Other major companies like Peabody Energy aided in drafting a report in the name of the CBC that contained their positions.
In one instance the CBC issued a policy statement through its so-called Black Caucus Institute contending that the government should consider the financial impact of climate change legislation before it is passed, which is a familiar energy industry position, according to the Times.
It is paradoxical to observe how members of the Congressional Black Caucus have been unrelenting in their criticism of President Obama, demanding specifically targeted stimulus packages for Black communities. At the same time this very group is wining an
d dining with companies that only exist to rip off Blacks and other low-income communities.
It is noteworthy that this group is so quick to take Obama to task on the stimulus package when many of its members straddled the fence in endorsing the Obama presidency until they were called out for their lack of a political backbone. (With the notable exception of Congressman John Conyers, the first major lawmaker to support Obama.) Beholden to the past Bill Clinton administration, the majority of the caucus expected Hillary Clinton to win, because the CBC in many capacities has served in the past as a buffer to Democratic administrations, defending and explaining policies that were sometimes unjustifiable to the survival of African Americans.
The CBC, sadly, today serves as one of the biggest defenders of industries that are holding Blacks economically hostage because of deliberate and unfair trade practices these groups are allowed to conduct in CBC member districts. When we consider the founding of the CBC, the irony of history is even more nerve-racking, sinister and scary.
When confronted by the Times, CBC chair Barbara Lee of California repeated a refrain that “We’re unbossed and unbought,” a political line that originated from the venerable Shirley Chisholm, the first African-American woman in Congress and the first to run for president in 1972.
The immediate past head of the CBC is Congresswoman Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick of Detroit.
Lee perhaps was striking the emotional chord by using a very familiar phrase that ignites the sensibilities of African Americans as far the struggle for liberation is concerned.
Instead of answering to the facts in the article, Lee reminded the Times that, “Historically, we’ve been known as the conscience of Congress, and we’re the ones bringing up issues that go unnoticed or just aren’t on the table.”
What are you known for today?
Leaders like Lee and some of her colleagues understand that African Americans respond very well to the gallery of emotional politics. Therefore it makes sense not to answer to the serious charges of derecliction of duty but, instead, play the usual emotional politics.
For too long the masses of Blacks have accepted surface appeal from political leaders who have done little or nothing to improve the conditions of those in the inner cities. This attitude towards public service is not helping to liberate Blacks from the shackles of financial slavery.
If those who should protect the interest of Blacks are supposedly in cahoots with those who are perpetrating the crimes, there is no protection.
It is time for those dutiful lawmakers within the CBC to wake up to the tricks of the CBC leadership. Not all members of the caucus are in line with this way of doing business. Therefore, those within the ranks of the CBC who value conscience, integrity and dignity in fighting the cause of their constituents shoud demand a change.
Watch senior editor Bankole Thompson’s weekly show, “Center Stage,” on WADL TV 38, Saturdays at 1 p.m. This Saturday’s program, Feb. 20, will feature an in-depth conversation around the challenges facing Black men. E-mail bthompson@michronicle.com.
