I posted about this over at my blog, and a friend of mine that is heavy into the left side of politics is asking in the JohnKerry.com forums for clarification.

Can't wait to hear some of the replies.

Excellent work!

As Greens, we uphold the key value of respect for diversity. We recognize that the development of the United States has been marked by conflict over questions of race. Just as we acknowledge that our Nation was formed only after Native Americans were first displaced, we also acknowledge that the institution of slavery had as its underpinnings the ideology and practice of white supremacy, which we as Greens condemn. We know that, in slavery's aftermath, discrimination and racial violence against people of color continues to be a social problem of paramount significance, even today. We condemn discrimination and violence against anyone but also recognize that people of color have borne the brunt of racial violence and discrimination throughout the history of the United States.

a.) Therefore, we call for an end to official support for any remaining badges and indicia of slavery and specifically call for the immediate removal of the Confederate battle flag from any and all government buildings because we recognize that, to many, this remains a painful reminder of second-class status on the basis of race.

b.) In addition, we support efforts to overcome the aftereffects of over 200 years of discrimination and, hence, support affirmative action.

c.) Furthermore, we recognize that people of color have legitimate claims in this country to reparations in the form of monetary compensation for these centuries of discrimination. We also uphold the right of the descendants of the African slaves to self-determination, as we do for all indigenous peoples.

http://www.gp.org/platform/2000/index.html#rights

Shark are those figures for women and men or just men?

The fact is that the United States government sanctioned the kidnapping and enslavement of human beings based on their skin color. For almost 100 years the government colluded with kidnappers as these people were forced into labor, they could be beaten and maimed at the whim of the kidnappers, the women could be repeatedly raped with impunity, their children could be taken from them and sold to other kidnappers for a life of humiliations and exploitation. If some were lucky enough to escape from this living hell, our government would assist the kidnappers in tracking them down and returning them to enslavement.

After the Civil War, the south perpetrated a government-approved apartheid system that prevented most blacks from voting, holding office, attending decent schools, or even shopping or eating in many public establishments. In the north, the racism was less institutionalized and less violent, but was de facto a decimating force on the black community there as they were segregated in ghettos and excluded from positions of influence. All done without any action from the United States government to prevent it!

Although the civil rights movement of the early 60s finally granted blacks permission to participate fully in the American experience, no tools were provided. After centuries of laws that allowed them to have the fruits of their labor stolen, to be deprived of education, to be cut out of participation in politics and government - don't you think the government needs to do a little more than simply say "okay, we'll stop all the bad things we've been doing, but you're on your own now.'

Unfortunately, the United States government’s misguided "War on Poverty" did not provide the tools for success, but rather continued the destruction of black communities and black families with its emphasis on welfare and dependency.

Blacks are real people, not a bunch of statistics. It pains me to read some of these posts with their witty repartees. It doesn't take a rocket scientist or a statistician to see the disastrous conditions most blacks suffer in this country. Take a ride in car. Look out the window. Hurricane Andrew's destruction in south Florida looks positively benign compared to what the United States government has done to blacks over the last two hundred years.

This government must take some responsibility for what it's done and take the necessary actions to reverse the damage. But what can they do? Affirmative action that is aimed at promoting education in black communities, providing work experience, and developing business enterprise zones is the right kind of war on poverty, the right kind of reparations. You want blacks to quit whining and blaming others? You want them to take responsibility and step up to the plate? Then give them the tools.

I was also thinking that it is somewhat of an unfair comparison, in that there is probably a cumulative percentage of black males with a time in prison of much greater than four years. If we take a look at the numbers of blacks going through the prison system versus through the colleges and universities over, say a 10 year period, I'm wondering what those numbers would look like.

Offhand, I'd guess that the numbers of students involved in college versus the numbers involved in the criminal justice system would skew greatly in favor of the numbers served by education versus incarceration.

Many thanks, Stefan, for wading through the numbers, and demonstrating the fallicy of a popular canard amongst those comfortable with simply shifting blame and whining instead of truly addressing the issues and their causes.

Kerry's statement seems to be relying on the kinds of distortions routinely employed by the Republicans. (c.f. Kerry voted 350 times for higher taxes). I support Kerry and I agree he should RETRACT his statement.

