NAACP Calls for All Public Officials to Resign from their Position when Making Racially Insensitive or Offensive Statements

WHEREAS, the NAACP called for U.S. Senator Trent Lott to resign from the majority leader-elect post following his statement: "When Strom Thurmond ran for President, we voted for him. We're proud of it. And, if the rest of the country had followed our lead, we wouldn't have had these problems over all of these years, either;" and

WHEREAS, Senator Trent Lott made these bigoted remarks at Senator Strom Thurmond's 100th birthday party, which honored the outgoing Senator of South Carolina who ran for President in 1948 on a staunch segregationist platform; and

WHEREAS, African Americans and all Americans should hold our elected officials to high standards of ethical conduct as they should provide leadership tempered with intelligence, integrity and respect for the rights of all; and

WHEREAS, the ugly face of racism cannot be masked by claims of "compassionate conservatism;" and

WHEREAS, Turkey Creek and North Gulfport are historic African American communities in the City of Gulfport, Mississippi, whose Mayor, Ken Combs, referred to African American residents as "dumb bastards" on April 10, 2003, because they opposed a Ward Development Project; and

WHEREAS, those despicable words spoken by elected officials like Senator Trent Lott and Mayor Ken Combs are abhorrent and reprehensible; and

WHEREAS, such profane, racist utterances demonstrate an unfitness to serve the public and an unwillingness to represent the interests of all citizens.

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that NAACP officials publicly oppose racially insensitive, derogatory, inflammatory, comments and actions displayed by public office holders; and

BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that the NAACP censure, denounce, and take additional steps as needed to ensure that the highest standards of ethical, respectful, non-discriminatory conduct will be displayed by those sworn to uphold the public trust with integrity and fairness.