James Morton, a member of the Duval County Democratic Black Caucus (DCDBC), reportedly clapped back against a state committeeman over racist remarks.
The Duval County Democratic State Committeeman John Parker recently referrred to African Americans as “coloreds” and saying “s**t being f**ked up after integration,” according to a written statement distributed Sunday to the county’s Democratic Black Caucus members. Parker was at a restaurant with two Black men at the time. The Democratic Black Caucus of Florida (DBCF) filed the complaint asking for Parker’s immediate resignation for the remarks, which were made after a January 22 Duval County Democratic meeting, the Sunshine State News reported Monday.
“The Democratic Party prides itself on being an inclusive party that respects all people and fights for what is right,” Lydia Hudson, president of the Democratic Black Caucus of Florida, said. “Too often this inclusive party has found that its leadership does not boldly embody the principles and best practices.”
She continued, “I don’t feel this is appropriate, inclusive, respectful or appropriate conversation for party leadership to have had. I’m asking for the immediate resignation of Committeeman John Parker, not only for his comments and behavior, but also for his ignorance and unwillingness to simply apologize at the time for comments made to members of the party that have been impacted by his comments and feelings.”
Parker’s racist behavior is far from new, the county’s Black caucus said. The committeeman once made disparaging remarks about the “Working People Caucus as the Poor Black Working People Caucus.”
With the latest incident, Morton and others told Parker that saying “colored people” and basically slamming desegregation in schools were examples of hate speech. But Parker didn’t get it. His refusal to at least correct his statements, as well as having made them in the first place, is simply wrong, they expressed.
“I’ve tried to turn a blind eye to the disrespect, sexism, fascism, and racism for the sake of the party. On several occasions, both on the local and state level, I’ve tried not to pile on the already fragile Democratic Party, and not air our dirty laundry in the media and in the court of public opinion,” revealed Morton in the story.
It’s unclear if Parker has responded to the complaint.
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