St. Louis Tea Party suggests 'bigoted' NAACP should be taxed

An organization devoted to fighting for less government and less taxes drafted a resolution which condemned another group's proposed resolution and suggested that the IRS should reconsider its tax-exempt status.

"A Tea Party group in Missouri, reacting to the NAACP's plan to take up a resolution branding the conservative movement as 'racist,' has drafted a resolution of its own condemning the civil rights group for reducing itself to a 'bigoted' and 'partisan attack dog organization,'" FOX News reports.

The St. Louis Tea Party had an all-hands-on-deck response to the NAACP's reported plan to denounce the nationwide network of activists at its annual convention in Kansas City, Mo. The NAACP as early as Tuesday could take up language to "repudiate the racism of the Tea Parties" and stand against the movement's attempt to "push our country back to the pre-civil rights era."

In response, the St. Louis group drafted and fired off to the NAACP a resolution demanding the organization withdraw its "bigoted, false and inflammatory" statement. The missive accused the NAACP of resorting to political tactics and urged the IRS to reconsider whether it can continue to qualify for tax-exempt status.

At the St. Louis Tea Party blog, leader Bill Hennessy writes, "Normally, we ignore childish hostility from belligerent people and groups. But the NAACP today intends to condemn 20 million tea party activists as racists. The millions of good, decent, and loving Americans who have participated in Tea Party events deserve nothing less than our full condemnation of the NAACP’s hatred and lies."

"At midnight, I forwarded this resolution to the Washington Bureau of the NAACP," Hennessy adds. "I have received no response."

From the resolution:

Now therefore be it resolved that the St. Louis Tea Party condemns the NAACP for lowering itself to the dishonorable position of a partisan political attack dog organization, and,

Be it further resolved that the St. Louis Tea Party calls on similar organizations to join in unanimous condemnation of this despicable behavior, and

Be it further resolved that we demand that the NAACP withdrawal their bigoted, false and inflammatory resolution against the tea party for any further consideration, and

"Be it further resolved that these organizations call on the Internal Revenue Service to evenly apply their standards and consider the tax-exempt status of the NAACP considering the degree to which they are engaging in habitual partisan political behavior," the St. Louis Tea Party resolution continues. "Adopted unanimously, this day, July 12th, in the year of our Lord, 2010."

Four years ago, during the Bush Administration, the NAACP successfully beat off a probe by the IRS which threatened their tax-exempt status.

"The NAACP did not violate the conditions of its tax-exempt status when its chairman gave a speech that criticized President Bush, according to a newly released letter from the Internal Revenue Service to the civil rights group," the Associated Press reported in 2006.

The IRS began looking into the Baltimore-based National Association for the Advancement of Colored People about a month before the 2004 presidential election after a speech by NAACP Chairman Julian Bond that was largely critical of Bush's policies.

Political campaigning is prohibited under the NAACP's tax-exempt status.

In a letter, dated Aug. 9, the IRS said a review of video footage of the speech, as well as other information, indicated "that political intervention did not occur."

Bruce S. Gordon, the president and CEO of the NAACP, said the group was vindicated by the decision.

"It's disappointing that the IRS took nearly two years to conclude what we knew from the beginning — the NAACP did not violate tax laws and continues to be politically nonpartisan," Gordon said in a statement Thursday.

News that the "National Association for the Advancement of Colored People will propose a resolution this week condemning racism within the tea party movement" is not being taken well by some conservatives, RAW STORY reported Monday.

Monday's Raw Story article follows:

NAACP mulls resolution decrying Tea Party 'racism'; Free Republic members respond: 'klan with a tan' and 'pot calling the kettle white'

News that the "National Association for the Advancement of Colored People will propose a resolution this week condemning racism within the tea party movement" is not being taken well by some conservatives.

The Kansas City Star notes, "The resolution, scheduled for a vote as early as Tuesday by delegates attending the annual NAACP convention in Kansas City, calls upon 'all people of good will to repudiate the racism of the Tea Parties, and to stand in opposition to its drive to push our country back to the pre-civil rights era.'"

