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National Baptist Convention - New Orleans 9/8/89 [2]
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6
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7
WHITE HOUSE STAFFING MEMORANDUM
9/5/89
9/6/89 NOON
DATE:
ACTION/CONCURRENCE/COMMENT DUE BY:
SUBJECT:
PRESIDENTIAL REMARKS: NATIONAL BAPTIST CONVENTION, USA
ACTION FYI
ACTION FYI
VICE PRESIDENT
MCCLURE
SUNUNU
NEWMAN
SCOWCROFT
PORTER
DARMAN
STUDDERT
BATES
UNTERMEYER
BREEDEN
ROGERS
CARD
WINSTON
CICCONI
PINKERTON
DEMAREST
BENNETT
FITZWATER
PETERSMEYER
GRAY
HAGIN
REMARKS:
Please forward any comments directly to Chriss Winston,
Rm. 122, x2930, no later than NOON Wednesday, September
6, with a copy to my office. Thank you.
RESPONSE:
No Commands 9/6/89.
James W. Cicconi
Lt rd 9 SEP 68
Assistant to the President
and Deputy to the Chief of Staff
Ext. 2702
Davis/Martin
Sept. 4, 1989
Draft: Seven
Title: Baptists
PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS: NATIONAL BAPTIST CONVENTION USA, Inc.
New Orleans Convention Center
Sept. 8, 1989/2:30 p.m.
Reverend Jemison, members of the staff and members of the
board of directors.
((You know, with so many Baptists here in New Orleans, I
almost expect to hear: "When the Saints Come Marching In"))
((PAUSE))
((The last time I was here, I addressed thousands of
Republicans. Now I am addressing sixteen thousand Baptists, and
I'm just as anxious to make a good impression today as I was
then. But Barbara put it all in perspective for me. She said:
"Now George, just imagine you're standing in front of another
Sunday school class. "))
( (But I never had a Sunday school class this big.))
((PAUSE))
Well, every Sunday school student knows that it is written
in the Bible that wherever two or three people gather together to
worship, there is a church. And, in many ways, that is what we
have here for a few days in New Orleans -- the biggest
congregation inside the biggest church on Earth. ((PAUSE))
You draw your inspiration from the faith of a great church.
It was the first American Baptists in Rhode Island who, as sons
of Pilgrims, led the campaign for religious toleration. It was
2
the Baptists who played an important role in securing our freedom
of religion in the American Constitution. It was the Baptists
who, as pioneers, built sturdy new churches on the empty plains
and prairies of the West. But it is another tradition that we
honor in New Orleans today. We honor your parents and
grandparents, who were also brave pioneers -- pioneers who blazed
trails into another frontier -- the freedom frontier. ( (PAUSE) )
It took this convention, the leadership of your pastors and
your people, to extend the struggle for freedom to all men and
women.
( (PAUSE) ) It took leaders like Dr. Martin Luther King
Jr. , Wyatt Tee Walker, E.V. Hill, Jerry Moore and T.J. Jemison.
And it took nothing less than another Great Awakening -- an
awakening to the promise of civil rights. ( (PAUSE) )
I have watched this movement blossom in my lifetime, from my
days in college to my days in Congress. So know one thing: in
the struggle for equality and opportunity, your hopes and dreams
are the highest aspirations of my Presidency. ( (PAUSE)
It was just more than a year ago that I was privileged to
give a nominating address here, one in which I promised our
country would stand for a greater tolerance. I said, "We've come
far, but I think we need a new harmony among the races in our
country. We're on a journey to a new century, and we've got to
leave the tired old baggage of bigotry behind."
Of course, discrimination is not the only problem that we
face today. Just as you led America in the civil rights
3
movement, so you are now leading communities struggling with
another national problem.
Is it crime? Not quite. Is it homelessness? No, not by
itself. Is it drugs? Yes, but it is even more than that. As
serious as all of these problems are, they are related to another
one -- the decline of the most basic of all institutions -- the
family. Too many children in America are growing up without
direction, without values, without esteem for themselves or
anyone else. So our goal is simple, and it is vital: We must
work together to save the American family. ((PAUSE))
Family life is my source of strength, as it is for Barbara,
and as it is for you. Strong families are bound by more than
blood; they are bound by the precious memories of Christmas
morning, a toddler's first steps, a grandfather's tall tales, and
the lasting pride of a graduation ceremony. And our families are
bound by something else: simple acts of learning and teaching;
simple acts to instill the values of fairness, honesty and hard
work.
Of course, there are more single parents today than ever
before. And, difficult though it may be, most single parents are
raising happy, well-adjusted children with the help of family and
friends, and by drawing on their own inner strength. But imagine
the lonely plight of a single mother who has no help; who has no
money; who has no ability to keep her kids from being lost --
lost to the unhealthy life of the streets. So to save the
4
American family also means providing support for these parents,
who are struggling against tough odds.
