How does that tie to school board elections? Oh, it does. And when it comes to voting, showing up counts. We have a precious right people around the world would die for and too many of us go “blah” and stay home.
RACISM, SCHOOL AND TURNOUT…Some thoughts on Election Eve in Chester County, PA.
STOMACH-TURNING RACISM…
A last minute video in the Chester County sheriff’s race demonstrates racism in its rawest, most stomach-turning form. The campaign of Republican Sheriff Roy Koforth put up a video this weekend playing on all the old racist tropes about black folks burning down the town.
Current Chief Deputy Kevin Dykes, who is African American, is running for sheriff to replace another African-American, current Sheriff Fredda Maddox, who is running for a seat on the county common pleas court.
In a county where registered Democrats outnumber Republicans, and a majority of Independents in past elections have drifted toward “blue,” you have to assume Republicans are running scared coming to the finish line. So, what to do?
How about we put up a photo-shopped picture of Kevin Dykes to make him look ultra-menacing and pose him in from of a building being consumed by a raging fire? Anyone who’s been remotely paying attention should remember the far-rights vilification of all black folks following urban rioting after racially charged incidents.
It’s the old racist theme that “they” are coming for you – violent dealers of fire and death. Add to it that the video is totally misrepresentative. It lists a string of things Dykes supposedly did and makes it look like he was the sheriff the past four years, not the chief deputy.
I am not sure what Republicans are thinking. In a county tilting blue, you might think they would realize appealing to the worst fears of a certain percentage of white people isn’t the best way to expand your party’s appeal.
Sick and disgusting. If you vote Republican in the sheriff’s race tomorrow (Tuesday, Nov. 7) this is what you are voting for. Is that what you want?
AND YES, SCHOOL board elections are tied to this. In every school district in Chester County the Christian Nationalist extremist group “Moms for Liberty” has fielded slates of candidates. You won’t see the Moms moniker used, rather their candidates are running under other innocuous banners.
How is this group connected to the sickening racism displayed in the sheriff’s race? Moms is a big fan of the Hillsdale College Curriculum, alongside a couple of others. This is the curriculum Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis loves. You might recall it teaches slavery wasn’t all bad because it provided blacks with useful skills (you know, blacksmithing, picking cotton, doing laundry) they could use once freed. In this curriculum Jim Crow and the clan don’t exist. Black folks sang and danced out of slavery into equality. Not. But, teaching real history, to these folks, is racist because it makes white children feel guilty. It doesn’t but again, reality has no place in a racist, homophobic driven movement.
And yes, homophobic. Moms is nothing if not homophobic. If you look at ads for school board races you may not see that. If you go to social media for the candidates, you won’t see it. They have erased all their past racist, homophobic, anti-science comments. But, they can’t erase them from public meeting minutes and so many of these folks are on record. Like the one running in the West Chester district who said girls should not be educated because they will go on to take jobs from men.
So, what to do? How do you know which candidates are which? Fortunately, the Chester County Democrats offer some help. I wish I could post a direct link to sample ballots but for some reason my blog format won’t let me do that. So, if you follow this link it will get you to the Voter Guide page. Click on the big read “Sample Ballot” bar. Scroll down until you come to your zone, click then print out the ballot and take it to the polls. It has candidates favored by Democrats inked in.
https://chescodems.org/voterguide/
YOU’VE HEARD IT before but this election will come down to turnout. It’s no secret we here in the United States take our democracy for granted. All around the world millions would die for the freedoms we have, and for the right to vote. Sadly, the majority of us usually don’t even show up.
Take Chester County. We are in an unglamorous off-year. We have critical offices on the ballot – judges from local to the state Supreme Court, all our county officials, school board, township and borough offices. No governor, no state legislative races, no federal races. So, in the May 19, 2023 primary, only 21 percent of registered voters showed up.
In the 2022 general election, which featured more state races, US senators, reps, the turnout was 68 percent. Given that nationally only 47 percent of registered voters turned out, Chester County looked pretty good. But, that still means 32 percent of registered voters in Chester County said “Nah.”
So, show up. It’s going to be a beautiful sunny day so no weather excuses.
Rich Heiland, has been a reporter, editor, publisher/general manager at daily papers in Texas, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Ohio and New Hampshire. He was part of a Pulitzer Prize-winning team at the Xenia Daily (OH) Daily Gazette, a National Newspaper Association Columnist of the Year, and a recipient of the Molly Ivins First Amendment Award from the Walker County (TX) Democrat Club. He taught journalism at Western Illinois University and leadership and community development at Woodbury College in Vermont. Since 1995 he has operated an international consulting, public speaking and training business specializing in customer service, general management, leadership and staff development with major corporations, organizations, and government. Semi-retired, he lives with his wife in West Chester, PA. He can be reached at heilandrich1@gmail.com.