Council of Conservative Citizens

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The Council of Conservative Citizens ( CofCC ) is an American political organization that supports a wide range of conservative and paleoconservative activities and ideas and is assigned to the area of White Nationalism and White Separatism .

Many of the CofCC Board of Directors are former cadres of the Citizens Council of America , a group that promoted white supremacy and advocated segregation .

organization

The current managing director is Gordon Lee Baum. Tom Dover, the head of Dover Cylinder Repair, is the current president . Leonard Wilson was a State Committeeman in Alabama with both Democrats and Republicans in a leadership position and now sits on the board of the CofCC. Another board member is Bill Lord Sr., who served as a coroner in Carroll County and served on the Carroll Academy's school board.

The organization is based in St. Louis , Missouri . Other states with chapters include Alabama , Florida , Georgia , Indiana , Illinois , California , Louisiana , Michigan , Mississippi , New York , North Carolina , Pennsylvania , South Carolina , Tennessee , Texas, and Virginia .

history

The Council of Conservative Citizens in 1988 in Atlanta ( Georgia founded), the current headquarters is located in St. Louis in Missouri . The organization was founded by various Republicans , Conservative Democrats and former members of the White Citizens Council , which advocated segregation and believed in the superiority of the white race . The WCC influenced legislation in several southern states from the 1950s to the 1970s . A prominent member of the CofCC was Lester Maddox , the former governor of Georgia.

The CofCC often holds meetings with other paleoconservative organizations and sometimes with nationalist groups in Europe. In 1997, numerous members of the CofCC were present at a meeting held by the French Front National . The organization presented the then party leader Jean-Marie Le Pen with the flag of the Confederate States of America .

After the past of several members of the White Citizens Council had been highlighted in numerous articles, various conservative politicians distanced themselves from the organization. One of them was Bob Barr , who had made speeches at the group's meetings and stated that he found the CofCC's position on the race issue to be "repulsive" and that he did not see the true nature of the group at the time.

Other articles later reported the involvement of senior Republicans and Conservative Democrats in the CofCC, resulting in a series of distancing. Trent Lott , the former leader of the Republican majority parliamentary group in the Senate, was also a member of the CofCC. The chairman of the Republican National Committee , Jim Nicholson , condemned the organization for representing "racist and nationalist views" and called on Lott to distance himself. He refused to do so, but announced that he had terminated his membership. Shortly thereafter, Nicholson also urged Lott to distance himself from his earlier support for segregation after he had given an eulogy for the racial segregation hardliner Strom Thurmond and his presidential ambitions on his birthday . He distanced himself again, which earned him criticism from numerous conservatives. Nevertheless, he later had to vacate his post because of this speech.

A similar story happened to former Senate minority leader Dick Gephardt , who appeared at an organization event in the 1980s. He later repeatedly referred to this as a mistake. However, this exposure cost him a lot of support in the democratic presidential primaries. The then Republican lieutenant governor of Arkansas, Mike Huckabee , promised to appear at the national meeting of the CofCC in Memphis , Tennessee in the run-up to his candidacy in 1993 . In the end, however, he could not leave the state at the time of this meeting. But he sent a speech, recorded on a video cassette, which, according to the CofCC newsletter, was "extremely well received" by the audience. After his election victory in April 1994, however, he distanced himself and announced that he would not participate in “any program” that had “racist undertones”. He " fought against racism and anti-Semitism all his life ."

Other prominent Conservative federal or state level politicians who were members refused to distance themselves from the organization or end their membership and continued to attend meetings or give speeches. These included Senator Jesse Helms , through whom the group also had some influence in the Senate due to their support in the re-election. Former Alabama and Mississippi governors Guy Hunt and Kirk Fordice , as well as Senator Strom Thurmond , remained active members or made speeches. Thurmond was a member of the Senate until his retirement in 2002.

The Southern Poverty Law Center and the Miami Herald published a list of the names of 38 politicians who appeared at CofCC meetings or events between 2000 and 2004.

The Anti-Defamation League reported that Senator Trent Lott , Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour , Mississippi State Senators Gary Jackson and Dean Kirby, and various members of the Mississippi House of Representatives were members of the CofCC or had appeared at its events. Guy Hunt and Kirk Fordice also gave a speech there . So did Senator Roger Wicker from Mississippi.

The National Assembly of the Council of Conservative Citizens was held in 2005 in Montgomery , Alabama. A speech there also gave George Wallace Jr. , who took up the office of lieutenant governor , and the actor Sonny Landham .