Nor can we ignore the difficulties of poor working couples
with children. The challenge of strengthening these families
requires both public and private efforts. And church leadership
is meeting the challenge -- in ministries like that of E.V. Hill
of Los Angeles, where hungry families find sustenance; in
ministries where Baptists are providing families with everything
from high chairs to a hand-up.
You know that no matter how close-knit your family may be,
the decline of the American family is not just someone else's
problem. It is our problem. When one generation is raised
without values, it uncoils a chain of misery that weighs down
future generations. Almost half of all black families are headed
by one parent, and many of these parents are overwhelmed. And
because they are overwhelmed, four out of ten black children live
in poverty. And because of this, it is becoming harder for your
churches to reach so many promising young men and women.
How can you teach respect for a hard-earned dollar, when
easy drug money flourishes? ( (PAUSE) )
How can you teach that achievement is found in quiet moments
and subtle rewards, when a murderous materialism // glitters//
with the promise of gold chains, // fast cars// and fashion
clothes? ((PAUSE))
5
How can you teach a young black man, living in poverty, to
work for a better future, when he has a greater chance of going
to prison than of going to college? ((PAUSE))
In' short, without strong families, how can values triumph
over vice?
The answers can only come from the heart, from the heart of
every parent. And the answers can come from you, from the people
of our churches.
I have come to New Orleans today to pledge my support and to
recognize your heroic efforts. We can work together in many ways
to strengthen families, with greater choice in child-care and
education; and by replacing the crippling fear of crime with the
promise of opportunity.
First, let me begin with child-care. Often, while parents
work, love and care comes from the extended family --
grandparents, aunts and uncles. And in many ways, the church
community is the greatest extended family of all. You have
already taken a load off the shoulders of working parents, some
single; some together. And in this same spirit, I offer a few
ways government can help.
I have proposed a child-care tax credit, to be focused on
those who need such assistance the most -- the working poor.
But this approach is different from past programs, because
it would empower parents, not the government, to choose the best
care for their children -- be it a grandparent, a neighbor or a
6
local church. We need to give parents a choice in their
children's care, not take it away.
Yet some in Congress do not agree. Perhaps it is time we
sent them a message. Just as we should support single-parent
families, so we should also support two-parent families where one
parent chooses to care for the children at home. And we should
never, never discriminate against religiously affiliated child
care. ( (PAUSE))
I felt for myself, in Washington, D.C., the spirit of family
and love that permeates the day-care center at Shiloh Baptist
Church. And, if necessary, I am determined to protect Shiloh and
every other church-affiliated child-care center in America with
my veto pen. ( (PAUSE) )
But child-care for families is not enough. Families need
opportunity: I want to renew my proposal for federal enterprise
zones, to bring opportunity to the barren lots of the South
Bronx, to the streets of Watts, to farm towns and to every
community in need. And also I renew my proposal for tenant
management of public housing. We can no longer deny these people
the autonomy and the dignity they deserve. ( (PAUSE) )
These are ways to bring opportunity to those who need it
most. But opportunity will be wasted if young men and women lack
the means to take advantage of it. And that means education.
Today's job market will settle for nothing less than full
literacy, and an aptitude for skilled labor. And those who are
7
incapable -- and they are great in number -- will fall further
and further behind.
What's the answer? I see you pointing the way. For a
century and a half, your churches have demonstrated the
liberating power of learning. Annie Rose, a community leader in
Alexandria, Virginia, tells a fascinating story about her father.
You see, Annie Rose is 95-years-old, and her father, Henry Rose,
was born into slavery.
Liberated at age 21, Henry Rose walked all the way from
Texas to Virginia, and worked on the railroad until a Baptist
society sponsored him at a seminary school. Annie Rose says her
father was so poor that when he graduated, he had to wear a boot
on one foot and a shoe on the other. But Henry Rose had
something better than a matching pair of shoes. He had
knowledge. He had pride. And as a Baptist minister, he founded
five churches and two schools, establishing institutions with
great traditions of service that live on to this day.
There is a lesson for us in this remarkable man's life. If
a he could beat the overwhelming odds of slavery, oppression and
prejudice to lead a community, then any obstacle can be overcome.
And we will overcome. Opportunity comes when we give
parents and students greater choice. This means magnet schools;
this means public and private partnerships like "Say Yes to
Education," which sends impoverished minority students to
college; and this means increased support for historically Black
Colleges and Universities.
