LETTER TO THE EDITOR

October 11, 2012 Filed under COMMENTARIES Posted by admin

NAACP silent on ex-offenders’ rights

Dear editor:

Since I became a member of the NAACP in January 2012, I have complained to NAACP officials about speaking out for so-called gay rights earlier this year but not for the right of ex-offenders to be able to vote.

Nothing has changed because the NAACP waited until too close to election time to have any chance of changing the law so ex-offenders could vote in this election.

Without being able to vote, ex-offenders suffer from taxation without representation, which was a reason for the Revolutionary War. But if ex-offenders wanted to start a revolution, America’s hypocrites would call them terrorists.

Also notice that the NAACP still has not boldly spoken out against all the legalized job discrimination against ex-offenders. Why was it more important to have marches for Trayvon Martin, but not for the thousands of Black ex-offenders who suffer employment discrimination? What does this say about the leadership of the NAACP?

Since Benjamin Jealous and Julian Bond are the NAACP leaders and are closer to White than Black in skin color, could this be part of the problem?

In fact, since the NAACP has many White members, could such integration be an example of infiltration designed to prevent a powerful Black political formation? These are legitimate questions that should be discussed instead of hushed.

– Vince Carthane
St. Petersburg, Florida