Political beliefs

The Council of Conservative Citizens defines itself as a traditionally conservative group that stands in opposition to liberals and neoconservatives . The organization supports peoples ' right to self-determination , immigration restrictions, federalism and the home rule . It is against free trade and global capitalism. Particularly important are the rights of the states and the racial relations, in particular the question of the permissibility of interracial marriages, which is rejected. Also be conservative Christian values emphasized.

The CCC campaigned for the continuation of racial segregation in schools in the 1950s and 1960s. Like its predecessor organization White Citizens Coincil, it propagates ideas of white supremacy and sees blacks as a "retrograde species of humanity". On its website, the CCC wrote in 2001: "God is the one who divided humanity into two different types ... Racialism is rebellion against God."

Martin Luther King Jr. has been criticized by the CofCC, which identified him as a left-wing agitator in the black community with notable ties to communism . His sexual morality has also been criticized as being unworthy of a person of national importance.

The civil rights movement and the Frankfurt School are described as a subversive threat to the constitutional separation of powers . As with paleoconservatives , the CofCC regards American culture as an offshoot of European culture, and of the British Protestant tradition in particular.

The Council actively tries to subject immigration to stronger restrictions, to reduce them or to achieve a ban on immigration. The enforcement of laws against immigration is also called for, as is the end of affirmative action , which is seen as discrimination against whites. The practice of taking children to other schools in order to forcibly mix them up should end. Supreme Court decisions and laws passed by Congress are to be suspended or renegotiated. Among other things, it is about gun law . Free trade is to be ended and there is to be a shift towards a more conservative sexual morality. As a result, there was also support for the Defense of Marriage Act and continued opposition to the integration of homosexuals.

After several dozen conservative organizations were listed as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center in 2005 , the CofCC organized a protest outside the SPLC's Montgomery , Alabama office . Organized by 72 CofCC members, the event attracted several hundred demonstrators, attracting national attention. The result has been increased awareness of the SPLC's financial policy and growing allegations of demagoguery . The CofCC continued to protest at lectures by Morris Dees , co-founder of the SPLC, in several states, citing him as a threat to freedom of expression and accusing him of fraud.

activities

The CofCC publishes the Citizens Informer quarterly. The editors include Baum, Virginia Abernethy , Sam G. Dickson, Wayne Lutton, and Jared Taylor. Lawrence Auster has also published in Informer lately . Numerous Mississippi companies advertise in Citizens Informer .

The CofCC is the operator of the Conservative Citizens Foundation , a non-profit organization that collects money for the construction of a monument for the Confederate States of America .

Chapter in the states

Tennessee

There are numerous local chapters in Tennessee . One each for West, Central, East and Southeast Tennessee. The chapter in the west runs the radio show The Political Cesspool .

Mississippi

In Mississippi there are numerous chapters that work closely with the private segregation academies . These schools, many of which were initially referred to as council schools , were set up for white parents who wanted the desegregation of public schools according to Brown v. Board of Education wanted to get around.

Mississippi is the only start in which senior politicians have openly professed to be members of the Council of Conservative Citizens, including members of the Senate and the House of Representatives . The CofCC once claimed that they had 34 members of the Mississippi Legislature .

South carolina

The Council of Conservative Citizens had organized demonstrations in South Carolina between 1993 and 2000 to ensure that the flag of the Confederate States of America continued to fly on the roof of the state government. The demonstrations were held from inland to the tourist popular Myrtle Coast and Hilton Head Island . These events were the result of demonstrations by the NAACP, which called for the flag to be removed and thousands of demonstrators took to the streets. After a demonstration by the CofCC, which led 1,500 demonstrators to the capital, Columbia , other groups formed a coalition. In 2000, 8,000 people marched through the city, facing a small group of CofCC demonstrators. Numerous members of the coalition eventually approved a compromise according to which the flag should be removed from the roof and placed again in front of the building next to a statue of a Confederate soldier.

Former South Carolina CofCC chairman Francis Bell died in 2005 after a long battle with cancer. Since then, the SC CofCC has been run by a four-person Board of Directors and has active chapters in Charleston and Greenville .

Controversy and criticism

Various critics described the organization as a "hate group". The New York Times and the Anti-Defamation League characterize the Council of Conservative Citizens as a White Supremacist organization . The CofCC is attributed to the Neo-Confederate movement by the Southern Poverty Law Center . In general, organizations like the NAACP , the League of United Latin American Citizens , the SPLC - which has the CofCC on its list of hate groups - and the Anti-Defamation League see the organization as a threat. Max Blumenthal called it “America's premium racist organization”, which posed an elementary threat to the country.