8
But education is more than schooling; it is nothing less
than the communication of values. And once again, you are
leading the way. Just look right here New Orleans, where the
Greater Liberty Baptist Church is preparing many young men for
adulthood through its Black Manhood Training program. ( (PAUSE) )
But to get to school, to get to work, to get to a child-care
center, families must also be free to walk the streets of their
cities without fear. And today, freedom from fear means freedom
from drugs. ( (PAUSE) ) That is why Tuesday night I announced an
all-out assault, a way to attack the drug menace on every front.
Nowhere are drug dealers more vicious, more predatory, than
in the inner-city. They've turned whole communities into war
zones, making the routine of daily life miserable and dangerous
for thousands of honest families. It is time to get tough. Let
us join together to sweep out these merchants of death, to
reclaim our cities, to reclaim our streets. ( (PAUSE))
To provide child-care, to improve education, to create
opportunity and to defeat drugs -- these are steps to strengthen
families that require nothing less than a sustained national
effort, a national partnership. I believe government can and
should be a strong partner.
As I said here just a little more than a year ago: "A
government that remembers that the people are its master is a
good and needed thing. I respect old fashioned common sense, and
have no great love for the imaginings of social planners. I like
what's been tested and found to be true."
9
Your faith has been tested. Your values have been found to
be true. And it is your faith and your values that America is
turning to today. Americans will always come back to our basic
traditions, our values.
So I'm an optimist. I believe we will reach out to families
in need. I believe we will see a strengthening of the many
patterns of family life. And I believe we will see a sharing of
values -- values rooted in the conviction that we, as individuals
and as families are engaged in a single enterprise called
America.
Thank you for all that you've done. And thank you for
inviting me to New Orleans.
God bless you and God bless America.
#
#
#
89
THE WHITE HOUSE
SEP
WASHINGTON
September 6, 1989
54
MEMORANDUM FOR CHRISS WINSTON
FROM:
ROGER B. PORTER
RBP
SUBJECT:
Presidential Remarks: National Baptists
Convention, U.S.A.
The draft remarks strike a useful emphasis on the family
and on fundamental values. My comments are brief and I hope
helpful:
1. On page 1, we should eliminate the phrase "as sons of
Pilgrims" in referring to the first Baptists in Rhode Island.
Roger Williams, who founded Rhode Island and was a Baptist,
fled from Massachusetts because of a high level of intolerance
on the part of the Pilgrims and Puritans in that state.
2. On page 2, we need to take care in the discussion of
civil rights because of the most recent events at Virginia
Beach and at Bensonhurst. The phrase "we're on a journey to
a new century, and we've got to leave the tired old baggage of
bigotry behind," is a good one and should be retained. Stating
that we need a new harmony among the races in our country may
encourage some to wonder why he does not go on and say
something directly about the incidents at Virginia Beach and
Bensonhurst.
3. In the section on page 6 dealing with child care, we
need to be careful to raise the scepter of a Presidential veto,
given the fact that child care will undoubtedly get resolved in
reconciliation and the President may not choose to veto a
reconciliation bill that gives him what he wants with respect
to spending reductions, capital gains, and catastrophic health
insurance. Given this, I suggest that we have the last
sentence in the second full paragraph on that page read, "I am
determined to protect Shiloh and every other church-affiliated
child-care center in America."
4. This is a largely black audience, as you are aware, and
the first sentence in the last full paragraph on page 7 should
read, "and we shall overcome" rather than "and we will
overcome."
If you have any questions, or I can be helpful in any other
way, please let me know.
Document No.
WHITE HOUSE STAFFING MEMORANDUM
9/5/89
9/6/89 NOON
DATE:
ACTION/CONCURRENCE/COMMENT DUE BY:
PRESIDENTIAL REMARKS: NATIONAL BAPTIST CONVENTION, USA
SUBJECT:
ACTION FYI
ACTION FYI
VICE PRESIDENT
MCCLURE
SUNUNU
NEWMAN
SCOWCROFT
PORTER
DARMAN
STUDDERT
BATES
UNTERMEYER
BREEDEN
ROGERS
CARD
WINSTON
PINKERTON
CICCONI
DEMAREST
BENNETT
FITZWATER
PETERSMEYER
,
GRAY
HAGIN
REMARKS:
Please forward any comments directly to Chriss Winston,
Rm. 122, x2930, no later than NOON Wednesday, September
6, with a copy to my office. Thank you.
RESPONSE:
James W. Cicconi
Assistant to the President
and Deputy to the Chief of Staff
Ext. 2702
Davis/Martin
Sept. 4, 1989
Draft: Seven
Title: Baptists
89 SEP 5 P12 : 09
PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS: NATIONAL BAPTIST CONVENTION USA, Inc.
New Orleans Convention Center
Sept. 8, 1989/2:30 p.m.
Reverend Jemison, members of the staff and members of the
board of directors.
