My Gosh! I thought all Conservatives are White?
The other day I was talking with one of my colleagues at work and politics entered the conversation for the first time. He asked me who I was voting for during the midterm elections. After my in-depth analysis and response, he looked at me in amazement and said, “but, (long pause) I thought all conservatives were white”. What an idiot, I thought to myself. I felt like bitch slapping some sense into him, but I needed to maintain our working relationship so I trashed that idea! This conversation motivated me to point some prominent non-white conservatives, some of which you might have heard of and others maybe not. It amazes me how uninformed many people are, especially those in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Politicians:
- Dr. Condoleezza Rice Secretary of State
- Alberto Gonzales - U.S. Attorney General
- Kenneth Blackwell - Gubernatorial nominee and two-term Secretary of State of Ohio
- Micheal Steele - Lieutenant Governor, Maryland
- Michelle Steel California Board of Equalization
Talk Radio/Authors
- Larry Elder Radio Host based in South Central Los Angeles
- Linda Chavez Author and former Secretary of Labor Nominee
Bloggers
- Michelle Malkin
- Latino Issues A Conservative Blog
- Hispanic Pundit
- Michael David Cobb Bowen - one of my favorites. He kicks some serious knowledge.
- Me
This is just a very small sampling of non-white conservatives in this country. The fact of the matter is that there are a boat load of minority conservatives here in the U.S. Please, add to this list if you have the time.
Technorati Tags: conservatives, minority conservatives, larry elder, michelle malkin, linda chavez, condi rice, hispanic pundit, cobb, are hispanics liberal or conservative?”
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Colin Powell and remember, depending on the state, between 10 and 20% of black vote goes to the Republican candidate. In Georgia, our Governor got 17% of the black vote.
Bill is right. I know a ton of black conservatives. And, don't forget those Cubanos in Miami.
Hey great site, yes conservatives can be non white - actually there are a lot of them - and that is a good thing.
But with the "Hispanic" thing I think you are being unfair because you are using the term "Hispanic" as a racial thing when it's not - Hispanic is a cultural and ethnic classification and one can be "Hispanic" and still belong to any race. There has been a mass brain wash or conspiracy in this great nation of ours to tell us (Hispanics) what we should be and what pigeon hole we should fit into. As a conservative and an individualist I refuse to allow our heavily leftist tainted society say what I am or not - I am a unique individual as we all are.
There are white and Caucasian Hispanics, Black Hispanics, Native American Indian Hispanics, Asian Hispanics, Mulatto Hispanics, Mestizo Hispanics, Asian Hispanics (Cuban Chinese) Arab Hispanics (Cuban Lebanese), or a mixture of all or some of these. There are even Hispanic Jews - and I know many who are conservatives. I have been a conservative since I was 15 and I am proudly Spanish surnamed and I am white and Caucasian too - I am not a racist and I do not read stormfront and I don't believe that one race is better than the other - just because one's ancestors came from the old country in Spain and decided to settle in the New World doesn't cancel ones European Caucasian blood if no inter marriage occurred.
- and there is nothing wrong with me saying that. I mean, look at Bob Melendez - NOT a conservative, actually a left wing crook, but one can't really be serious and have the cojones (like the NYT just did) to say that Rep. Melendez is non white - you can't get whiter than that guy!
For a good explanation of what I am speaking about read the following link below from a conservative who happens to be both Hispanic (culture) and white or Caucasian (race).
http://members.tripod.com/~Campello/hispanic.html
Respectfully -
Thomas Sowell
I can understand where your coworker is coming from. About 10% of African-Americans, for example, identify as republicans. That's about the same percentage of African-Americans that identify as Jews. It might be insensitive to assume that someone is part of the majority, but most people don't come into contact with minorities on the fringes of their minority on a regular basis.
Very good read.
Walter Williams - Author
Alan Keyes
Well you really have to think about this one...if the further you have gone in an educational sense affects your political ideology (ie. The more school the more conservative) and schools are equal opportunity so a black woman has the same chance at Harvard as a white man then minorities are really just uneducated and (well I hate to be so crass but) stupid… Right?
Alright David! That required a lot of thought..I guess.
OK, what has education have to do with being a better person? I never went to college, yet I have a great job doing what I like doing. I get paid well. I didn't need a formal education. Actually, probably if I did, I wouldn't be where I am now.
See some of the most powerful, smartest, richest, successful people never had a formal education.
Being smart isn't about what you know. It's a lot about how you are brought up. I may be stereotyping, but there are a lot of blacks who are told that their government owes them something. That is how they are brought up. By the time they are old enough to make their decisions, they already have that belief. Now, I am not saying it's exclusive in that regard. I know plenty of all colors like that. Why do I think that? I have lived and saw similar type things growing up.
I grew up in Ireland, about 40 miles from the border with Northern Ireland. There were kids there that were brought up believing that if you weren't Protestant you were scum of the earth. I have met these people. When you are brought up with a certain belief, that is all you know. Like every group, there are some with the strength to actually question and find out for themselves.
I do see the same things happen over time in both countries. There are more and more being able to think for themselves and find the real truth instead of following what they blindly believe just because they are told.
Hey, Thanks for noticing my blog and listing me among such great notable bloggers. Sorry I didn't notice your link to my blog until now!!
