NAACP: Council vote 'offensive'

Pat Kimbrough, The High Point Enterprise, N.C.
·2 min read

Sep. 23—HIGH POINT — The High Point NAACP branch on Wednesday made it clear that the organization's leaders are not happy with a City Council decision to create a commission to look into racial disparities.

In a strongly worded statement, the NAACP said the council on Monday denied its request for a commission on reparations and opted instead to "continue a legacy of indifference" with a watered-down version of what was being requested.

"While some hail this vote as a step forward, the city council's action is reminiscent of the classic reasoning and maneuvers used to deny African-Americans their civil rights," said the statement.

The council voted to create a "One High Point Commission" without the word reparations attached to it. The NAACP asked the council to approve a resolution it put forth detailing how a commission would be formed and operate.

But the council opted not to do this after questions were raised about whether the resolution as presented was on solid legal ground when it comes to the city's powers to take action in the realm of reparations.

The council did direct city staff to collaborate with the NAACP to devise the structure of the commission it voted to create.

City officials indicated that would take about four weeks to accomplish.

"The city council assertively restated its opposition to the term reparations. Again, several members reiterated that they found the word offensive and perhaps another term could be used as a substitute," the statement said.

The NAACP said the council's inaction was reminiscent of local governments during the era of segregation that resisted calls to end racial discrimination.

They called on the city to approve a reparations commission as presented to address a host of structural and institutional issues.

"For example, does the video of George Floyd's death show all white people to be racist? No, but it shows the institutional realities African-Americans face," the statement said. "Are there similar videos of High Point Police abusing African-American citizens? Yes, but the city does not want to talk about repairing or providing a remedy for this conduct and any other behavior adversely impacting African-Americans."

They also chided the council for deflecting the focus from the real issues the NAACP is trying to address.

"It is offensive that this city refuses to acknowledge the historical and institutional forces that created the disparities in this community," the statement said. "It is offensive that the city chose to substitute its narrative for that of its citizens. And, it is offensive that the city reverted to classic tactics to deny a legal and narrowly tailored resolution."

pkimbrough@hpenews.com — 336-888-3531