((You know, with so many Baptists here in New Orleans, I
almost expect to hear: "When the Saints Come Marching In"))
((PAUSE))
( (The last time I was here, I addressed thousands of
Republicans. Now I am addressing sixteen thousand Baptists, and
I'm just as anxious to make a good impression today as I was
then. But Barbara put it all in perspective for me. She said:
"Now George, just imagine you're standing in front of another
Sunday school class. ) )
((But I never had a Sunday school class this big. ))
((PAUSE))
Well, every Sunday school student knows that it is written
in the Bible that wherever two or three people gather together to
worship, there is a church. And, in many ways, that is what we
have here for a few days in New Orleans -- the biggest
congregation inside the biggest church on Earth. ((PAUSE))
You draw your inspiration from the faith of a great church.
It was the first American Baptists in Rhode Island who, as sons
of Pilgrims, led the campaign for religious toleration. It was
2
the Baptists who played an important role in securing our freedom
of religion in the American Constitution. It was the Baptists
who, as pioneers, built sturdy new churches on the empty plains
and prairies of the West. But it is another tradition that we
honor in New Orleans today. We honor your parents and
grandparents, who were also brave pioneers -- pioneers who blazed
trails into another frontier -- the freedom frontier. ( (PAUSE) )
It took this convention, the leadership of your pastors and
your people, to extend the struggle for freedom to all men and
women. ((PAUSE)) It took leaders like Dr. Martin Luther King
Jr., Wyatt Tee Walker, E.V. Hill, Jerry Moore and T.J. Jemison.
And it took nothing less than another Great Awakening -- an
awakening to the promise of civil rights. ( (PAUSE))
I have watched this movement blossom in my lifetime, from my
days in college to my days in Congress. So know one thing: in
the struggle for equality and opportunity, your hopes and dreams
are the highest aspirations of my Presidency. ((PAUSE))
It was just more than a year ago that I was privileged to
give a nominating address here, one in which I promised our
country would stand for a greater tolerance. I said, "We've come
far, but I think we need a new harmony among the races in our
country. We're on a journey to a new century, and we've got to
leave the tired old baggage of bigotry behind."
Of course, discrimination is not the only problem that we
face today. Just as you led America in the civil rights
3
movement, so you are now leading communities struggling with
another national problem.
Is it crime? Not quite. Is it homelessness? No, not by
itself. Is it drugs? Yes, but it is even more than that. As
serious as all of these problems are, they are related to another
one -- the decline of the most basic of all institutions -- the
family. Too many children in America are growing up without
direction, without values, without esteem for themselves or
anyone else. So our goal is simple, and it is vital: We must
work together to save the American family. ((PAUSE))
Family life is my source of strength, as it is for Barbara,
and as it is for you. Strong families are bound by more than
blood; they are bound by the precious memories of Christmas
morning, a toddler's first steps, a grandfather's tall tales, and
the lasting pride of a graduation ceremony. And our families are
bound by something else: simple acts of learning and teaching;
simple acts to instill the values of fairness, honesty and hard
work.
Of course, there are more single parents today than ever
before. And, difficult though it may be, most single parents are
raising happy, well-adjusted children with the help of family and
friends, and by drawing on their own inner strength. But imagine
the lonely plight of a single mother who has no help; who has no
money; who has no ability to keep her kids from being lost --
lost to the unhealthy life of the streets. So to save the
4
American family also means providing support for these parents,
who are struggling against tough odds.
Nor can we ignore the difficulties of poor working couples
with children. The challenge of strengthening these families
requires both public and private efforts. And church leadership
is meeting the challenge -- in ministries like that of E.V. Hill
of Los Angeles, where hungry families find sustenance; in
ministries where Baptists are providing families with everything
from high chairs to a hand-up.
You know that no matter how close-knit your family may be,
the decline of the American family is not just someone else's
problem. It is our problem. When one generation is raised
without values, it uncoils a chain of misery that weighs down
future generations. Almost half of all black families are headed
by one parent, and many of these parents are overwhelmed. And
because they are overwhelmed, four out of ten black children live
in poverty. And because of this, it is becoming harder for your
churches to reach so many promising young men and women.
How can you teach respect for a hard-earned dollar, when
easy drug money flourishes? ((PAUSE))
How can you teach that achievement is found in quiet moments
and subtle rewards, when a murderous materialism // glitters//
with the promise of gold chains, 11 fast cars// and fashion
clothes? ((PAUSE))
5
How can you teach a young black man, living in poverty, to
work for a better future, when he has a greater chance of going
to prison than of going to college? ( (PAUSE))
In short, without strong families, how can values triumph
over vice?
The answers can only come from the heart, from the heart of
every parent. And the answers can come from you, from the people
of our churches.
