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April 9, 2000
The Honorable Mike Moore, Director General
World Trade Organization
154 rue de Lausanne
1211 Geneva 21
Switzerland
Honorable Sir:
America is a nation built on slavery, lynching and segregation. It flourished on the blood of African slaves and their descendants. Now, America has instituted trade and immigration policies that re-segregate blacks. Blacks in America are without a voice and without any means to influence policy in these matters, other than to plead for help from groups, such as the World Trade Organization (WTO). President Bill Clinton refuses to respond to repeated requests to address issues raised in his Race Initiative. Instead, the nation is enmeshed is symbolism, epitomized by the Confederate flag debate. Candidates for President Al Gore and George W. Bush, Jr. are committed to ultra-conservative ideas and will only give lip service to the black man's condition.
Citizens of Georgia are set to begin an international boycott of states in the United States that officially display symbols of the Confederacy; our boycott officially begins on May 20, 2000 National Blackout Day. Our action is precipitated by America's efforts to deny any responsibility for slavery's effects, as symbolized by the Confederate flag debate, which has become a beachhead for maintaining white privilege. Recently, in letters to the Honorable Tony Blair of England and President Romano Prodi of the European Union, the Richard L. Kirksey, Jr. Memorial Foundation's position was outlined in a request for support of this international boycott. Basically Sir, we are appealing to you and your organization for the same level of commitment and support.
Succinctly, Georgia, South Carolina and Mississippi are presently standing as the firewall of the Old South, while advertising to the world slaves' descendants have achieved equality. They insist displaying the Confederate flag honor their heritage. Our rejoinder is their heritage represents centuries of slavery, lynching, segregation, share cropping and massacres of thousands of our people at places like Rosewood, FL and Greenwood, OK. Honoring such a badge of horror, pain, hatred and death is to underwrite genocide.
Clinton/Gore and Congress (H-1B) are using immigration of Europeans, Arabs, Indians and Asians to form buffers to keep blacks locked in a second class status. Once allowed into America, the federal government finances immigrant businesses which help exploit blacks. Immigrants must adopt the attitudes whites hold about blacks and perpetuate white heritage by teaching their children these same attitudes. Second generation's immigrants view blacks with the same slave master mindset as whites, even though they have no knowledge of slavery and segregation.
American citizens in southern states are asking the international community to support our efforts to gain dignity and respect as people to be valued as equals in our own country. First, we ask that you speak out about the history of injustice blacks have endured and America's refusal to pay reparations. Next, withhold all investments and prevail upon your citizens to avoid travel to the United States, in particular Georgia, Mississippi and South Carolina. Until America changes its discriminatory policies as embodied in its Constitution and symbolized by the Confederate flag, we are relegated to a second class status in the world's foremost democracy. We ask the WTO and the world community, which have always turned deaf ears and blind eyes to our pleas, to support a world-wide boycott of Georgia, Mississippi and South Carolina, so that we may turn away the Nazi forces of re-segregation vying for continued control of this great nation. A world dominated by people of color can ill-afford to be viewed through the lens of a slave master!
Respectfully,
John Burl Smith
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