Doonesbury by Garry Trudeau for August 05, 2014

Sam just became a strong supporter of states’ rights.

Legally, Massachusetts wasn’t a slavery-free state until February 7, 1865, when its voted for the 13th Amendment. Culturally, slavery had dwindled in the state; according to Wikipedia article “History of slavery in Massachusetts” (see Footnote 11), no Massachusetts slaves were recorded in the 1790 census.

“It slipped my mind and got no backup memory to prove otherwise.”

@AKHendersonThe courts of Massachusetts ruled that slavery violated the Commonwealth’s 1780 Constitution which declared “all men are created equal.”

You’re all forgetting Justice Tanney’s Dred Scott decision.

I had forgotten this one, one of my all-time favorites.

Maybe GT will jump around a little on these strips. It is now 1976, but in a few days it will be the 40th anniversary of the resignation of Richard Nixon. Nixon by Nixon is being shown on hbo, quite a documentary.

Gee, you’re giving us a history lesson and you can’t even write a coherent English sentence?

The GOP views of race have not been consistent over time. I would have been a Republican during the Lincoln administration, had I been alive. Some will claim that the Democrats have also changed. Not so much, unless you are talking about a few rogue southern Democrats. Not an apt comparison whatsoever. So no need to remind us that George Wallace and a few others were at one time, Democrats. We know that. At that same time, we also had President John F. Kennedy, among many others, who were not racists.

If you read and see many of the critics of President Obama, of the Tea Party variety in the GOP, it is not a stretch to say that they are racists. I could post several pictures which would demonstrate just that, but I will not do so.

Anecdotally, of course, there were some slaveholders who were known to increase their holdings personally; if they got to enjoy it, I’m sure they considered it so much the better..And in what universe are all African-Americans pure African? Or all whites pure Caucasian?

How many times do we have to hear this stupidity? montessoriteacher already addressd that above. And you forgot to say “democrat party.”

Josh doesn’t have the best sense of direction, so it’s an easy mistake for him to make.

That’s based on an PC definition of “consensual” that makes assumptions not always in evidence. Your thesis would have any relationship between unequals as coercive, but the plain fact is that there are no relationships were both partners are COMPLETE equals, so you draw an arbitrary line.

@CaligulaInteresting to be told the definition of “consensual” by someone named Caligula.

@fbjsr

The Party of Lincoln had strong

African-American support up to 1932. In 1932 FDR only received 23% of the African-American vote. That was the last time the Republican presidential ticket received majority of the black vote.As late as 1960, the Republican ticket was receiving as much as 33% of the vote.It was in 1964, the Republican Party turned it’s back on the African-American vote by nominating Barry Goldwater — an opponent of the 1964 Civil Rights Act — as their presidential candidate.

Uh,Sammy? You can read,right? Didn’t you sneak a look at the newspapers? Weren’t the lack of southern accents a clue? :/

By the way, in reviewing the notes, I noticed you threw up the “consensual” denial right after I mentioned the slave owners has sexual relations because the liked doing so rather than to produce the next generation of slaves.Please understand I was not addressing the consent of the ladies involved..The idea that slave owners had to father the children or there wouldn’t have been any was silly and genetics has proven the rate much lower than it would have been if that were the case..The question of consent when there is an imbalance of power is as hard to pin down as Caligula pointed out.It was the basis of Paula Jones’ charges against Governot Clinton even though she basically claimed she threw herself at him. She did this despite knowing he was married because she was attracted by his powerThe same thing came up later with Monica L and President Clinton.Some laws claim it would impossible for them to have consensual intercourse due to the power disparity.It SHOULD be obvious that this is false but it isn’t.Even so, let us ask ourselves if it is at all possible for a female slave to be attracted to the power of the plantation owner and actually make that attraction known?If you say no, then you are saying President Clinton was guilty of rape rather than only unfaithfulness.

@DavidHuieGreenSorry DHG, you and I agree on something;on this issue we will disagree. There is no way one can be certain that a person in bondage has freely consented to anything, especially a sexual relationship.

@DavidHuieGreenPlease don’t compare 2 free women who can get up and walk away to women who were either captured or born into slavery.

Josh: I had a senior moment. Several. And did I mention being geographically challenged?

Because of the time difference, I end up reading most of the comments on these shortly after the next strip has been posted. Over the past couple of days that has been a weird experience, since by the time I get to them the mods have been active (quite rightly by the sounds of things) and you are all fulminating at something that I can no longer see…

A person can be a Democrat.A party needs an adjective, and is Democratic.Therefore, “Democrat Party” = illiteracy. That’s why the republicans use it, because they are borderline illiterate.

@avjI just noticed your post. Thank you for the additional information.