I have come to New Orleans today to pledge my support and to
recognize your heroic efforts. We can work together in many ways
to strengthen families, with greater choice in child-care and
education; and by replacing the crippling fear of crime with the
promise of opportunity.
First, let me begin with child-care. Often, while parents
work, love and care comes from the extended family --
grandparents, aunts and uncles. And in many ways, the church
community is the greatest extended family of all. You have
already taken a load off the shoulders of working parents, some
single; some together. And in this same spirit, I offer a few
ways government can help.
I have proposed a child-care tax credit, to be focused on
those who need such assistance the most -- the working poor.
But this approach is different from past programs, because
it would empower parents, not the government, to choose the best
care for their children -- be it a grandparent, a neighbor or a
6
local church. We need to give parents a choice in their
children's care, not take it away.
Yet some in Congress do not agree. Perhaps it is time we
sent them a message. Just as we should support single-parent
families, so we should also support two-parent families where one
parent chooses to care for the children at home. And we should
never, never discriminate against religiously affiliated child
care. ((PAUSE))
I felt for myself, in Washington, D.C., the spirit of family
and love that permeates the day-care center at Shiloh Baptist
Church. And, if necessary, I am determined to protect Shiloh and
every other church-affiliated child-care center in America with
my veto pen. ((PAUSE))
But child-care for families is not enough. Families need
opportunity: I want to renew my proposal for federal enterprise
zones, to bring opportunity to the barren lots of the South
Bronx, to the streets of Watts, to farm towns and to every
community in need. And also I renew my proposal for tenant
management of public housing. We can no longer deny these people
the autonomy and the dignity they deserve. ((PAUSE))
These are ways to bring opportunity to those who need it
most. But opportunity will be wasted if young men and women lack
the means to take advantage of it. And that means education.
{ Today's job market will settle for nothing less than full
literacy, and an aptitude for skilled labor.] And those who are
7
incapable -- and they are great in number -- will fall further
and further behind.
What's the answer? I see you pointing the way. For a
century and a half, your churches have demonstrated the
liberating power of learning. Annie Rose, a community leader in
Alexandria, Virginia, tells a fascinating story about her father.
You see, Annie Rose is 95-years-old, and her father, Henry Rose,
was born into slavery.
Liberated at age 21, Henry Rose walked all the way from
Texas to Virginia, and worked on the railroad until a Baptist
society sponsored him at a seminary school. Annie Rose says her
father was so poor that when he graduated, he had to wear a boot
on one foot and a shoe on the other. But Henry Rose had
something better than a matching pair of shoes. He had
knowledge. He had pride. And as a Baptist minister, he founded
five churches and two schools, establishing institutions with
great traditions of service that live on to this day.
There is a lesson for us in this remarkable man's life. If
a he could beat the overwhelming odds of slavery, oppression and
prejudice to lead a community, then any obstacle can be overcome.
And we will overcome. Opportunity comes when we give
parents and students greater choice. This means magnet schools;
this means public and private partnerships like "Say Yes to
Education," which sends impoverished minority students to
college; and this means increased support for historically Black
Colleges and Universities.
8
But education is more than schooling; it is nothing less
than the communication of values. And once again, you are
leading the way. Just look right here New Orleans, where the
Greater Liberty Baptist Church is preparing many young men for
adulthood through its Black Manhood Training program. ( (PAUSE))
But to get to school, to get to work, to get to a child-care
center, families must also be free to walk the streets of their
cities without fear. And today, freedom from fear means freedom
from drugs. ((PAUSE)) That is why Tuesday night I announced an
all-out assault, a way to attack the drug menace on every front.
Nowhere are drug dealers more vicious, more predatory, than
in the inner-city. They've turned whole communities into war
zones, making the routine of daily life miserable and dangerous
for thousands of honest families. It is time to get tough. Let
us join together to sweep out these merchants of death, to
reclaim our cities, to reclaim our streets. ( (PAUSE))
To provide child-care, to improve education, to create
opportunity and to defeat drugs -- these are steps to strengthen
families that require nothing less than a sustained national
effort, a national partnership. I believe government can and
should be a strong partner.
As I said here just a little more than a year ago: "A
government that remembers that the people are its master is a
good and needed thing. I respect old fashioned common sense, and
have no great love for the imaginings of social planners. I like
what's been tested and found to be true."
9
Your faith has been tested. Your values have been found to
be true. And it is your faith and your values that America is
turning to today. Americans will always come back to our basic
traditions, our values.
So I'm an optimist. I believe we will reach out to families
in need. I believe we will see a strengthening of the many
patterns of family life. And I believe we will see a sharing of
values -- values rooted in the conviction that we, as individuals
and as families are engaged in a single enterprise called
America.
