Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!americast.com!americast.com!americast-post Newsgroups: americast.twt.news From: americast-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: americast-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: Wilder lashes both parties in NAACP speech Date: Sat, 31 Oct 92 14:00:15 EST Message-ID: \SE A;METROPOLITAN \HD Wilder lashes both parties in NAACP speech \BY Laurie Kellman \CR THE WASHINGTON TIMES Virginia Gov. L. Douglas Wilder blasted the Democratic Party for taking the black vote for granted, the Republican Party for ignoring blacks and the media for scrutinizing him more closely than his white predecessors. In an angry address to the state chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, Mr. Wilder said black elected officials should "expect those standards and . . . take them on." They were uncharacteristically harsh remarks from Mr. Wilder, whose speech to the NAACP was touted as a demand that blacks not be taken for granted by candidates. The black vote, he said, "is never a question of which way we're going, it's just a question of how many turn out." He said the national campaigns and the media think of the black vote "like cattle, or sheep." Mr. Wilder pointed to his endorsement of Democratic presidential nominee Bill Clinton, saying the Arkansas governor has done a better job relating his proposals to black voters. Still, he said, the Democratic Party "seems to be hoping we remember appeals of the past more than connecting their agendas for the future." He blamed the situation on Republicans, calling on that party to drop "its benign neglect of African-Americans and make a direct appeal to these voters. This forces the kind of competition which breeds interest and activity." The situation, Mr. Wilder said, gives the impression that the black vote is a Democratic vote. Mr. Wilder also used his speech to lash out at the media, which he has said was unfairly critical of his bid to land a football stadium in Alexandria. "Personally, I don't give a damn what the media thinks of me," he told the crowd at the Radisson Plaza Mark Center in Alexandria. "But I refuse to allow such treatment to set a precedent for future African-American governors, senators or, someday, presidents." During his speech, he lambasted the media for elevating "my differences with other elected officials to Shakespearean levels," for using unnamed sources in stories and for letting "all aspects of my life . . . become grist for speculation, rumor and ridicule." "What I have unfortunately discovered . . . is that the heightened attention of racial novelty leads to heightened scrutiny on all levels," Mr. Wilder said. "Perhaps I was naive to assume that the press would scrutinize me the same as it did my predecessors." Asked later if his heated statements stemmed from the publicity surrounding the failed stadium bid, Mr. Wilder laughed. "Oh, that was nothing compared to what I've been through," he said. "That was just me trying to bring business to Virginia. But some people just didn't want the jobs, or the growth here." Toward the end of his speech, Mr. Wilder told the crowd he has heard that candidates for 1993 are being advised to distance themselves from him. "Well, that's a two-way street, ain't it?" he said. This article is copyright 1992 The Washington Times. Redistribution to other sites is not permitted except by arrangement with American Cybercasting Corporation. For more information, send-email to usa@AmeriCast.COM