A frequent contributor to the Daily Journal online comments chides me whenever I say something negative about former President Trump. He reminds me how I had once shared my writing decision making process: “Will it move anyone who isn’t already on one side or the other? Will it give people hope, motivate them to do good? Will it spark mutually helpful discussions?”
In my Sept. 16 column I wrote about Trump claiming that immigrants were taking away “Black jobs” and Haitians in Springfield were “eating dogs and cats.” A recent article I read shared stories of lifelong Republicans, former Trump supporters, who could not vote for him again because of things Trump said or did. So I did hope my column might move people leaning toward Trump/Vance to reconsider. I hoped to inspire other people to get involved, volunteer, travel, phone bank, send letters and postcards, and most importantly, vote. Did I, for a minute, expect that absolutely hard-core MAGA Trump/Vance supporters might be moved? No.
Now here’s an attempt to spark helpful conversations. The California Task Force to Study and Develop Reparations Proposals for African Americans submitted its final report to the governor and Legislature last year and this year’s budget includes $12 million for “reparations legislation.” Our legislators are weighing proposals to “issue a formal apology for California’s role in perpetuating discrimination against Black residents, to create an agency to administer reparations programs, and to identify families whose property was unjustly seized through eminent domain.” Those are all worthy of consideration. Republican response? In a July AP story, Assembly Republican Leader James Gallagher said “Slavery was a stain on our nation’s history, but I don’t believe it’s fair to try to right the wrongs of the past at the expense of the people today who did nothing wrong. More than a quarter of Californians are immigrants — how can we look at those people, who are struggling as it is, and say it’s on them to make up for something that happened more than 150 years ago?”
I’m reminded of a documentary in which a man who was about to become a German citizen was shown taking a class on the Holocaust. The filmmaker asked why the man should care, since he had come from another continent 70 years later. Paraphrasing his response: “This is about to become my country and as a citizen I will be responsible for knowing and taking ownership of the past and doing whatever I can so that we all have a better future.” Wow.
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Massive amounts of wealth were generated because of slavery and generations of people accrued and benefited from that wealth. Wealth was also gained beyond slavery through continued mistreatment of Black Americans who’ve faced significant harm since emancipation. I believe we can and should do things to help repair, in some measure, that harm. Ideas for reparations include direct financial compensation, free or reduced cost college tuition, housing down payments and discounted mortgages, business/entrepreneurship support, community investments and policies to address ongoing inequities. I hope the Legislature considers all of those. Like the newly minted German, we are all responsible for our nation’s past.
Speaking of reparations, let’s circle back to Haitians. Did you know that in 1825, decades after Haiti gained independence through a slave revolt, France demanded that Haiti pay 150 million Francs as reparations to the former slave owners? Under a massive military threat, Haiti was forced to take high-interest loans from French banks to pay those reparations. Economists estimate the payments cost Haiti $21 billion to $115 billion in lost economic growth over time. The crippling financial mess France imposed on Haiti severely hindered the country’s development and continues to impact its economic situation today. The poorest country in the Western Hemisphere (according to the Council on Foreign Relations), suffering from natural disasters and horrific gang violence, is it any wonder that many Haitians have sought refuge elsewhere? The Census says 852,000 Haitians live in the United States, 68% naturalized citizens, plus many living and working here legally under Temporary Protected Status, a law enacted by Congress with countries designated eligible to stay and work by the Department of Homeland Security.
Trump and Vance, are lying when they call all Haitians in Springfield Ohio “illegal.” Immigrants actually helped fuel Springfield’s economic revival after decades of decline. Anna Kilgore, who started the whole cat story, found Miss Sassy hiding at home a few days after reporting her missing, and apologized to her Haitian neighbors. Will Trump/Vance apologize or stop lying? No. In fact, Vance promised to keep “creating stories.”
Will folks knowing Haiti’s history, Springfield’s present and Trump’s lies be moved to think anew about reparations, anti-racism, immigration and our choices in this election? I hope so.
Craig Wiesner is the co-owner of Reach And Teach, a book, toy and cultural gift shop on San Carlos Avenue in San Carlos.
Thanks for your column, Mr. Wiesner. I’m no longer disappointed you’ve fallen “off the wagon” and failed to adhere to your more than two months ago “promise” to write columns that would move anyone who isn’t already on one side or the other, to give people hope or motivate them to do better, or to spark mutually helpful discussions. The bigger question now is whether your “promise” was ever meant to be serious (knowing your past penchant for bias towards Trump, I didn’t think it was, but I hoped you would open your heart and mind).
It’s interesting there’s only a task force to study proposals for African Americans and no other race. Using discrimination to address discrimination will never work because, well, everyone can find a way they’re being discriminated against. In this case, the task force discriminates against everyone else. Assembly Republican Leader James Gallagher is correct in his statement.
Speaking of lying, let’s assume for a moment that what you say about Trump and Vance regarding Haiti is correct. What about Harris lying (and not just during the Trump/Harris debate but pretty much anytime she opens her mouth – outside of her word salads) with statements that have already been debunked – many by the left wing press? Why does Harris get a pass? Why does the Harris “insurrection” against Biden and Biden/Harris giving Afghanistan to the Taliban get a pass? Why does Harris’s abject failure as border czar get a pass? A failure to distract from America Last Harris by focusing on Trump, except to the non-MAGA left. BTW, what’s wrong with Making America Great Again?
