Arizona Republican: Slavery Was Good For Black People Because ‘Slave Owners Took Care Of Their Livestock’

By Stephen D. Foster Jr.

Republican Congressional candidate Jim Brown thinks black people lived the good life under slavery because ‘Slave Owners Took Care Of Their Livestock.’

Once again, Republicans have failed to even pretend that they want people of color to vote for them. In yet another instance of being stupid on Facebook, a GOP candidate in Arizona wrote that black people had the good life as slaves because “slave owners took care of their livestock.”

Arizona GOP candidate Jim Brown thinks black people lived the good life under slavery.

Jim Brown is running for a House seat in the 2nd Congressional District of Arizona. The seat is currently held by Democratic Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick and had been considered one of the easier races for the GOP to win in 2014. That is, until Brown posted a diatribe about slavery on his Facebook page. In what is sure to become part of a devastating campaign ad, Brown attempted to compare federal programs that help the poor to the institution of slavery.

“I want folks to think about something,” Brown began. “I want folks to think about how slavery really works. Back in the day of slavery, slaves were kept in slavery by denying them education and opportunity while providing them with their basic needs .. Not by beating them and starving them. (Although there were isolated cases if course) Basically slave owners took pretty good care of their slaves and livestock and this kept business rolling along.”

Apparently realizing that his stupidity would be used against him, Brown removed the post. Fortunately, we have the ability to capture screen shots.
Here’s an image of Brown’s post via The Root.

Welfare is NOT the same as slavery.

Brown believes that the government is treating people who need aid like slaves. And just as African-Americans made up the slave population, Brown seems to think they make up the entirety of those who get federal aid. You know, the old “all black people suck on the government tit” line that Republicans can’t stop using? Brown says slavery was awesome for black people, seems to think only black people are on welfare, and thinks getting aid is akin to being a slave. Instead of condemning slavery as vile, Brown also seems to think it was a good business model. After all, “slave owners took pretty good care of their slaves and livestock and this kept business rolling along.” Such a statement is not only an insult to black people, it contradicts the GOP claim that the Civil War was unnecessary because slavery was allegedly dying out.

As it turns out, most welfare recipients are actually white and happen to live in red states. Therefore, if anyone is turning into government “slaves,” it’s the GOP base. But comparing welfare to slavery is total nonsense. Receiving federal aid to keep from starving to death or becoming homeless is not the same as slavery. Slaves were often brutally beaten, starved, banned from owning firearms, and couldn’t exactly leave the plantation at will. Welfare recipients don’t give up any of their freedoms or rights by getting aid. Slaves had NO freedom and NO rights. Slaves also could not get an education, whereas the government often helps to pay education costs for people, even if they are on welfare. Furthermore, the government doesn’t sell welfare recipients to other people like slave owners sold their slaves. Also, unlike slave owners, federal aid isn’t breaking up families nor is it killing or raping people they find inferior. Welfare is colorblind because the only thing that really matters is income. Clearly, getting federal aid is nothing like slavery. In fact, federal aid actually lifts people out of poverty. It’s also temporary assistance that ends once your income level rises above the threshold. Slave owners kept slaves in chains for life.

Praising slavery seems to be a requirement to be in the Republican Party.

Jim Brown is only the most recent Republican to sing the praises of slavery. In 2012, an Arkansas Republican called slavery “a blessing in disguise.” At the same time, another Republican went even further than that. Even CPAC got into the act of defending slavery in 2013. Not long after that, a Nevada Republican told a crowd that he would vote to bring back slavery if they wanted him to do so. Of course, Brown isn’t exactly helping to improve the bigoted reputation of Arizona. The state once refused to honor Martin Luther King Day and has been in hot water for trying to discriminate against gay people.

The party that ended slavery is now controlled by those who want to reinstate it.

Republicans hate welfare programs even as their own states are the real welfare states. They hate these programs so much that they love falsely comparing them to slavery. But over the years, the GOP has made it clear that they actually love slavery and long to bring it back. The GOP hates welfare and wrongly compares it to slavery, but doesn’t think slavery was so bad for black people and wishes it was still around. This is NOT the same Republican Party that worked to abolish slavery and fought a war to end it. This is NOT the same party that fought for the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments to the Constitution. This new Republican Party has fallen far from its roots and is now controlled by the very bigots it once battled against. And that is truly sad.