Ricky Jones: Daniel Cameron and his 'anti-woke' conservative comrades want you asleep

“How do you feel about Daniel Cameron winning the Republican nomination for governor of Kentucky?” the reporter asked. “He’s the first Black person to achieve that. Are you excited?”

“Excited? Oh no, I’m not excited. I’m terrified.” I answered.

“Really? So, you’re not supporting him?”

“Absolutely not,” I responded. “How can I? I’m Black. I have a Black child. How can I support a man who is hostile to Black interests?”

The reporter seemed surprised. “So, you’re saying you’ll vote for the white candidate over the Black one and encourage other Black people to do so?”

The white one over the Black one? Oh my!

I see Lawrence Fishburne running across the campus of Spike Lee’s Mission College in my mind, screaming “Wake up!” Contrarily, Daniel Cameron and his “anti-woke” conservative comrades want you asleep. They would have you believe Black people who have dedicated their lives to combatting white supremacy also despise all white people. They would have you believe to hate uncivilized treatment of people based on their race or gender identity means you hate America and western civilization. Simply put, those are deceptions and outright lies.

Gerth: Does choice of Daniel Cameron for governor mean Kentucky Republicans aren't racist?

The twisted world of 'reverse-racist' ideology

In their twisted world, the “reverse-racist” ideology of “woke folk” would mandate that a Black person should never choose lily-white Andy Beshear over our dear Black brother, Daniel Cameron. That would make no sense. In that Matrix-like reality, because of the color of his skin, conservatives would have you believe we Black racists think Andy Beshear isn’t a real human being at all. We regard him as something else altogether and he goes by many names: Satan, Mephistopheles, Azazel, Mammon, Beelzebub, Belial, Lucifer - son of the morning. He’s a son of Yakub. He’s the white devil.

How can I, or any other Black person, vote for the white devil and betray our brave brother Daniel, the first African-American to even dare seek the Kentucky governor’s nomination from one of its two major political parties? It’s the Devil vs. Daniel Cameron! That’s what it comes down to, right? What a ridiculous analysis. Especially in cases like this.

More Ricky Jones: Why Daniel Cameron might be Kentucky's perfect choice for governor

Our Black elders warned us

Members of the Black community have been warned about people who look like us but don’t have our best interests at heart by our elders for generations. We know, “Every brother ain’t a brother” and “all skinfolk ain’t kinfolk.” The consequences of forgetting that and trusting people like Daniel Cameron just because of his melanin level can be deadly.

History has taught Black people very important lessons. We remember that Black slaves who were loyal to their masters betrayed freedom fighters Gabriel Prosser in 1800 and Denmark Vesey 22 years later. Prosser and Vesey were both killed as a result. We remember how William O’Neal got Fred Hampton shot to death in his sleep in 1969 Chicago. We know how Clarence Thomas has soiled the legacy of Thurgood Marshall. The list goes on.

Yes, some of us know that history and much more. In knowing it, we know why Republicans like Cameron and his friends across the country are trying to make the substantive teachings about race and racism in America from kindergarten to college illegal. They want to keep those who know it and care from waking others up.

Politically mature Black people no longer support so-called “successful” Black people, political candidates like Daniel Cameron and new presidential hopeful Tim Scott, or anyone else simply because they’re Black. They know some of these people have sold their souls to “Old Scratch” and work overtime to make the existing racial power structure comfortable by ensuring, “I may look like them, but I’m not like them, and I will help you keep them in check.” That’s the Faustian pact they have made in exchange for their individual good fortunes.

More Ricky Jones: Republicans are not dumb, they've been led astray. GOP heroes are using them.

Democrats take Black people for granted but Republicans are worse

Republicans are right when they say Democrats take Black people, their most loyal constituency, for granted. The donkeys aren’t good and shouldn’t be let off the hook. But the Republicans are so much worse. Yes, there are dark and devilish things going on in American politics. But Andy Beshear isn’t the fork-tongued, slivering, hissing serpent coiled in a tree dripping temptations and deceptions from his reptilian lips.

Yes, it makes sense for smart Black people to choose the white guy over the Black guy in this one. Andy Beshear is no devil and Daniel Cameron is no Daniel Webster. You know that old Stephen Vincent Benét short story, right? Maybe not. Who knows, the Republicans might have placed it on a banned books list because it talks about the ills of slavery. That would be “woke critical race theory.” How devilish! 

Dr. Ricky L. Jones is professor and chair of the Pan-African Studies department at the University of Louisville. His column appears bi-weekly in the Courier-Journal. Visit him at rickyljones.com.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Daniel Cameron and conservative 'anti-woke' comrades want you asleep