I can’t believe all the hate speech being said about the Tea Party. If you would believe Congressional Black Caucus leader Andrea Carson “the Tea Party wants blacks hanging on trees”. Representative Maxine Waters told the Tea Party to “Go straight to hell”. I can’t believe all the people who seem to think the Tea Party is an evil thing.
Seeing is believing
I wanted to see for myself what a Tea Party rally is all about. They held a ralley in St Charles, MO at Frontier Park and I decided to go. My thoughts were to dress normally and see what happens at one of these events. I was surprised by many things, but none of what they are accused of. As I approached the large crowd there were many vendors that were selling the yellow Gadsden flags, buttons and T-shirts. Many vendors had set up tents and tables with all kinds of religious and political paraphernalia. The crowd had a wide spectrum of differently dressed people. Some were dressed in historical clothing from what I would guess to be the revolutionary time period and some had loud flashy Uncle Sam accents. The signs they carried reflected the general tone of Taxed Enough Already or TEA party small government type slogans. Once the initial onslaught of bongo drums and flag waving washed over me I began to look for off-color or racist posters. I didn’t see any and I searched them all. Next I looked at the crowd and noticed that it contained a mix of everyone who lives in our community. While the majority of the people were white, there were plenty of people of every nationality represented. No one was carrying weapons and the crowd was not unruly but they were very vocal.
What about the message?
Well I didn’t find the all white hate mongers the press would lead you to believe were the mainstay of the tea party. In order to find some shade on this sunny day I had to leave the main crowd and stand near a tree. From my vantage point I watched as they sang and prayed and gave speeches about our nation and where it’s going. What I didn’t hear is what the press says these people are about. There was not any hate of any race or exclusion of any lifestyle. They talked about taxes and smaller government.
Scratching my head
I probably will not attend another rally simply because it’s not my thing. I agree with many of their stances on reducing debt and shrinking the government. I’m still a Libertarian and I see the value of people gathering peacefully to accomplish their goal according to the constitution. This is the way government should work. What I’m curious about is where does all the hate come from? It pours through the media and many who are left leaning. I think it’s time they stop acting so hateful and start giving examples. Don’t act like what you are accusing others of being. Instead show up to the rallies and videotape them and show us what you’re upset about.
Remember, when you point your finger, 4 of your fingers point back at you. So stop the hate speech and show us whats wrong with the Tea Party. If you can’t, then you lose your argument and you have become what you are trying to expose.