RELIGIONrnWhite Self-Hatredrnand thernChristian Spiritrnby Wayne AllensworthrnAt the first Congress on Racial Justicernand Reconciliation, held inrnWashington in May, the Reverend EarlrnW. Jackson, the black director of thernmostly white “Samaritan Project” of thernChristian Coalition, told 500 mostlyrnblack Christians that, despite manyrnblacks’ warnings that he was selling outrnto the “religious right,” “our agenda” isrn”the work of God Almighty, as best werncan understand.” A white Christianrnmight wonder if this agenda is not thatrnof the Almighty but of the multicultural,rnanti-American, antiwhite left, for it turnsrnout that the gathering was yet anotherrnexercise in white self-hatred masqueradingrnas Christian charity, with RalphrnReed, the former executive director ofrnthe Christian Coalition, using the forumrnto “reach out” to blacks and seek theirrnapproval.rnThe Samaritan Project, according to arnreport in the Washington Times, wasrnlaunched earlier this year and is fundedrnby the Christian Coalition’s “donorrnbase.” The Reverend Jackson’s group receivedrna grant of some $850,000 fromrnthe project to “rebuild burned churches.”rnNever mind that the whole “churchrnburning” episode (supposedly the workrnof a “racist” conspiracy) turned out to berna hoax, that many white churches hadrnalso been burned, and that law enforcementrnofficials had confirmed thatrnchurch arson is quite common. As so oftenrnhappens in such cases, the story tookrnTO SUBSCRIBE…rn%rn1-800-877-5459rnon a life of its own in defiance of truthrnand common sense. Mr. Reed was onrnhand to do penance for the white racern(“We come not in self-righteousness,rnbut in repentance”) and to extend arnhelping hand to blacks, long “ignored”rnby the Republican Part}’.rnMr. Reed, it appears, also came to performrna common ritual for conservatives,rnthat of seeking the dominant left’s approvalrnby confirming its agenda. Afterrnreiterating the myth about the racistrnburning of black churches, he then endorsedrnthe left’s entire antiwhite agenda,rnagreeing that “racial injustices” wererncommon in bank loans (blacks have arnright to loans no matter what their creditrnrecord may be), in real estate (the governmentrnshould force whites to rent orrnsell to someone based on their race), inrninner-city funding (the governmentrnshould pour billions of additional taxrndollars into welfare programs), and inrnprison sentences for blacks (black criminalsrnare “overrepresented” in prisons).rnMr. Reed even expressed dismay over thernnumber of whites who did not feel theyrnowed blacks an apology.rnIt is odd enough that a Christian,rnapart from the principle of Original Sin,rnshould endorse the notion of collectivernguilt, and odder still that Mr. Reed apparentlyrnbelieves he can seek collectivernabsolution for the white race. But thernoddest of Mr. Reed’s oddball ideas isrnthat conservatives can win the “blackrnvote” at all. Why, the befuddled leadersrnof the predominantly white, middle- andrnworking-class “religious right” wonder,rnwouldn’t their agenda appeal to a greatrnnumber of blacks? The answer lies in arnfundamental need that the ChristianrnCoalition’s leaders deny, the humanrnneed for group identity that defines thernindividual and his kin and sets thernboundaries of his primary loyalties—rnsomething that, until very recently.rnChristians saw as normal and necessary.rnThe fact is that most blacks will never bernable to buy into a conservative, constitutionalistrnprogram precisely because suchrna program would involve betraying theirrnkith and kin by stripping the federal governmentrnof the very (unconstitutional)rnpowers that ended racial discrimination.rnMoreover, in the minds of many blacks, arnreversal of the civil rights acts and thernrollback of the powers of the federalrncourts would leave them undefendedrnfrom renewed racial discrimination, nornmatter how many times well-meaningrnwhites assure them that conservativesrnhave no such plans.rnFor other blacks, the end of affirmativernaction means the loss of somethingrnthat they appear to enjoy: the sweet butrnpoisonous taste of revenge. Black nationalistsrnare correct insofar as they recognizernthemselves as a separate peoplernwith interests divergent from those ofrnwhites. They are African-Americans orrnblack Americans, after all, never justrnplain Americans. Radicals go further,rnhowever, enjoying the indulgence ofrnwhite self-hatred that forums like that ofrnthe Christian Coalition offer. The ReverendrnMelvin Tuggle II of Baltimore, forrninstance, told “white Christianity” torn”put your money where your mouth is,”rnthat is, to pay up and like it, even as thernSamaritan Project, funded by mostlyrnwhite Christian Coalition donors, forkedrnover a better part of a million dollars tornrebuild black churches.rnBy now, it should be clear that the actionsrnof Mr. Reed and his followers arernpart of a cult with well-rehearsed rituals.rnA common method of editorializing inrnconservative newspapers and journals,rnfor example, is the “some of my bestrnfriends are black” argument. In this ritual,rnthe white editorialist notes that hernplayed with black kids as a child, or treatedrna black maid like a member of thernfamily, before attacking a race-based programrnfavored by the left. Another is thern”look who said it” approach, where arnblack libertarian is quoted damning affirmativernaction, or an Hispanic is cited endorsingrnimmigration reform; as the reasoningrngoes, if a black or Hispanic says it,rnthen it must be all right. But the mostrncommon ritual is the worship of MartinrnLuther King, Jr. The thrust of these exercisesrnis the tacit acknowledgment ofrnthe left’s favorite theme: that there isrnsomething sinister about those who opposernrace-based quotas or favor immigrationrnreform. Hitler, it turns out, was arnRepublican.rnWhite self-hatred buys nothing butrncontempt from blacks and prevents conservativesrnfrom mounting a serious campaignrnto restore a constitutional republic.rnUntil they realize this and face the truthrnabout the implications of what theyrnpreach, those on the political right willrnremain impotent, and the society theyrndesire for their children will become justrnanother lost cause for conservatives tornmourn.rnNayne Allensworth writes fromrnPurcellville, Virginia.rn46/CHRONICLESrnrnrn