The CofCC's Statement of Principles rejects the interference of the federal government in state affairs in order to enforce racial integration there. Likewise, free trade , globalization , immigration of non-Europeans, homosexuality and multiracial marriages.

According to its supporters, the Council of Conservative Citizens is against globalization, multiculturalism , racism against whites and an "intrusive" federal government. The group claims to have played a key role in reporting racially motivated violence against whites, in and outside the United States. In April 2005, a photo essay was published on the CofCC website showing pictures of decapitated, cremated and disfigured corpses, alleging that they were white victims of black violence in South Africa . In the end it was said that one day whites would become a minority in America too and then also become victims of such violence.

Columnist Ann Coulter defended the group against allegations of racism and stated, based on a visit to their website, that there was "no evidence" that the CofCC supports racial segregation.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Adam G. Klein: A Space for Hate: The White Power Movement's Adaptation Into Cyberspace , Litwin Books, 2010, ISBN 9781936117079 , p. 93
  2. ↑ a b Council of Conservative Citizens: Council of Conservative Citizens - Statement of Principles ( Memento of the original of July 6, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / cofcc.org archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed October 22, 2013
  3. ↑ Council of Conservative Citizens: NAACP chief Ben Jealous plugs CofCC on CNN website and NPR ( Memento of the original from July 6, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / cofcc.org archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. dated July 16, 2010, accessed October 22, 2013
  4. ^ Council of Conservative Citizens: Remembering Lester Maddox ( June 11, 2007 memento in the Internet Archive ) , accessed October 23, 2013
  5. ^ Jared Taylor: A Festival for France: The Front National's gigantic celebration of French Nationalism . In: American Renaissance . September 1, 1998. Archived from the original on April 11, 2008. Retrieved on April 11, 2008.
  6. ↑ Time Magazine : Representative Barr Responds (Letter) March 1, 1999, accessed October 23, 2013
  7. ↑ The Washington Post : Lott Remarks on Thurmond Echoed 1980 Words, December 11, 2002, accessed December 17, 2018
  8. ↑ Fox News : Gephardt Admits Mistake on Race Issues in '70s, January 11, 2004, accessed October 23, 2013
  9. ^ The Nation : Mike Huckabee's White Supremacist Links, January 18, 2008, accessed October 23, 2013
  10. ↑ Philadelphia Tribune: Huckabee won't appear with racist, April 12, 1994
  11. ^ Southern Poverty Law Center : Communing with the Council , accessed October 23, 2013
  12. ↑ a b Anti-Defamation League : Council of Conservative Citizens - Extremism in America ( Memento of the original from May 21, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed October 23, 2013  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.adl.org
  13. ^ A b Gordon Brown: Council of Conservative Citizens . Southern Poverty Law Center, Intelligence Files. Retrieved January 20, 2014.
  14. ^ Council of Conservative Citizens: Reparations for Slavery: Strategies and Tactics ( Memento February 6, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) from 2003, accessed on October 22, 2013
  15. ^ Martin Durham: White Rage: The Extreme Right and American Politics . Routledge, New York 2007, ISBN 978-0-415-36232-0 , p. 128 .
  16. ^ Council of Conservative Citizens: Why the 1964 Civil Rights Act has been terrible for America! dated May 2010, accessed October 22, 2013
  17. ^ Southern Poverty Law Center : 40 to Watch: What does the radical right look like after a year of reverses? The future may lie in the personalities still peopling the fringe ( Memento of the original from August 27, 2005 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.splcenter.org archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. from 2003, accessed October 22, 2013
  18. ↑ a b Southern Poverty Law Center : Hate in the Mainstream: Ann Coulter Defends White Supremacist Group ( Memento of the original from October 19, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.splcenter.org archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed October 22, 2013
  19. ^ Southern Poverty Law Center : Center Report Exposes Links Between Hate Group, Lawmakers ( Memento of the original from September 30, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. from 2004, accessed October 22, 2013  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.splcenter.org
  20. ↑ The Nation : Beyond Macaca: The Photograph That Haunts George Allen, September 11, 2006, accessed October 22, 2013
  21. ^ Council of Conservative Citizens: Shelby County Tennessee Chapter ( February 4, 2005 memento on the Internet Archive ) , accessed October 22, 2013