Bill Johnson, a veteran Detroit political commentator, has harsh words for organizers of a 50th anniversary commemoration Saturday of a historic march down Woodward to Cobo led by Martin Luther King, Jr.
He writes at his blog:
Power-seeking labor and civil rights advocates expect to attract 1 million people to follow the route Dr. King took down Woodward on June 23, 1963. . . .
The event is less about the commemoration of King’s struggle and aspirations for America, and more about the self-serving NAACP and UAW. Both are trying to regain respectability.
Historic photo shows huge crowd outside Cobo on June 23, 1963.
Johnson, an African American former Detroit News editorial writer, sees the NAACP as out of touch an out of step.
For the NAACP to blame the deteriorating black condition on forces and people who have nothing to do with the denial of opportunity brings into question the real motives of the organization, its supporters and followers. . . .
The NAACP, which once preached “unity” has morphed into one the largest proponents of the “us against them syndrome.” Years after the decline of skin color as an impediment to progress the group causes race consciousness to remain at a high level and race relations at their worst
No longer is the organization respected as the premier legal arm of the civil rights movement. Nor is it held in high esteem among young blacks.
The outspoken blogger also takes a shot at the United Auto Workers, co-organizer of Saturday's anniversary march on Woodward.
The UAW, also looked at with a jaundice eye, needs to bolster its shrinking ranks to be seen as politically legitimate. Both organizations are not averse to using black victimization to incite, alienate and “keep race alive.”
Dr. King’s dream isn’t deferred by some vast white conspiracy – but by the failure of credible black leadership to be good shepherds for those still un-prepared to walk through the doors of opportunity opened by King.
Earlier Coverage: Historic Touchstone: Woodward March Echoes MLK's 1963 Footsteps, May 27