Data compiled by a new study, Cellblocks or Classrooms?: The Funding of Higher Education and Corrections and Its Impact on African American Men, reports that while 603,000 black men were in college in 2001, 791,600 were imprisoned. The study, conducted by the Justice Policy Institute, a nonprofit organization in Washington, D.C., analyzes money spent on incarceration vs. higher education.

So there you have it, more black Men in jail than in college. That's 2001 instead of 2000 and I don't know why the numbers differ so much from the 2000 census. Perhaps dot-com bubble burst forced people out of college early. Most likely the census data on college enrollment was self-reported, perhaps the other study used enrollment data from accredited colleges.

I'm all in favor of fact checking ALL the candidates statements, but I do wish you'd keep things in perspective. Kerry's departure from plain-and-simple truth is still far, far less consequential than Bush/Cheney's continued insistance on cooperation between Iraq and al Qaeda and numerous other lies whose consequences have been hundreds of Billions of dollars misallocated and thousands of lives lost. (If we had put half the effort into Afgahnistan as we did Iraq, we would have done much more to wipe out al Qaeda and fight terrorism.)

-The study, conducted by the Justice Policy Institute, a nonprofit organization in Washington, D.C., analyzes money spent on incarceration vs. higher education.-

HHHMMMM....why doesn't this "nonprofit" organization try to "analyze" why so many young black men get caught up with a criminal lifestyle. If they CHOOSE not to go to college and instead hustle at the their street corner then we should NOT BLAME white America for finding a solution (more prisons) for African Americans. From what I've seen in the Hip Hop culture, going to prison instead of college gives you instint "street" credibility...sadly, many on the left have yet to REALLY address this cancerous mentality within innner-city youths.

-Kerry's departure from plain-and-simple truth is still far, far less consequential than Bush/Cheney's continued insistance on cooperation between Iraq and al Qaeda and numerous other lies whose consequences have been hundreds of Billions of dollars misallocated and thousands of lives lost. (If we had put half the effort into Afgahnistan as we did Iraq, we would have done much more to wipe out al Qaeda and fight terrorism.)-

Again, I think you guys are trying to divert attention away from the real issue here -- self-destructive trends amongst black youth. As for your dismisal of the "Al Qaeda- Iraq" link, I think your being too simplistic in your reasoning. Try to see it this way, If their is no connection between Iraq and Al Alqaeda (or Islamic Fundamentalism) then why are there Alqaeda members taking part in the insurgency in Iraq? Why did Osama Bin Ladin just recently come out with an audio tape offering European Nations a truce if they would "get out" of Iraq? Let's be honest the last thing these extremist want in the Middle East is some progressive form of government to undermine their Fundamentalist goals --there is your connection.

-The study, conducted by the Justice Policy Institute, a nonprofit organization in Washington, D.C., analyzes money spent on incarceration vs. higher education.-

HHHMMMM....why doesn't this "nonprofit" organization try to "analyze" why so many young black men get caught up with the criminal lifestyle then? If young black men CHOOSE not to go to college and instead hustle on their street corner then we should NOT BLAME white America for finding a solution (more prisons) for African American problem. From what I've seen in the Hip Hop culture going to prison, instead of college, is actually quite cool. It gives you instant "street" credibility...sadly, many on the left have yet to REALLY address this cancerous mentality within innner-city youths.

-Kerry's departure from plain-and-simple truth is still far, far less consequential than Bush/Cheney's continued insistance on cooperation between Iraq and al Qaeda and numerous other lies whose consequences have been hundreds of Billions of dollars misallocated and thousands of lives lost. (If we had put half the effort into Afgahnistan as we did Iraq, we would have done much more to wipe out al Qaeda and fight terrorism.)-

Again, I think you guys are trying to divert attention away from the real issue here -- self-destructive trends amongst black youth. As for your dismisal of the "Al Qaeda- Iraq" link, I think your being too simplistic in your reasoning. Try to see it this way, If their is no connection between Iraq and Al Alqaeda (or Islamic Fundamentalism) then why are there Alqaeda members taking part in the insurgency in Iraq? Why did Osama Bin Ladin just recently come out with an audio tape offering European Nations a truce if they would "get out" of Iraq? Let's be honest the last thing these extremist want in the Middle East is some progressive form of government to undermine their Fundamentalist goals --there is your connection.