Thank you for all that you've done. And thank you for
inviting me to New Orleans.
God bless you and God bless America.
#
#
#
ADDRESS: NATIONAL BAPTIST CONVENTION
NEW ORLEANS CONVENTION CENTER
SEPT. 8, 1989/2:30 P.M.
REVEREND JEMISON, REVEREND CLARK AND RICHARDSON,
DR. BEN HOOKS, BOARD OF DIRECTORS. FRIENDS.
((YOU KNOW, WITH SO MANY BAPTISTS HERE IN NEW
ORLEANS, I ALMOST EXPECT TO HEAR: "WHEN THE SAINTS COME
MARCHING IN")) ((PAUSE))
(THE LAST TIME I WAS HERE WAS LAST AUGUST 18TH.
I WAS RUNNING FOR PRESIDENT AND I ADDRESSED THOUSANDS
OF REPUBLICANS. NOW I AM ADDRESSING FIFTEEN THOUSAND
BAPTISTS, BUT THE FEELING OF SPEAKING BEFORE SUCH A
HUGE AUDIENCE IS THE SAME. BARBARA PUT IT ALL IN
PERSPECTIVE FOR ME. SHE SAID: "NOW GEORGE, JUST
IMAGINE YOU'RE STANDING IN FRONT OF ANOTHER SUNDAY
SCHOOL CLASS. ") )
(BUT I NEVER HAD A SUNDAY SCHOOL CLASS THIS
BIG.)) ((PAUSE))
WELL, I HAVE COME TO NEW ORLEANS TO TELL YOU
SOMETHING, AND I WILL SAY IT PLAINLY: YOUR GOOD WORKS
ARE THE INSPIRATION OF AMERICA.
- 2 -
AND YOU, IN TURN, DRAW YOUR INSPIRATION FROM THE
FAITH OF GREAT CHURCH. IT WAS THE FIRST AMERICAN
BAPTISTS IN RHODE ISLAND WHO LED THE CAMPAIGN FOR
RELIGIOUS TOLERATION. IT WAS THE BAPTISTS WHO PLAYED
AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN SECURING OUR FREEDOM OF RELIGION
IN THE AMERICAN CONSTITUTION. IT WAS THE BAPTISTS WHO,
AS PIONEERS, BUILT STURDY NEW CHURCHES ON THE EMPTY
PLAINS AND PRAIRIES OF THE WEST. BUT IT IS ANOTHER
TRADITION THAT WE HONOR IN NEW ORLEANS TODAY. WE HONOR
YOUR PARENTS AND GRANDPARENTS, WHO WERE ALSO BRAVE
PIONEERS -- PIONEERS WHO BLAZED TRAILS INTO ANOTHER
FRONTIER -- THE FREEDOM FRONTIER. ((PAUSE))
IT TOOK THIS CONVENTION, THE LEADERSHIP OF YOUR
PASTORS AND PEOPLE, TO EXTEND THE STRUGGLE FOR FREEDOM
TO ALL MEN AND WOMEN. ((PAUSE)) IT TOOK LEADERS LIKE
DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR., WYATT TEE WALKER, E.V.
HILL, JERRY MOORE, T.J. JEMISON, AND BEN HOOKS. AND IT
TOOK NOTHING LESS THAN ANOTHER GREAT AWAKENING -- AN
AWAKENING TO THE PROMISE OF CIVIL RIGHTS. ((PAUSE))
- 3 -
I HAVE WATCHED THIS MOVEMENT BLOSSOM IN MY
LIFETIME, FROM MY DAYS IN COLLEGE TO MY DAYS IN
CONGRESS. SO KNOW ONE THING: IN THE STRUGGLE FOR
EQUALITY AND OPPORTUNITY, YOUR HOPES AND DREAMS ARE
AMONG THE HIGHEST ASPIRATIONS OF MY PRESIDENCY.
((PAUSE)) WE'RE ON A JOURNEY TO A NEW CENTURY, AND
WE'VE GOT TO LEAVE THE TIRED OLD BAGGAGE OF BIGOTRY
BEHIND.
OF COURSE, DISCRIMINATION IS NOT THE ONLY PROBLEM
THAT WE FACE TODAY. JUST AS YOU LED AMERICA IN THE
CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT, SO YOU ARE NOW LEADING
COMMUNITIES STRUGGLING WITH ANOTHER NATIONAL PROBLEM.
