In the year 1954, since the segregationist organizations were splitting up all over the South into Brown and Board of Education, a Baptist minister and a functionary in plains visited a peanut farmer at his warehouse and invited him to join the local White Citizen’s Council. The farmer declined that invitation.
After a few days, the same set of functionaries came and told the farmer he was the only white man in the area who didn’t join the white community. The farmer didn’t change his mind. On the 3rd day, the functionaries came with this farmer’s customers and threatened to ban his business. They also checked whether this farmer can afford the $5 dues, and they even tried to lend $5 dues. Then this farmer responded bravely, “I’ve got $5, And I’d flush it down the toilet before I’d give it to you.”
This farmer was non-other than the 39th President of the United States, Jimmy Carter. Carter is largely remembered as a leader who always tried to place the full stop for racial discrimination. As a politician, he took the responsibility to bring equity to his state as well as his country.
In the year 1971, Carter addressed as the Georgia’s governor, “The time for racial discrimination is over”. But in the statement which he released last Wednesday (June 3rd) through the Atlanta based Carter Center, he has repeated the same sentence with great sorrow and disappointment, nearly 5 decades later.
His message comes as the country struggles its long history of racial discrimination after the assassination of George Floyd by a white police officer recently.
In his statement, the former president repeated a powerful theme of the Floyd pretests across the country, white people must accept the responsibility for the country’s racial imbalance and must try to cure the wound. Furthermore, he requested all the responsible people in the country to stand up and fight against the racially discriminatory police and justice system, etc.
He also mentioned ” In this quest, we have seen that silence can be as deadly as violence,” which is the strongest quote in his statement.
The former president, Jimmy Carter didn’t directly mention the current role of President Donald Trump and how he is handling the country at the moment. But he said, “We need a government as good as its people, and we are better than this.”
Mwaka 1954 wakati mashirika ya ubaguzi wa rangi yalipokuwa yakigawanyika katika jimbo lote la Kusini katika Brown na Bodi ya Elimu, mhudumu wa Baptisti na mfanyakazi mmoja katika eneo la Plains walimtembelea mkulima wa karanga katika ghala lake na kumwalika kujiunga na Baraza la Wananchi Wazungu la eneo hilo. Mkulima huyo alikataa mwaliko huo. Baada ya siku chache, kikundi hichohicho cha maofisa kilikuja na kumwambia mkulima huyo kwamba yeye ndiye mtu mweupe pekee katika eneo hilo ambaye hakujiunga na jamii ya weupe. Mkulima huyo hakubadili maoni yake. Siku ya tatu, maofisa walikuja pamoja na wateja wa mkulima huyo na kutisha kupiga marufuku biashara yake. Pia, wakatafuta kama wakulima hao wanaweza kulipa kodi ya dola tano, na hata wakajaribu kumpa mkopo wa dola tano. "Mkulima huyo aliitikia kwa ujasiri, ""Nina dola tano, na ningeitumia kuifuta choo kabla ya kukupa.""Mkulima huyo hakuwa mwingine ila Rais wa 39 wa Marekani, Jimmy Carter." Carter anakumbukwa sana kama kiongozi ambaye daima alijaribu kuweka kikomo kamili kwa ubaguzi wa rangi. Kama mwanasiasa, alichukua jukumu la kuleta usawa katika jimbo lake na pia nchi yake. "Mwaka wa 1971, Carter alitoa hotuba ya kwanza katika jimbo la Georgia, akisema, ""Wakati wa ubaguzi wa rangi umekwisha.""" Katika taarifa yake iliyotolewa Jumatano iliyopita kupitia kituo cha Carter cha Atlanta, amesema maneno hayo yanaendelea kwa huzuni na kukata tamaa. Ujumbe wake unakuja wakati nchi hiyo inapopambana na historia yake ndefu ya ubaguzi wa rangi baada ya mauaji ya George Floyd na afisa wa polisi mweupe hivi karibuni. "Mchambuzi huyo wa habari alisema, ""Wazungu wanapaswa kukubali kuwa na jukumu la kutofautiana kwa rangi nchini na wanapaswa kujaribu kutibu jeraha hilo.""" "Amewahimiza watu wote wenye jukumu nchini kusimama na kupigana dhidi ya polisi na mfumo wa haki wa ubaguzi wa rangi, na kadhalika.""" Pia alitaja <unk> Katika utafutaji huu, tumeona kwamba ukimya unaweza kuwa na hatari kama vurugu, <unk> ambayo ni nukuu kali zaidi katika taarifa yake. Rais wa zamani wa Marekani Jimmy Carter, amesisitiza kuwa hakuna mtu aliyemtaja rais Donald Trump kuwa kiongozi wa nchi hiyo. Lakini alisema, "Tunahitaji serikali nzuri kama watu wake, na sisi ni bora kuliko hii".