Beaudion: I can’t hear what you say, because I see what you do

Julian Beaudion
·4 min read
7

“Thank you Mr. Speaker. 153 years ago. 153 years ago this week, the US Congress passed the Black Voting Rights Bill. 153 years ago, and it was only accomplished with Republican votes, so Happy Black History Month!”

This isn’t the first time SD State Rep. Phil Jensen has tried to alter Black History, and I’m sure it won’t be the last.

In 2019, Jensen passed around inaccurate information describing modern Democratic as the KKK to school aged children.

But the words quoted above by Jensen on Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2023 were not only inaccurate, they were racially charged for the purpose separating people through miseducation.

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For the purpose of this piece, I will call you Phil, because you do not deserve to have any title attached to your name. I have a problem with people who intentionally misdirect history for their own benefit, but I will give you the benefit of the doubt. Also, since you made Black History political, I will play by your political rules.

In 1866, the very first Civil Rights Bill was passed into law. I will take a minute away from today’s history lesson to point out that it was 157 years ago. This bill gave the right to vote to Black men, and you are correct, it was passed with Republican votes.

In 1866, the Republican Party was seen as the liberals or the radicals. This classification sounds very familiar to the terms used by your Republican Party against today’s Democrats. After the passing of the Bill, 22 Black men were elected to Congress.

The Conservative Party came to an agreement that Black people were progressing too quickly, therefore electing Andrew Johnson. President Johnson wanted to put the rights of the people in the hands of the states. Sure, Johnson was a Democrat, but his belief in State’s Rights sounds just like your Republican Party of today.

For the sake of time, I will breeze past the Conservative Party’s successful attempts throughout the years to restrict the voting rights of Black people.

I will provide a few examples:

  • There were literacy tests given to Black people who were barred by law to become literate.

  • Poll taxes that were at the highest rate of its day.

  • Black Codes, Jim Crow Laws, segregation, New Jim Crow and many other conservative political strategies were used to block the rights given to Black people by liberals.

I moved past those issues rather quickly, because I want to get to the switching of parties. Hopefully, this will help you understand you are no different than an 1866 Democrat.

After the Civil War, which physically liberated Black people, the Republican Party (Liberals) formed Economic Development Strategies in which all people would benefit. These strategies were working great until 1932, when economic disaster struck. Democrats (Conservatives) elected Franklin D. Roosevelt as president. Roosevelt announced, “The New Deal.” Democrats (Conservatives) were against this plan, because it provided things like a minimum wage, social security and improved infrastructure. These are things that had a direct positive impact on Black people.

The Democrats (Conservatives) then constructed the largest political party exit in our country’s history and moved to the Republican Party. Strategies, bills and policies became more and more conservative within the Republican Party and it eventually led to the second largest political party exit, when Black people and progressives moved to the Democratic Party.

Today’s Republican Party is the most accurate representation of yesterday’s Democratic Party, and I would suggest you know your history before speaking on mine. Then again, Conservatives made it illegal for Black people to learn and now Conservatives are trying to make it illegal for anyone to learn about Black people.

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I conclude by saying that it was neither the Republican nor the Democrat that stood by Black people in our struggles. Instead, it has always been the liberal, radical thinkers of progress.

If the goal is to equip the citizens of South Dakota with accurate education as the SD Republican Party has proposed, I would offer the opportunity for you and every other lawmaker to meet with those responsible for accurate and responsible education, such as the SD African American History Museum, the Cultural Heritage Center, educators of color and historians within the State Department of Education.

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So Phil, you can keep your fake and insincere congratulations. And in its place, since you have indirectly created this moment of Black excellence, I extend my thank you, because it obviously wouldn’t be possible without you and your friends in the Republican Party.

Happy Black History Month, we see what you’re doing.

Julian Beaudion is the co-founder of The HUB, a BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and people of color) leadership, networking and professional development organization, in Sioux Falls. And this column is part of an ongoing series of perspectives, called "Speaking Truth to Power," written by voices from a cohort of community leaders and residents weighing in on social issues and current events in South Dakota. The goal is to elevate voices from a diverse group of individuals by challenging issues through different views to contribute to ongoing community conversations.

This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: Beaudion: I can’t hear what you say, because I see what you do