Did Alan Grayson Offend Some Racist Teabaggers? Awwwwwwww.... "If The Hood Fits, Wear It."

No racism here, right Politico?

No offense to the few other excellent Members of Congress, but Alan Grayson is, far and away, the best Member. Somebody's got to be #1… it might as well be the guy who represents DisneyWorld. The Beltway media types, the Republican Party and some Establishment politicians-- I can only imagine Steny Hoyer clutching his pearls right now-- are up in arms because Grayson reminded his supporters that there is a profound comparison between the KKK and the Tea Party. Grayson is hardly the first person to point this out. My friend Joe Sudbay turned me on to a scholarly book by Professors Matt Barreto and Christopher Parker, Change They Can't Believe In, in which they correctly assert that Tea Party types are "reactionary conservatives," not unlike the KKK in 20s and Birchers in 50s, and that Obama's election set them off this time around (along with immigrants and the gays.) The publishing company's blurb:

Are Tea Party supporters merely a group of conservative citizens concerned about government spending? Or are they racists who refuse to accept Barack Obama as their president because he's not white? Change They Can't Believe In offers an alternative argument-- that the Tea Party is driven by the reemergence of a reactionary movement in American politics which is fueled by a fear that America has changed for the worse. Providing a range of original evidence and rich portraits of party sympathizers as well as activists, Christopher Parker and Matt Barreto show that what actually pushes Tea Party supporters is not simple ideology or racism, but fear that the country is being stolen from "real Americans"--a belief triggered by Obama's election. From civil liberties and policy issues, to participation in the political process, the perception that America is in danger directly informs how Tea Party supporters think and act.

The authors argue that this isn't the first time a segment of American society has perceived the American way of life as under siege. In fact, movements of this kind often appear when some individuals believe that "American" values are under threat by rapid social changes. Drawing connections between the Tea Party and right-wing reactionary movements of the past, including the Know-Nothing Party, the Ku Klux Klan of the 1920s, and the John Birch Society, Parker and Barreto develop a framework that transcends the Tea Party to shed light on its current and future consequences.

Linking past and present reactionary movements, Change They Can't Believe In rigorously examines the motivations and political implications associated with today's Tea Party.

Of course, you don't have to delve into scholarly books to see this strain in the teabaggers. If you were at any of their early rallies, you no doubt saw signs like the one up-top. Now, true, not every single teabagger is a racist-- but their movement is. Grayson responded to the criticism he's getting by talking about that iconic Tea Party image. "Regarding the image that the campaign circulated, the Tea Party has engaged in relentless racist attacks against our African-American President. For example, when the President visited my home of Orlando, Tea Party protesters shouted “Kenyan Go Home.” Other examples include Tea Party chants of “Bye Bye, Blackbird,” and Tea Party posters saying “Obama’s Plan: White Slavery,” “Imam Obama Wants to Ban Pork” and “The Zoo Has An African Lion, and the White House Has a Lyin’ African,” as well as this repulsive one, depicting the President of the United States as an African witch doctor with bananas in his hair.

"Tea Party members also have persisted in falsely characterizing the President as Kenyan and Moslem, despite all evidence, in order to disparage him. Members of the Tea Party have circulated countless altered pictures depicting President Obama and the First Lady as monkeys. Tea Party members also called my fellow Member of Congress, civil rights hero John Lewis, a “n***ger,” and Rep. Barney Frank a “faggot.” More generally, the leader of the Texas Tea Party displayed a poster saying “Congress=Slave Owner, Taxpayer=Niggar [sic].” Tea Party Members of Congress have referred to Hispanics as “wetbacks,” and having “cantaloupe-sized calves” from picking fruit. Tea Party candidates, including my opponent in the last election, have endorsed forcing Hispanics to speak English. One could go on and on, because there is overwhelming evidence that the Tea Party is the home of bigotry and discrimination in America today, just as the KKK was for an earlier generation. If the hood fits, wear it."

And if you'd like to help make sure Grayson is back in Congress again, telling the truth and standing up to Tea Party thugs and KKK racists, you can contribute to his campaign here.