Complaining that the "NAACP has more of a political agenda now," Brendan Steinhauser, "director of campaigns for FreedomWorks, which organizes tea party groups," tells The Kansas City Star's Judy L. Thomas, "I just don't see racism in the tea party movement. Racism is something we're absolutely opposed to."

Gary Langer, director of polling at ABC News, apparently agrees with Steinhauser, "While our data don't speak to views at the individual level, in the broadest, population-based sense, we don't see it."

We covered the question in our extensive look at the movement in May [link to pdf]. Certainly suspicions of racism are there: We found that 57 percent of people who oppose the Tea Party suspect its members of racial prejudice (specifically, against President Obama). That declined to a quarter of those who are neutral toward the movement, and 10 percent of its own supporters.

Certainly views on race differ among groups, and as we noted at the time, Tea Party supporters are less apt than other Americans to see racism as a major problem. But that view also is associated with attributes other than being a Tea Party supporter - being very conservative, for example, and being white.

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As we reported: “A statistical analysis indicates that the strongest predictors of supporting the Tea Party are views of Obama, ideology, partisanship and anger at the way the government is operating. Views on the extent of racism as a problem, and views on Obama’s efforts on behalf of African-Americans, are not significant predictors of support for the Tea Party movement.”

At Think Progress, Nina Bhattacharya argues that the tea parties have a "well-documented history of racism and wrongful co-opting of the civil rights movement."

Last year, Tea Party members analogized President Obama to a “monkey.” In March, Tea Party protesters hurled racist epithets at civil rights hero Rep. John Lewis (D-GA) and spat at Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-MO). At a recent July 4 rally in Lexington, KY, Daily Kos documented Tea Party members selling shirts declaring “Yup, I’m a Racist!”

But, according to the conservative Gateway Pundit blog, the NAACP is a "radical leftist group that labels black conservatives 'Uncle Toms,'" Condemning the entire NAACP over statements made at one press conference, the blog links to a video of a speaker in St. Louis attacking black conservative activist Kenneth Gladney, who was "injured in a scuffle at a health forum" last August.

Back in the day, we used to call someone like that, and I want to remind you, uh, when this incident occurred, I was really struck by a front page picture of this guy, which we called, a Negro, i mean that we call him a Negro in the fact that he works for not for our people but against our people. In the old days, we call him an Uncle Tom. I just gotta say that. Here it is, the day after a young brother, a young man, I didn’t mean to call him a brother, but on the front page of the Post Dispatch, ironically, he’s sitting in a wheelchair, being kissed on the forehead, by a European. Now just imagine that as a poster child picture, not working for our people.

At a thread at the conservative site Free Republic, (which Gateway Pundit hat-tipped as the source for The Kansas City Star report), tea party defenders complain, many of whom call the group the NAALCP, with "L" standing for "liberal":

Pretty funny, coming from an association that is based solely on race.

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The paid leaders and all the various volunteers are in fact professional racists.

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The pot calling the kettle white?

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The only incidents of bad behavior at TEA Party rallies I've heard of have come from imposters. That is, so-called "liberals" and leftist attempting to infiltrate a rally and then foment trouble by displaying previously hidden racist signs and/or shouting racist remarks.

The so-called "liberals" are anything but liberal. They are a desperate and morally bankrupt group without a shred of decency or conscious.

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To the NAACP, everyone is racist,except the NAACP. The klan with a tan.

An ABC News article posted Monday afternoon shows that the NAACP is working "in coordination with 170 other groups, including labor unions," to protest the Tea Party movement in an upcoming DC march.

The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, in coordination with 170 other groups, including labor unions, is planning a protest march in Washington, D.C., Oct. 10 as the next step in building momentum against the Tea Party.

The "One Nation" march is designed as an antithesis to the Tea Party, and it's about "pulling America together and back to work," an NAACP spokeswoman told ABC News.