John G. Diefenbaker Quotes
I have an intensive hatred for discrimination based on color.
John G. Diefenbaker, 1895-1975, Canadian Prime Minister (Conservative), Maclean's, March 29, 1958
Sourced by: Eigen's Political and Historical Quotations
This quotation was used by the Lyndon B. Johnson 1964 Campaign as: “We represent the majority of the people in Alabama who hate niggerism, Catholicism, Judaism, and all the isms of the whole world.” So said Robert Creel of the Alabama Ku Klux Klan. He also said, “I like Barry Goldwater. He needs our help.” The second statement was made at a different time.
She was one of the first prominent white southerners to denounce racial segregation.
This song and this musical was a profound attack on the essence of racial segregation at a time when discrimination was legal and practiced throughout the country and almost universally in the South. Southern politicians castigated the song, the show, and especially Hammerstein who they called a Communist for promoting such radical views. Ironically, South Pacific became one of the most frequently produced High School Shows by 1979 and remained so into the 21st century including in the South.
The law enforcement officers were the ones who broke the law when they beat and brutalized the peaceful civil rights marchers. The “white niggers” refer to the white marchers including clergy.
[This was the first Abolition appeal written by a Black Man. It was published in Boston and despite the fact that it was very critical of whites, was very popular going through two more printings within the next two years.]
Billy Sunday was the most famous preacher of the day. Unlike the vast majority of white preachers, he not only preached to black audiences but exuded an atmosphere of friendliness and comfort around Blacks that amazed most. Most Black leaders thought Sunday was very good for race relations, but there were some clergy like Grimke who criticized him. Sunday was castigated by many racist whites for preaching to Blacks, but he did not go as far as to condemn or preach against racism and the discrimination of the day and he would not preach to an integrated audience. Grimke, in contrast, preached to an integrated congregation and was one of the few white clergy who did in the South. (Washington DC was then a southern, segregated city.) See {585415} for another critique of Sunday.
The Black campaign staffer was asked if he was anti-Semitic.
His reference was to ethnic Indians and Chinese living in Kenya and other countries of Africa. Asians are a minority group in African countries and the legally sanctioned discrimination against them is part of an ugly type of discrimination which still exists.
For a similar sentiment, see Thurgood Marshall.
Througout political history, including in America, opportunistic, unscruplous politicians have appealed to the prejudices and hates of subsets of the population for others (usually minorities) to get elected or obtain support for legislation and administrative action. In America this has been an element of all populist movements—an enemy. This quote is particularly enlightening in that it shows that the real need is to have a minority to focus the public against—which one is not as material as the fact that there is one.
John George Diefenbaker PC CH QC FRSC FRSA was the 13th prime minister of Canada, serving from 1957 to 1963. Between 1930 and 1979, he was the only federal Progressive Conservative (PC or Tory) leader to lead the party to an election victory, doing so three times, although only once with a majority of seats in the House of Commons of Canada.
