the Confederate flag damaged his campaign? Or will he rebound with no significant scars?
Page 1 This should not have any measurable negative impact on Dean, he only stated what he sees as a realistic need (which is more than likely a truism) of what the Democratic must correct. Give him a plus for being candid, give him a minus for not couching his words. john, amherst ny Dear Governor Dean, Your lack of appropriate response to the concerns raised over the "confederate flag" issue disturbs me - to the level that I am beginning to lose my ability to support you in your campaign for President. I have been one of your most ardent supporters. First, I believe you DO owe the American people an apology for your statement(s) - Your failure to understand and empathize with the painful and violent effects the confederate symbol has had on our culture is unacceptable. I can understand screwing up by saying the wrong thing - we all do that - but to refuse to, if not apologize, at least recognize the impact of racism on millions of people's lives, represented by this symbol - is at best, insensitive, and at worst reflective of character weakness on your part. Secondly, as Senator Edwards pointed out far better than I can here - your depiction of "poor southern whites" is both offensive and wrong. It represents "party-line East Coast bigotry and provincialism" at its worst. But most disturbing is the way you "dig in" when you are clearly in the wrong. If this quality truly reflects your style of decision-making, it is not what our country needs. We have too much of this trait already. All of this makes me both angry and sad - for your campaign represented great hope for our country at a time of desperate need. Mr. Dean, the problem with your well-intentioned statement yesterday is that you did everything but apologize. You still come off as an aloof elitist that is out of touch with how your actions and statements affect common and regular folks. I doubt when you have wronged your wife or children that you would attempt to smooth things over with words such as "regret if you misunderstood." You have a golden opportunity Governor, that you are quickly squandering - of being a candidate and president that is in touch with real people. Try making a statement like this - "I screwed up. We all have had the experience of things flying out of our mouths, wishing we could retrieve them before they were heard. What I meant to communicate was comprised by my comments - comments that have understandably caused great offense and harm. I am truly sorry." This is a human approach that all Americans can relate to and understand - because it is genuine. I advise you to hire someone on your staff who can help you develop a tone of humanity and humility. Sincerely, Zachary Manchester, Vermont Zachary, Manchester Center, Vermont Dean's fine; in fact, this "controversy" only shows how shallow and desperate some of his primary competitors are. They all know Dean is no Confederate sympathiser. Instead, what they see is a quick and easy chance to score a couple of PC points, while continuing to ignore the very real problem that the Democrats lost the South a generation ago due to elitism and stereotyping -- just like they're doing now! Kerry, Lieberman, et al, are taking the same page from the same playbook that's lost the Democrats countless elections in the last 20 years. Dean knows it isn't working and is trying to fix it. Michael, Arlington Here is the clarification on what was meant by the flag discussion. NEW YORK--Democratic presidential candidate Governor Howard Dean, M.D., today made the following remarks here at Cooper Union: "We're at a space today that's rich in our nation's history, a place where citizens have gathered for more than a century to debate the great issues of the day. From this platform and from this very podium Abraham Lincoln spoke nearly 150 years ago as a presidential candidate and when Lincoln came here, he did not shy away from talking about the greatest threat that our republic faced at that time which is the terrible institution of human slavery. I will not shy away today either. "The issue of the confederate flag has become an issue in this presidential race. Let me make this clear. I believe that we have one flag in this country, the flag of the United States of America. I believe that the flag of the Confederate States of America is a painful symbol and reminder of racial injustice and slavery, which Lincoln denounced from here over 150 years ago. And I do not condone the use of the flag of the Confederate States of America. I do believe that this country needs to engage in a serious discussion about race, and that everyone must participate in that discussion. I started this discussion in a clumsy way. "This discussion will be painful, and I regret the pain that I may have caused either to African-American or southern white voters in the beginning of this discussion. But we need to have this discussion in an honest open way. "In 1968 the Republican Party embarked on a strategy to divide white people from black people in the south just as they were divided when Abraham Lincoln stood at this podium 150 years ago. That is intolerable. Ending that is what this campaign is all about. "I am determined to find a way to bring white Americans and black Americans--as Dr. King said--to