Bush to Address NAACP at 97th Gathering et al

Bush to Address NAACP at 97th Gathering - AP

President to Address NAACP Tomorrow - Washington Post

Bush's Poverty Talk Is Now All but Silent - Washington Post

At NAACP, Bush Tries to Mend Rift - Washington Post

For Bush and the NAACP, Uneasy Does It - Washington Post

Now that President Bush has agreed to address the NAACP, each side should consider a few ground rules that will surely enhance the experience and hopefully set a tone for on-going constructive dialog. The following are the top ten things that the NAACP and President Bush should be sure to do, or not do, when they meet:

1. NAACP members should not boo or heckle the president– he is not there to perform for them, nor they for him. Presidential decorum should be observed.

2. The president should not ‘break the ice’ in his usual way by saying something incredibly inane, obtuse, or amusing only to himself.

3. NAACP members should realize that unlike just about every other sitting president, George Bush has proven that he believes in the potential of Black people, albeit the ones most likely to have experienced gang-wedgies in grade school, except for General Powell.

4. The president should not apologize for his prior convention absences. If the benefits did not outweigh the risks in his mind, staying away was his prerogative.

5. NAACP members should ignore partisanship. Recall that 9 of 10 voted for Al Gore, inventor of the ‘Willie Horton’ scare-the-crap-out-White-folks race card, and the ‘real’ guy who put George Bush, the senior, into office.

6. The president should not act like a tough guy. Black people cannot resist the challenge of humbling a pompous-ass, even when it means they will suffer a much greater penalty in the end.

7. NAACP members should remember that the organization has a ‘relevance problem’, and getting the president to show up is significant to gaining attention that has meaning.

8. The president should remember that he has nothing, and everything, to apologize for, just like every other sitting president. He need not get ‘fancy’ with his words or his record.

9. NAACP members should accept that the President’s No Child Left Behind (NCLB) program, while only a tourniquet, has brought more attention and money to the plight of Black students than anyone would have ever believed.

10. The president should remember that Black people are in a state of bravado-camouflaged confusion about why the group is educationally and economically stalled. Inasmuch, they need leadership that is tough, caring, and effective – a challenge he needs to take very seriously.

James C. Collier

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