Zackory Kirk wrote an article in the Oct. 16 edition of The Reflector titled “Meredith offends some students.” Kirk’s article was offensive. He took it upon himself to speak in supposed outrage, on behalf of some students on the opinions of James Meredith. Kirk’s article has brought up some interesting points that I would like to addres. First, Kirk expressed disappointment that Meredith did not speak about integration and his fight to attend Ole Miss. Granted, Kirk did commend Meredith for speaking out of the box, but the entirety of the article was directed at attacking Meredith for his opinion and perspective. Kirk lamented the supposed downfall of a civil rights icon.
What I want to know, however, is why Meredith’s speech was so out of the box. Was it because he did not talk poorly of the state of Mississippi and its struggles with integration? Or was it because Meredith felt that he had something more important to discuss with the students at MSU? Is it that Kirk cannot handle the fact that Meredith has actually gone on to accomplish other things in his life?
Perhaps Meredith feels that his role in the integration of Mississippi institutions of higher learning was not the most important event of his entire life. To be honest, there are people in this country who are sick of hearing from men like Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton and people who claim to fight on behalf of the poor, the impoverished and the oppressed.
When was the last time that one of Jackson’s multimillion dollar lawsuits actually fed a 3-year-old child from Tibbee, Miss.? As I recall, these supposed black leaders even turned their backs on the people of Tibbee when they were trying to keep that landfill out of their backyards. Apparently, that situation was not controversial enough. America is not filled with black, white, Hispanic or Asian people. We are Americans, working together for the benefit of our children and the children of our neighbors.
Granted, recent studies have indicated that as many as 12 percent of people in America today harbor racist feelings toward members of other ethnic backgrounds. Make no mistake, this country will contain such people, but I say that together we can leave those people behind and move on with our lives.
Kirk then went on to attack Meredith for the subjects that Meredith addressed. Anyone, especially the opinion editor of a media outlet, should respect individuals for having opinions different from their own. Meredith was not harming anyone with his ideas and words, he was simply voicing them to an audience that had elected to listen to what he had to say. Just because Meredith did not say and does not think as one would expect him to think as a black man, does not make him wrong and does not make him an “Uncle Tom”(as I have heard him referred to by another prominent student on our campus); the phrase, “Uncle Tom,” is one of the most racist phrases I have heard. If Kirk wants to speak about racism, let him talk about that.
Finally, as was expected, Kirk managed to get in his routine jab at the Republican Party, which he does with every article. As a faithful peon of the Democratic Party, Kirk wrapped up the task he set out to accomplish-to discredit another African-American Republican by claiming that the white man has merely brain-washed Meredith into promoting the platform of the Republican Party. The claim that the Republican Party is out to get all blacks, Hispanics, Asians, women, and defenseless little children is outplayed. The American people have stopped listening to this senseless rhetoric and are tired of running from imaginary “boogeymen.”
The fact of the matter is that some people understand the value of individual responsibility. Some people value the beauty of family. Some people appreciate good citizenship. If Kirk doesn’t like Meredith because of his values, then he can look to other black leaders. What about Charles Evers, the brother of Medgar Evers; Starr Parker, a reformed welfare mother; Colin Powell, the first African-American secretary of state, or Condoleeza Rice, the first African-American national security advisor? What about Yvonne Brown, the mayor of Tchula, MS, or Clarence Thomas, the second African-American Supreme Court Justice? No one can deny the value of these individuals, but Zackory Kirk sure will try.