There are hundreds of non-white conservatives even inside the beltway, so you are right--we are out here.
Keep up the good stuff.
~ Josue Sierra
(Also blogging at www.josuesierra.net and http://josue.townhall.com)
Hey Josue, no problem about linking to you. I noticed your blog months ago and continue to read from time to time (although I read that you took some time off for your townhall gig). Thank you for stopping by.
Michael
John – I am not sure who your comment is directed towards but I don’t think the issue has to do with education and being a better person; but I do agree with your analysis. Where and how you grow up and parental influence is a strong part of who you/me/others are. Another example is the youth in Islamic states; they are raised from birth to hate the west, especially the US.
Thank you for visiting my blog.
Oh, by the way, not sure if you know or not; but when you type in "conservative blog" in Google, your site is number one. I have made it my personal mission to take that from you (lol).
you are a disgrace to the Latino race. You should be ashamed of yourself. It's the republican party that oppresses us Latinos, you damn sellout!
bringing this one back, eh? Or I guess javier did. Whatever, javier! It's a free country. Sorry that you feel so oppressed. maybe you should go live in mexico where it's a less oppressed environment. sorry that you identify more with the party that happens to think people deserve unlimited free handouts and healthcare for life with no responsibility in return. sorry that you don't identify with the party that believes in the power of the individual and the ability to create a better life without interferance from the government. sorry for you.
you forgot jc watts of missouri then their was that former football player who ran for senate in pa. good post it was worth the read.
Is there a list for myspacers?That would be a long one!
Jemm - no but please add to this list!
Ken Blackwell is a kook.
Man..Ive gotta get out of Ann Arbor.
Everyone here is so conceited. I am one of the few, the proud, the republican here in Ann Arbor. Life is surely interesting, and thats an understatement.
Recently, Ann Arbor thought they were good enough as a liberal state to pass the "medicinal marijuana" law ONLY in Ann Arbor - surpassing all state authority. That lasted about three days before someone quite like myself decided to challenge that law.
Some people..but Ive really got to get out of Ann Arbor.
J.C. Watts is from Oklahoma, not Missouri.
Walter E. Williams, Larry Elder and Thomas Sowell are all "conservatives" in the sense of Liberal vs. Conservative but all three are actually Libertarian in their views rather than Republican.
Steve - nothing in my original post stated they were Republicans.
Bill Cosby always seemed conservative to me, don't know for sure though.
I sent the following to Josue Serra, but it applies to everyone who either is Hispanic or wants to build a Republican Party friendly to minorities. Please come visit.
Hi Josue: You and I communicated awhile ago regarding my being a conservative Republican who strongly supported CIR. I've moved from Townhall (where I had a lot of technical problems) to http://camp2008victorya.blogspot.com. I've been working for several months (successfully for the most part) trying to build the Republican Party in ways that makes it attractive to family-oriented, conservative, Christian Hispanics -- in other words, attractive to most Hispanics. My main efforts have been on behalf of Sarah Heath Palin, Gov. of Alaska, a Christian conservative (and a caring individual) who should have great appeal not only to Hispanics, but to just about everyone else. She has an approval rating approaching the 90s and a disapproval rating of 5%, which means the only people who like her are Republicans, independents, AND Democrats. I hope you and your readers will visit my site and learn more about this fine woman. Anyone who wants to support our efforts should so indicate by leaving a comment. In the meantime, all the best.
steve maloney
national coordination team, palin 4 VP
Reverend Jesse Lee Peterson - BOND
http://www.bondinfo.org
Ian - thank you. Keep em coming!! : )
Thats what the Dems are portraying the Rublicans to be, all White, racists and closed minded. The Republican party needs to do a better job defending itself.
Ken, you are totally right. For whatever reason, the left acts as the bitchy squeeky wheel, and they get all the oil. Conservatives should really speak up and defend our stance. I try... but my whole stinkin' family is liberal. Ugh.
U.Con. , You know, it never made any sense to me why more minorities aren't conservatives. I'm a mixed breed female, and conservatism is actually a more beneficial political stance for me than it is to be a liberal.
The tenets of conservatism by and large speak to people from the old countries, and it also very much preserves this "land of opportunity" as opposed to "land of welfare" which is offered by the left.
Most immigrants understand that the biggest cost of socialism is freedom, so they come here to do their own thang! Makes sense to me! My mom and her mom did that. So did my dad's grandparents. They came here not knowing any English. My dad's ancestors were illiterate. But when government stays out of your dish, you can make your way... and clearly it was a better way than what their old country had to offer or they wouldn't have come in the first place.
I've seen a lot of posts, and heard quite a few radio talk shows address this. There was a lady who wrote a book (can't remember her name to save my life) who was on the radio talking about how she doesn't understand why Hispanics aren't all Conservatives, and lists out the parallels between Hispanic culture and Conservatism. There was a black guy on MySpace who made a similar argument for why blacks should be conservatives. I can make a very similar argument for why Asians should be Conservatives.
Blows my mind how the right has been branded as this all white men's club.
@ Kelly
I agree with you.
Are you part Asian? The reason I ask is that I think most Asians, Hispanics and Blacks are conservative in nature, just not political. And that's where the problem lies.
One of the reasons I started this blog is because I wanted to break that perception that not all conservatives look like Newt Gingrich.