IS IT CRIME? NOT QUITE. IS IT HOMELESSNESS? NO,
NOT BY ITSELF. IS IT DRUGS? YES, BUT IT IS EVEN MORE
THAN THAT. AS SERIOUS AS ALL OF THESE PROBLEMS ARE,
THEY ARE RELATED TO ANOTHER ONE -- THE DECLINE OF THE
MOST BASIC OF ALL INSTITUTIONS - -- THE FAMILY. TOO MANY
CHILDREN IN AMERICA ARE GROWING UP WITHOUT DIRECTION,
WITHOUT VALUES, WITHOUT ESTEEM FOR THEMSELVES OR ANYONE
ELSE. SO OUR GOAL IS SIMPLE, AND IT IS VITAL: WE MUST
WORK TOGETHER TO SAVE THE AMERICAN FAMILY. ((PAUSE))
- 4 -
FAMILY LIFE MUST BE OUR SOURCE OF STRENGTH. IT IS
FOR BARBARA, ME, AND IT IS FOR YOU. STRONG FAMILIES
ARE BOUND BY MORE THAN BLOOD; THEY ARE BOUND BY THE
PRECIOUS MEMORIES OF CHRISTMAS MORNING, A TODDLER'S
FIRST STEPS, A GRANDFATHER'S TALL TALES, AND THE
LASTING PRIDE OF A GRADUATION CEREMONY. AND OUR
FAMILIES ARE BOUND TOGETHER BY SOMETHING ELSE: SIMPLE
ACTS OF LEARNING AND TEACHING; SIMPLE ACTS TO INSTILL
THE VALUES OF FAIRNESS, HONESTY AND HARD WORK.
OF COURSE, THERE ARE MORE SINGLE PARENT FAMILIES
TODAY THAN EVER BEFORE. AND, DIFFICULT THOUGH IT MAY
BE, MOST SINGLE PARENTS ARE RAISING HAPPY, WELL-
ADJUSTED CHILDREN WITH THE HELP OF FAMILY AND FRIENDS,
AND BY DRAWING ON THEIR OWN INNER STRENGTH. BUT
IMAGINE THE LONELY PLIGHT OF A SINGLE MOTHER WHO HAS NO
HELP; WHO HAS NO MONEY; WHO HAS NO ABILITY TO KEEP HER
KIDS FROM BEING LOST -- LOST TO THE UNHEALTHY LIFE OF
THE STREETS. so TO SAVE THE AMERICAN FAMILY ALSO MEANS
PROVIDING SUPPORT FOR THESE PARENTS, WHO ARE STRUGGLING
AGAINST TOUGH ODDS. NOR CAN WE IGNORE THE DIFFICULTIES
OF POOR WORKING COUPLES WITH CHILDREN.
- 5 -
THE CHALLENGE OF STRENGTHENING THESE FAMILIES REQUIRES
BOTH PUBLIC AND PRIVATE EFFORTS. AND CHURCH LEADERSHIP
IS MEETING THE CHALLENGE -- IN MINISTRIES LIKE THAT OF
E.V. HILL OF LOS ANGELES, WHERE HUNGRY FAMILIES FIND
SUSTENANCE; IN MINISTRIES WHERE BAPTISTS ARE PROVIDING
FAMILIES WITH EVERYTHING FROM HIGH CHAIRS TO A HAND-UP.
YOU KNOW THAT NO MATTER HOW CLOSE-KNIT YOUR FAMILY
MAY BE, THE DECLINE OF THE AMERICAN FAMILY IS NOT JUST
SOMEONE ELSE'S PROBLEM. IT IS EVERYONE'S PROBLEM.
WHEN ONE GENERATION IS RAISED WITHOUT VALUES, IT STARTS
A CHAIN OF MISERY THAT WEIGHS DOWN FUTURE GENERATIONS.
ABOUT HALF OF ALL BLACK FAMILIES WITH CHILDREN ARE
HEADED BY ONE PARENT, AND MANY OF THESE PARENTS ARE
OVERWHELMED. AND BECAUSE THEY ARE OVERWHELMED, MORE
THAN FOUR OUT OF TEN BLACK CHILDREN LIVE IN POVERTY.
AND BECAUSE OF THIS, IT IS BECOMING HARDER FOR YOUR
CHURCHES TO REACH SO MANY PROMISING YOUNG MEN AND
WOMEN.
HOW CAN YOU TEACH RESPECT FOR A HARD-EARNED
DOLLAR, WHEN EASY DRUG MONEY FLOURISHES? ((PAUSE))
- 6 -
HOW CAN YOU TEACH THAT ACHIEVEMENT IS FOUND IN
QUIET MOMENTS AND SUBTLE REWARDS, WHEN A MURDEROUS
MATERIALISM // GLITTERS// WITH THE PROMISE OF GOLD
CHAINS, // FAST CARS/ / AND FASHION CLOTHES? ((PAUSE))
HOW CAN YOU PERSUADE YOUNG MEN AND WOMEN TO HAVE
FAITH IN THEMSELVES IF THEIR PARENTS HAVE LOST ALL
FAITH? ((PAUSE))
IN SHORT, WITHOUT STRONG FAMILIES, HOW CAN VALUES
TRIUMPH OVER VICE?