Another big fail on moving folks to another side, unless you’re talking about moving more Dems to the Trump side… Big fail on giving people hope or motivating them to do better, unless you’re talking about motivating folks to do better in doing homework to educate themselves on Harris’s failures… Big fail on sparking mutually helpful discussions, because your one-sided columns are based on demonizing Trump while willfully ignoring everything Harris… You assert that you didn’t, “expect that absolutely hard-core MAGA Trump/Vance supporters might be moved. After the last series of columns, I’d say you shouldn’t expect soft-core Trump/Vance supporters or Democrats on the fence to move to your POV, either.
I guess the experiment is over. I no longer hope you can do better. It’s patently obvious that you’d rather lead with emotion rather than what’s best for America. I’d recommend you retract your “promise” so I won't continually use it as a soapbox against your columns.
I suggest Craig go to the Union Cemetery in Redwood City, stand in front of the statue of the Civil War soldier that guards the plot containing the remains of men who fought in that bloody conflict and recite the Gettysburg Address. Reparation. were paid with their blood.
Craig, it didn't take long for you to fall off your diet of love and kindness and you have fallen off the wagon again. Your addiction is fiction, lies, emotions and hate, might we call it TDS? I'm sure most people can see through that sly, little, happy grin in your photo.
I disagree that news about reparations out of Sacramento will spark helpful conversations. The state senate's leading Republican is absolutely correct to call out the stain of slavery on our history, and he is equally correct in his belief that it is not fair to insist present-day Californians should be expected to right the wrongs of slavery. More than 25% of those present-day Californians are immigrants born outside the US... should they be expected to pay reparations for the cruelty inflicted on African Americans on the other side of the country 170 years ago? You try to make the case those immigrants should pay by telling the story of a man applying for citizenship in Germany who said he accepted responsibility for the Holocaust. What should he pay for the atrocities committed against the Jewish people? Let's not forget in 1849, California's state constitution forbade slavery as a rebuke to Southern sympathizers who thought slavery in California would be a good idea. There doesn't seem to be a nexus between a state where slavery was not allowed and the payment of reparations more than a century and half later.
About a year ago, a UC Berkeley study showed that almost 60% of Californians opposed reparations while nearly 30% approved of reparations. Yet, 93 Democrats in our state legislature keep pushing for repreparations even though an overwhelming majority of Californians oppose those efforts. California also has a history of rejecting preferences based on race. However, the same Democratic Party keeps trying to dismantle voter approved Proposition 209. SB 185, a legislative attempt to reinstate affirmative action, was rejected by Governor Jerry Brown. The legislature tried again by moving Proposition 16 to the ballot in 2020 to repeal Proposition 209... it was rejected by voters. It appears those 93 Democrats are pandering to African Amercian voters in California with talk of reparations... that doesn't seem fair either. Perhaps the supermajority in Sacramento should be more concerned about the state budget, high gas prices, housing, and poor performing schools? Those things affect Californians of all colors.
So, can you explain how talk of reparations in Sacramento will spark helpful conversations in the rest of the state?
Craig your history of Haiti leaves out the massive role played by the United States for over a hundred years up to the present in the sorry subjugation of Haiti. The U.S. invaded Haiti and then ran the country for decades and has kept most of its population in abject poverty under a variety of banana republic governments. The US is the biggest and most destructive gang operating in Haiti: as per usual, US corporations looting its natural resources, keeping the population at subsistent levels to exploit cheap labor, and ruling through a corrupt elite.
The Biden/Harris administration has not changed the existing neo-colonial relationship. The assassination of Haitian president Jovenel Moise occurred in July 2021 during the first year Biden/Harris was in office (perhaps Kamala ran that operation that couldn’t find time to watch the US border ;-)).
To put down the revolution brewing against the latest US pawn government, rather than have the US troops invade Haiti directly - which would be too obvious - the Biden administration is having other puppet governments, including Kenya, be the face of its occupation.
The US is beefing up military forces in Haiti and the Caribbean and has plans to build a permanent military presence on Haiti to run the counter-revolution.
After the devastating earthquake in 2010, Democrat Bill Clinton was put in charge of the reconstruction of Haiti by Democrat President Obama and that ended up in being another looting operation.
Things won’t improve until the US allows Haitians real independence. Haiti is a disgrace to America’s false claim of being leader of the free world.
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(5) comments
Thanks for your column, Mr. Wiesner. I’m no longer disappointed you’ve fallen “off the wagon” and failed to adhere to your more than two months ago “promise” to write columns that would move anyone who isn’t already on one side or the other, to give people hope or motivate them to do better, or to spark mutually helpful discussions. The bigger question now is whether your “promise” was ever meant to be serious (knowing your past penchant for bias towards Trump, I didn’t think it was, but I hoped you would open your heart and mind).
