Crashing the Party

West will join the CBC

After the Democrats took control of Congress in 2007, Tennessee Democrat Stephen I. Cohen became a freshman Congressman. Representing a predominantly minority district, Cohen thought it would be a good idea to join the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC). The problem was, Cohen is white. He was rejected by the Caucus, despite being a Democrat, simply because of his skin color. Ostensibly seeking the counsel of the membership in the belief that he could better understand his constituency, it's just as well that he was rebuffed.

This year Republicans turned the tables on the Democrats, figuratively smashing them at the polls. There were also some new Black Republican Congressmen elected. One of them was Allen West, a U.S. Army Retired Lieutenant Colonel, now Congressman-elect of Florida.

West is a no-nonsense man who doesn't buy into the notion that people of his color cannot succeed, and he has backed up that belief with solid actions. Both he and his wife, Angela, have proven that Blacks are no different than Whites when properly educated and motivated. And West doesn't have a very high tolerance for those who refuse to accept that simple truth.

To accentuate his point, he plans on joining the CBC in the 112th session of Congress, and he's not going to wait for an invitation. He was recently a guest on the Steve Malzberg Show, a radio program found on WOR 710 Radio, New York, weekday afternoons at 4:00 PM. Here's what Mr. West had to say:



It should be interesting to see how Allen West is received by the CBC, currently an exclusive club for Black Democrats. As noted, the CBC is more about being representative of Black "victims" than their other Democrat constituents. And after the treatment of White Democrat Stephen I. Cohen, as well as a similar rejection of White Rep. Pete Stark, D-Calif thirty-five years ago, West will be the first Black Republican to join.

West, saying that it's so important "that we break down this quote unquote monolithic voice that continues to talk about victimization and dependency in the black community" seems poised to not only represent a fresh new beginning in race relations in America, but a promising beacon for the Black youth today who have been force-fed a steady diet of negativism.

God bless you, Allen West, and the best of luck in your new career.

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