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From the Right: The NAACP – Held in 'Bond-age'
By Raynard Jackson, AOL BlackVoices columnist
When Kweisi Mfume took over, the NAACP was mired in financial and sexual scandal, and he immediately brought stability to the group in the midst of these controversies. The corporate and political arenas remained committed to the group solely because of Mfume’s stature.
Now he’s leaving -- because the group remains held in "Julian Bond-age."
Bond is a longtime activist within the group and chairman of the board since 1998. During his tenure, he has increasingly made comments embarrassing to the organization, leaving Mfume spending more and more of his time doing damage control.
In Congress, both Democrats and Republicans regarded Mfume as a man of high integrity and great professionalism. Resigning his House seat to head the NAACP showed hope for the group’s future. But it is well known that Mfume and Bond’s relationship has been tenuous at best.
Always be wary when a politician like Mfume says, "I want to spend more time with my family."
Interpretation: – "Something bad is about to happen and I want to get out ahead of the curve" or "I am tired of fighting internal battles."
How effective can a group be when your leadership has totally alienated the party -- Republican -- that controls the federal government and 29 governorships? That’s what Bond has done, and Mfume has become increasingly frustrated at Bond’s unwillingness to tone down his rhetoric.
Examples of some of Bond’s hate-filled remarks are: "I was afraid to listen to Bush’s speech at the Brown commemoration in Topeka two months ago -- afraid he’d announce he was going to repeal the 14th Amendment" and "Their idea of equal rights is the American flag and the Confederate swastika flying side by side" and "They [Republicans] draw their most rabid supporters from the Taliban wing of American politics."
The NAACP’s membership is stagnant, its image sullied by Bond, its relationship with corporate America is weak, and now the group has lost Mfume, its most credible leader.
There is a whole group within our community that wants to move beyond race and focus on individual (and group—a la the Cosby factor) responsibility and economic empowerment. They don’t want to be told what to believe. They want to be given the facts and they will make their own conclusions. The NAACP has become a vestige of the Democratic National Committee (DNC), though the group claims to be non-partisan.
Bond’s comments have led to the I.R.S. IRS launching an investigating investigation of the organization’s tax-exempt status. His recklessness has risked the livelihood of the NAACP.
Mfume attempted to remain true to the NAACP’s legacy of the NAACP being nonpartisan and a major force within our community. But, because of Bond’s uncontrollable appetite for hyperbole and his hate- filled rhetoric, the group has lost its vision. Regardless of who fills Mfume’s position -- he cannot be replaced -- the organization will never be viewed as it once was. As long as the group is held in "Julian Bond-age," it will never get a meeting with President Bush, or successfully advance an agenda.
Mfume shouldn’t be the only person on his way out the door.
It’s time for Bond to resign his position as chairman of the board and to cut all ties to the organization.