Photos: YouTube Screenshots
New York, NY (December 28, 2023) – Rev. Al Sharpton, Founder and President of the National Action Network (NAN), condemned recent comments from by presidential candidate, former UN Ambassador, and former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, in which she declined to say the Civil War was fought over slavery.
“Ambassador Haley’s blatant refusal to say the Civil War was fought over slavery is alarming, disturbing, and should have no place in the political discourse. But who can be surprised when she wants to be the standard-bearer of the party that has gutted affirmative action in higher education, undermined voting rights for Black Americans, and chipped away at DEI commitments within Corporate America. The GOP was gone from the Party of Lincoln, which once pushed him to emancipate all slaves, to one that unabashedly celebrates the Confederacy – a separatist government formed explicitly to preserve slavery.
“This is a fall from grace for Ambassador Haley, who as governor took the overdue action to remove Confederate symbols from South Carolina’s flag. We cannot sit here and pretend like slavery was ancient history. For many of us, it’s only a generation or two removed. This summer, I took my daughters to the former Edgefield, South Carolina, plantation where my great-grandfather, Coleman, was a slave. We stepped into the hut where he and an untold number of other slaves were held against their will, worked the land, and eventually separated when Coleman was sent to Florida to pay off a debt. He received his freedom because the Union won the Civil War. Yet we are here, more than 150 years later, still fighting for his memory as well as the countless Black Americans who never lived in freedom. That struggle will continue until we all understand our history, so it can guide us to be a more just nation.”
About National Action Network (NAN)
National Action Network is one of the leading civil rights organizations in the Nation with chapters throughout the entire United States. Founded in 1991 by Reverend Al Sharpton, NAN works within the spirit and tradition of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. to promote a modern civil rights agenda that includes the fight for one standard of justice, decency, and equal opportunities for all people regardless of race, religion, nationality, or gender.
For more information go to www.nationalactionnetwork.net.
