Race Mixing Quotes
What he meant by “crosses” was cross breeding or what we would call inter-racial breeding. He was under the scientifically false assumption held by many racists that interracial breeding deteriorates the progeny. Actually, without diversity, species are subject to genetic problems which is why we have prohibitions on marrying siblings and other close relatives. He was also historically inaccurate in the Arabs and the other Semitic people of the Middle East were inbred with less intermarriage than most European whites.
This classic quotation illustrates several things. First, the degree of racism that existed in 1944 in West Virginia. Second, not how young Robert Byrd immediately leaped from the possibility of integrating our fighting forces to interracial sex. That has been typical of white racism in America—a preoccupation with race and sex. Last, Byrd who became a member of the KKK, completely changed his mind over the year and ended up supporting the things that, as a youth were worse than the demise of the nation. He matured and grew on the race issue as much of the country did and ended as a strong supporter of equality and civil rights—including affirmative action.
This was a bomb-shell statement at the time. Advocates for equality and desegregation usually tried to avoid this issue and Black leaders in particular were afraid of a backlash if they included this issue in the argument for equality. Du Bois did not run from the issue. His position was used by segregation leaders to show what “evils” would befall the nation if segregation was ended. See {586739}.
Russell like the rest of the Southern Congressional delegation, though members of the President’s own party were vehemently opposed to any civil rights legislation that would erode the legal racism and segregation that was prevalent in the South. The irony of Russell’s statement is that by Russell’s definition of a “mongrel race” the South was just that. And in a very real genetic sense all the great civilizations were characterized by interbreeding which is what Russell and other Southerners were paranoid about. The Southern institution of slavery was rife with the sexual abuse of the female slaves by the white masters and/or members of their family, overseers and other whites with power over the slaves. While many of the offspring were identifiable as mixed race (defined as Black by the laws at the time) many appeared to be white and light skinned enough to “pass” and did. A very large percentage of Southern white and black families had mixed blood in the family when Russell was complaining. More to the point, although it was not known at the time, we now know that every human being on earth can be genetically traced back through myocardial DNA to Blacks emanating from Africa. However, even using his narrow vision of race, his history was wanting. A number of great civilizations were of mixed race. One dramatic example was the great dynasties of Egypt. Cleopatra, herself, was from the union of Alexander the Great’s Greek General Ptolemy and the traditional line of Egyptian Pharos. Alexander’s Greek Soldiers interbred, as part of Alexander’s policy of occupation as suggested by Aristotle. All those societies thereafter were “mongrel” races at least in the ruling and upper classes. Actually the United States and the Soviet Union, the two super powers of the day both were ethnically and racially, highly diversified and both had a great deal of miscegenation. Scientists had made a very good argument that miscegenation strengthens a people—not weakens it.
Bilbo was one of the worst racists who ever served in the Congress.
This was passed after the Civil War had ended---during Reconstruction. Many states had similar laws until the Supreme Court challenges to them in the latter half of the 20th century.
He served a jail sentence in Britain for inciting race hatred. This statement was made in response to the accusation that he was an extremist.
Actually, The Theory of Evolution shows no such thing. Diversity is critical for Natural Selection to function. It is the inbred Royalty of Europe that showed a propensity to various defects and abnormalities. There are millions of examples where the offspring of a couple are superior to both parents with respect to a characteristic. Some also who are inferior to both parents. Then there are some “in-between”. Traits in evolution and generics are not subject to a simple averaging.
The danger of racial and ethnic interbreeding was a fabricated myth. We now know that the danger can come from pure breeding and not obtaining enough genetic diversity. One reason that man has been so successful is that the species is the product of very extensive genetic diversity. For example EVERY human being on the planet had some genetic relationship to a Black African woman.
He was referring to the French Revolutionist, Joachim Murat, who was a mulatto. Note the incorrect bias at the time that a mixed race — human hybrid — was inferior and unnatural. See related quotes.
Warren a Republican from California who knew Palmer for years, stood up, put his arm around Palmer and told him, “Kyle, you and I will always be friends” and walked out.
Hoxha was a mixture of extreme Communist and extreme nationalist. Note the paranoia about intermarriage and interbreeding with other nationalities which was typical of Balkan nations,. He actually deluded himself into thinking that Albanian occupation and invasion had never resulted in female fraternization or rape and subsequent ethnic mixing. International communism however, on this point was just the opposite of Hoxha’s—the advocated an international view of intermarriage and breeding. Theirs was a class paranoia, not a nationalistic or racial paranoia.
