When we agree with Sam Brownback...
...we feel compelled to say so. Especially since we are so often obligated to point out the senator's faulty intelligence, as David Martin does so well in his column this week.
Yesterday, Brownback announced that the Senate had passed a resolution apologizing for "the enslavement and racial segregation of African-Americans."
Brownback had sponsored the resolution along with Democratic Senator Tom Harkin of Iowa. In his speech, Harkin pointed out all of the ways in which the U.S. government had perpetuated the unjust legacies of slavery:
Numerous states and even corporations such as J.P. Morgan and Aetna have apologized for their role in slavery and Jim Crow. But slavery and Jim Crow, and their continuing consequences are not the historical baggage of one state, one region, or one company. They are an enduring national shame. It was the nation that enshrined slavery in the Constitution and Congress that passed laws such as the Missouri Compromise and Fugitive Slave Act. It was the nation's Supreme Court which bolstered slavery and affirmed segregation in Dred Scott vs. Sandford and Plessey vs. Ferguson. This resolution acknowledges and apologizes for a past collective injustice. And it is long over-due.Brownback, meanwhile, focused a bit more on Kansas -- where, at the moment, he appears certain to be the next governor.
I am pleased that Congress has officially offered an apology for slavery and it's long overdue. The formation of my home state of Kansas was centered around slavery and came to be known as Bleeding Kansas. I believe that this official apology will enable our nation to begin healing our racial wounds rooted in the institution of slavery. I do not pretend that this apology is a panacea but it is a much needed catalyst for reconciliation. It is vital that together we are able to reconcile the hurt and shame of our past and begin together a brighter future for all Americans.
Among other things, the resolution "calls on all people of the United States to work toward eliminating racial prejudices, injustices and discrimination from our society."
We'll be watching closely to see how closely Pius Sam's actions follow his words.
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