Liberal Racism? The Left Scorns Minorities Who Aren't An Echo.(ISSUES & INSIGHTS)(VIEWPOINT)

Byline: LARRY ELDER

Do white liberals think blacks are too stupid to reason for themselves?

Tom Hayden, former California state senator and 1960s radical, ran for mayor of Los Angeles a few years ago. On a campaign swing in a San Fernando Valley bowling alley, Hayden, according to witnesses, denounced me.

He advised people "not to listen" to my radio show, and reportedly said, "He's against his own people." Hayden denied the remark, but when confronted, admitted stating that I "carved out a niche" opposing "traditional black leadership."

Let's analyze this. Assume by "my own people" Hayden means blacks. I oppose affirmative action, and do not believe racism remains a threat to black progress. I support the breakup of the public monopoly on education, the Second Amendment, privatization of Social Security, and ending the war on drugs.

I call the Welfare Reform Act of 1996 a major success, and urge Congress to eliminate both public and corporate welfare. This places me, according to Hayden, "against my own people," deserving of banishment from the tribe.

Now, Hayden is white. And, since Franklin Delano Roosevelt, the Democratic Party has failed, with the exception of 1964, to carry the "white vote." Yet Hayden bucked the trend and stayed with the Democratic Party. Hayden also is a member of the wealthy class, an economic category that generally votes Republican. Yet here again, Hayden goes "against his own people."