the same table of common brotherhood. As I said, we have started in a difficult way, but there is no way to escape the pain of this discussion. To think that racism was banished from the face of this country--even after the success of the civil rights movement is wrong. "Today in America, you have a better chance of being called back for a job interview if you're white with a criminal record than you do if you're black with a clean record--never having been arrested or convicted. Institutional racism exists in this country not because institutions are run by bigots or racists, but because of our unconscious bias towards hiring people just like ourselves. I am determined we will overcome this. I am also determined that we will not leave anyone behind in this discussion--no matter what their color, no matter where they live. "I understand Senator Edward's concern last night that we not have people from the north telling people from the south how to run their states--but we all need to understand that we are in this together and that it will be a difficult and painful discussion, and feelings will be hurt. And what we must do is that people of good will must stay at the table. "If we are ever to vanquish the scourge of racism left over from 400 hundred years of slavery and Jim Crow, only 40 or 50 years ago [did] the Civil Rights Movement begin to see relief from that. We can't think it is over; we must have the dialogue Bill Clinton promised us; we must continue that dialogue, and we must all be at the table. Many of the people in the African American community have supported what I have said in the past few days, because they understand. Some have not, so I say, to those, I deeply regret the pain I have may caused. Many of our white supporters have understood, but to those who do not, I regret the pain that I have caused. I will tell you, there is no easy way to do this. There will be pain as we discuss it; we must face it together--hand-in-hand, as Dr. King and Abraham Lincoln asked us to do. "Because this is about taking back our country and when white people and brown people and black people vote together in this country, that's when we get social justice in America." Sean, Boston I agree with the article in Salon titled, "Confedaracy of Dunces." While Dean is making efforts to introduce real issues into the race, and to reach out to all Americans (clearly, the nature of his remark), the other candidates are making efforts to further alienate conservative America from the Democratic party. This is why Dean is the candidate to beat Bush. Zack, Astoria, NY I FEEL THAT THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH ANY ONE FLYING THE CONFEDERATE FLAG IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH BEEING A RACIST ISSUE, SOME PEOPLE LIKE TO MAKE RACIAL ISSUES ABOUT ANITHING.THIS FLAG WAS A FLAG OF WARS, LETS GET A LIFE AND GO ON.WITH MAKING THIS A MORE FRIENDLY COUNTRY TO LIVE IN. THANK YOU Arthur J, Clearwater Fl Whether or not Dean's comment will damage his campaign will depend on who is voting: if voter turnout consists of uptight, knee-jerk liberal idiots (yes, I know that is a redundant statement), then it will hurt him. If the turnout is comprised of normal, reasonably intelligent people, then there should be no negative impact. Mark, Foxboro I think it's alot of poohy over not much. People can choose to be offended or see through to what Dean was actually trying to say with this statement. There is racism in this country you can't hide that but I don't think this was racist remark or a concolence of the confederate flag and the people who ride around in trucks with them. Simply stated all types of people need a different government than the one currently in control, lest the world and all inhabitants come to the end of the line. robin, greenfield , ma After living in Alpharetta, GA for over a year, I was shocked to find that these people still exist and they exist in large numbers. They never got over the Civil War or their resentment for the north and the northerners. Therefore, I don't feel that Howard Dean was that far off in his assumptions. In fact, even in the malls in Atlanta, they sell t-shirts stating "General Lee, an Officer and a Gentleman". The more educated southerners are embarrassed by these people and like to pretend that they have moved passed all of this and call it "the new south", but I lived it, was called a Yankee B-tch and saw the folks in the pickup trucks with the confederate flags. I will agree with Howard Dean when he says that they need someone to reach out to them. Nancy , Chelmsford In my opinion, this does some damage to his campaign for three reasons. 1) I think, as Al Sharpton, said, his remarks show insensitivity. Howard Dean's remarks were insensitive. 2) He exacerbated the issue by stubbornly refusing to back down. 3) I really don't think he gets it. Even if he really set about trying to understand why people were offended by his remarks, I think it would take him some time to get it. Regional thinking and cultural patterns are a fact of life in this country and I, for one, am grateful for that. These differences make our country that much more exciting. It's important to be sensitive to this if one is expecting national support. John, Meredith, New Hampshire
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