It’s interesting there’s only a task force to study proposals for African Americans and no other race. Using discrimination to address discrimination will never work because, well, everyone can find a way they’re being discriminated against. In this case, the task force discriminates against everyone else. Assembly Republican Leader James Gallagher is correct in his statement.
Speaking of lying, let’s assume for a moment that what you say about Trump and Vance regarding Haiti is correct. What about Harris lying (and not just during the Trump/Harris debate but pretty much anytime she opens her mouth – outside of her word salads) with statements that have already been debunked – many by the left wing press? Why does Harris get a pass? Why does the Harris “insurrection” against Biden and Biden/Harris giving Afghanistan to the Taliban get a pass? Why does Harris’s abject failure as border czar get a pass? A failure to distract from America Last Harris by focusing on Trump, except to the non-MAGA left. BTW, what’s wrong with Making America Great Again?
Another big fail on moving folks to another side, unless you’re talking about moving more Dems to the Trump side… Big fail on giving people hope or motivating them to do better, unless you’re talking about motivating folks to do better in doing homework to educate themselves on Harris’s failures… Big fail on sparking mutually helpful discussions, because your one-sided columns are based on demonizing Trump while willfully ignoring everything Harris… You assert that you didn’t, “expect that absolutely hard-core MAGA Trump/Vance supporters might be moved. After the last series of columns, I’d say you shouldn’t expect soft-core Trump/Vance supporters or Democrats on the fence to move to your POV, either.
I guess the experiment is over. I no longer hope you can do better. It’s patently obvious that you’d rather lead with emotion rather than what’s best for America. I’d recommend you retract your “promise” so I won't continually use it as a soapbox against your columns.
I suggest Craig go to the Union Cemetery in Redwood City, stand in front of the statue of the Civil War soldier that guards the plot containing the remains of men who fought in that bloody conflict and recite the Gettysburg Address. Reparation. were paid with their blood.
Craig, it didn't take long for you to fall off your diet of love and kindness and you have fallen off the wagon again. Your addiction is fiction, lies, emotions and hate, might we call it TDS? I'm sure most people can see through that sly, little, happy grin in your photo.
Hello, Craig
I disagree that news about reparations out of Sacramento will spark helpful conversations. The state senate's leading Republican is absolutely correct to call out the stain of slavery on our history, and he is equally correct in his belief that it is not fair to insist present-day Californians should be expected to right the wrongs of slavery. More than 25% of those present-day Californians are immigrants born outside the US... should they be expected to pay reparations for the cruelty inflicted on African Americans on the other side of the country 170 years ago? You try to make the case those immigrants should pay by telling the story of a man applying for citizenship in Germany who said he accepted responsibility for the Holocaust. What should he pay for the atrocities committed against the Jewish people? Let's not forget in 1849, California's state constitution forbade slavery as a rebuke to Southern sympathizers who thought slavery in California would be a good idea. There doesn't seem to be a nexus between a state where slavery was not allowed and the payment of reparations more than a century and half later.
About a year ago, a UC Berkeley study showed that almost 60% of Californians opposed reparations while nearly 30% approved of reparations. Yet, 93 Democrats in our state legislature keep pushing for repreparations even though an overwhelming majority of Californians oppose those efforts. California also has a history of rejecting preferences based on race. However, the same Democratic Party keeps trying to dismantle voter approved Proposition 209. SB 185, a legislative attempt to reinstate affirmative action, was rejected by Governor Jerry Brown. The legislature tried again by moving Proposition 16 to the ballot in 2020 to repeal Proposition 209... it was rejected by voters. It appears those 93 Democrats are pandering to African Amercian voters in California with talk of reparations... that doesn't seem fair either. Perhaps the supermajority in Sacramento should be more concerned about the state budget, high gas prices, housing, and poor performing schools? Those things affect Californians of all colors.
So, can you explain how talk of reparations in Sacramento will spark helpful conversations in the rest of the state?
Craig your history of Haiti leaves out the massive role played by the United States for over a hundred years up to the present in the sorry subjugation of Haiti. The U.S. invaded Haiti and then ran the country for decades and has kept most of its population in abject poverty under a variety of banana republic governments. The US is the biggest and most destructive gang operating in Haiti: as per usual, US corporations looting its natural resources, keeping the population at subsistent levels to exploit cheap labor, and ruling through a corrupt elite.
The Biden/Harris administration has not changed the existing neo-colonial relationship. The assassination of Haitian president Jovenel Moise occurred in July 2021 during the first year Biden/Harris was in office (perhaps Kamala ran that operation that couldn’t find time to watch the US border ;-)).
To put down the revolution brewing against the latest US pawn government, rather than have the US troops invade Haiti directly - which would be too obvious - the Biden administration is having other puppet governments, including Kenya, be the face of its occupation.
The US is beefing up military forces in Haiti and the Caribbean and has plans to build a permanent military presence on Haiti to run the counter-revolution.
After the devastating earthquake in 2010, Democrat Bill Clinton was put in charge of the reconstruction of Haiti by Democrat President Obama and that ended up in being another looting operation.
Things won’t improve until the US allows Haitians real independence. Haiti is a disgrace to America’s false claim of being leader of the free world.
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Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
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Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
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