Alabama Democratic State Representative Alvin Holmes, who recently created a firestorm by calling Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas "a very prolific Uncle Tom," was at it again on Tuesday.
This time, the issue at hand was a "fetal heartbeat" bill restricting abortions. Holmes, who apparently needs no help seeing racism in just about anything, claimed, in the words of Kala Kachmar at the Montgomery Advertiser, that "99 percent of the white legislators in the chamber would raise their hand to say they're against abortion, and that same 99 percent would make their daughters get an abortion if they were impregnated by a black man." Holmes was also robbed of his wallet and $300 earlier in the week. Guess which story was worthy of coverage at the Associated Press? With rare exceptions, the rest of the U.S. press also appears to have ignored Holmes' raging racism.
What follows are excerpts from Kachmar's story:
Ala. lawmaker's racial abortion comments draw national attention
... "You ain't gonna have no little black baby if you got two other white children, and then she's gonna have a little black baby running around there in the living room or in the den with the rest of them," he said. "They're not going to let that happen. You know that and I know that."
Holmes, D-Montgomery, also said he'd mortgage his house and bring $100,000 in cash — in a briefcase — tomorrow if anyone could show "a whole bunch of whites" who have adopted black children in Alabama.
His comments, like the comments he made less than a month ago when he called U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas an "Uncle Tom," garnered national attention from the Huffington Post and other media outlets.
Holmes said he's gotten more than 150 calls since Tuesday. He said he stands by his comments and is entitled to his opinion.
I guess fellow Democrat Bull Connor was also "entitled to his opinion." Right, Mr. Holmes?
Holmes also felt the need to personally grill the bill's sponsor with insulting questions:
Holmes asked (Republican Mary Sue) McClurkin if she would let her daughter have a black baby, and when she said yes, asked what she'd do with it after it was born.
"Let it run around in my living room and enjoy it as my grandchild," she said.
"With them other little blond children running around there?" Holmes said.
"That's right," McClurkin said.
"Well I need to commend you then. It wouldn't be one out of 100,000 to do that," Holmes said.
Those 150 callers from around the nation must have been rooting for an apology they didn't get, because the evidence of press coverage is sparse.
A Google News search on the Holmes's full name returned about 55 items relating to his Tuesday conduct at the legislature. Roughly 8-10 are national establishment press outlets. Imagine the tidal wave of attention a white legislator would receive if he or she made an analougous comment about their willingness to allow their black daughter to have a child by a white father.
If Holmes meant what he said about mortgaging his house, he'd better make an appointment with a lender this week, because "House Speaker Mike Hubbard said a little later that they'd identified more than 200 white families (in Alabama) who adopted black children." I'd say that's a "whole bunch," Mr. Holmes.
Cross-posted at BizzyBlog.com.
