We are talking about "civil discourse" with the President Of The United States (respecting the stripes if not the man) - not Obama or Bush - RIGHT?
CNN: 1/15/04 Bush's Atlanta visit marked by protests
ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- About 400 protesters lined the street across from the King Center in Atlanta as President Bush laid a wreath at the tomb of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. to commemorate the 75th birthday of slain civil rights leader Thursday.
Carrying signs and chanting to rhythms pounded from conga drums, members of the crowd resisted efforts by police to move them to a designated protest area about 150 yards from the reflecting pool in front of the simple white marble crypt.
King's widow, Coretta Scott King, walked with the president to her husband's tomb. After Bush laid the wreath, he stood, head bowed, for about 15 seconds.
Although King Center officials did not invite Bush to join their planned celebration, Mrs. King met briefly with the president.
Shortly before Bush's arrival, a line of city buses parked in front of the center, preventing Bush and the protesters from seeing each other, although the demonstrators' jeers and slogans were not muted.
Their signs indicated the protesters were drawn from a wide coalition. "War is not the Answer," "Promote Peace, Not Halliburton," "HUD Sponsors Racism," "Impeach the Liar" and "No Blood for Oil" were just a few of them.
Two people were taken into custody when they attempted to cross the street.
Bush later issued a statement marking next Monday as the Martin Luther King Jr. federal holiday.
"America has come far in realizing Dr. King's dream, but there is still work to be done," the statement said. "In remembering Dr. King's vision and life of service, we renew our commitment to guaranteeing the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for all Americans."
The wreath-laying ceremony was part of a two-city swing into the South by Bush that included a speech to a mostly black church and a fund-raiser at the D-Day Museum, both in New Orleans, Louisiana, and another fund-raiser later in Atlanta.
Among the civil rights leaders angered by Bush's appearance at the King Center was the Rev. Tim McDonald, pastor of First Iconium Baptist Church in Atlanta and a demonstration organizer.
"The thing that is most hypocritical is choosing the 75th anniversary of his birth -- the man who was the epitome of peace, perhaps the most noted African-American anti-war individual," McDonald said.
"To come on his birthday ... when this president unilaterally went to war, is still engaged in war, an illegal and unjust war."
McDonald said Bush has adversely affected minority communities through his policies on criminal justice, the elderly, Medicare, housing and unemployment.
"That is what we think Dr. King would be speaking out against," McDonald said. "For him [Bush] to try to overshadow that and photo-op and hijack our appreciation and admiration for Dr. King is just not going to be tolerated."
McDonald accused Bush, who won just 9 percent of the African-American vote in the 2000 election, of being motivated more by politics than by any admiration for King.
"They're trying to woo black votes to the Republican Party," McDonald said. "It's turning African-Americans off. Now everybody sees the arrogance and the hypocrisy of this administration. This is nothing personal. It's his policies -- in direct opposition to what Dr. King lived and died for."
If Bush was trying to woo Blacks to the GOP - he failed miserably.
Why doesn't Rev McDonald talk about who has total control over the government of Atlanta?
With Grady Hospital in the hands of the people he opposed - this "last resort" hospital now has a profit from donations instead of being on the verge of closure.
WHEN WILL THESE MIS-LEADERS be held accountable for, IN FACT "injuring the interests of Black people and failing to increase our competencies?"
- War is not the Answer
- Promote Peace, Not Halliburton
- HUD Sponsors Racism
- Impeach the Liar
- No Blood for Oil
Where are these groups today now that we STILL have two active wars today?
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