THE ANSWERS CAN ONLY COME FROM THE HEART, FROM THE
HEART OF EVERY PARENT. AND THE ANSWERS CAN COME FROM
YOU, FROM THE PEOPLE OF OUR CHURCHES.
I HAVE COME TO NEW ORLEANS TODAY TO PLEDGE MY
SUPPORT AND TO RECOGNIZE YOUR HEROIC EFFORTS. WE CAN
WORK TOGETHER IN MANY WAYS TO STRENGTHEN FAMILIES, WITH
GREATER CHOICE IN CHILD-CARE AND EDUCATION; AND BY
REPLACING THE CRIPPLING FEAR OF CRIME WITH THE PROMISE
OF OPPORTUNITY.
- 7 -
FIRST, LET ME BEGIN WITH CHILD-CARE. OFTEN, WHILE
PARENTS WORK, LOVE AND CARE COME FROM THE EXTENDED
FAMILY -- GRANDPARENTS, AUNTS AND UNCLES. AND IN MANY
WAYS, THE CHURCH COMMUNITY IS THE GREATEST EXTENDED
FAMILY OF ALL. I'VE SEEN THAT SPIRIT OF FAMILY AND LOVE
PERMEATE THE DAY-CARE CENTER AT SHILOH BAPTIST CHURCH
IN WASHINGTON.
YOUR GREAT CHURCH HAS ALREADY TAKEN A LOAD OFF THE
SHOULDERS OF WORKING PARENTS, SOME SINGLE; SOME
TOGETHER. AS WE WORK TO SOLVE THE CHILD CARE PROBLEMS
OF THIS COUNTRY, I AM DETERMINED TO PROTECT SHILOH AND
EVERY OTHER CHURCH-SPONSORED CHILD CARE CENTER IN
AMERICA.
IN THAT SPIRIT, I OFFER A FEW WAYS GOVERNMENT CAN
HELP. I HAVE PROPOSED A CHILD-CARE TAX CREDIT, FOCUSED
ON THOSE WHO NEED SUCH ASSISTANCE THE MOST -- LOW-
INCOME FAMILIES.
- 8 -
BUT THIS APPROACH IS DIFFERENT FROM PAST PROGRAMS.
IT WOULD EMPOWER PARENTS, NOT THE GOVERNMENT, TO CHOOSE
THE BEST CARE FOR THEIR CHILDREN -- BE IT A
GRANDPARENT, A NEIGHBOR OR A LOCAL CHURCH. WE NEED TO
GIVE PARENTS A CHOICE IN THEIR CHILDREN'S CARE, NOT
TAKE IT AWAY.
YET SOME IN CONGRESS DO NOT AGREE. PERHAPS IT IS
TIME WE SENT THEM A MESSAGE. JUST AS WE SHOULD SUPPORT
SINGLE-PARENT FAMILIES, SO WE SHOULD ALSO SUPPORT TWO-
PARENT FAMILIES WHERE ONE PARENT CHOOSES TO CARE FOR
THE CHILDREN AT HOME.
AND SOME WOULD DISCRIMINATE AGAINST CHURCH-
SPONSORED CHILD CARE. I SAY THAT'S WRONG.
WHEN IT COMES TO CHILD CARE, WE NEED MORE
CHURCHES NOT MORE GOVERNMENT INTERVENTION. (PAUSE)
WE NEED MORE CONGREGATIONS TAKING CARE OF OUR
CHILDREN -- NOT MORE GOVERNMENT REGULATIONS TELLING US
HOW TO DO IT. (PAUSE)
- 9 -
WHEN IT COMES TO CHILD CARE WE DON'T NEED MORE
BUREAUCRACY. WE NEED MORE BAPTISTS ((PAUSE)) AND WE
NEED THOUSANDS OF OTHER CHURCH MEMBERS WHO UNDERSTAND
THE REAL CONCERNS OF PARENTS IN TOWNS AND CITIES ACROSS
THIS LAND.
AND THAT'S WHY WE NEED A CHILD CARE POLICY THAT
PUTS MONEY IN THE POCKETS AND CHOICE IN THE HANDS OF
PARENTS BECAUSE, CONTRARY TO WHAT SOME MIGHT THINK,
WHEN IT COMES TO THEIR OWN CHILDRENS' CARE, PARENTS
STILL KNOW BEST.
BUT CHILD-CARE FOR FAMILIES IS NOT ENOUGH.
FAMILIES NEED OPPORTUNITY: I WANT TO RENEW MY PROPOSAL
FOR FEDERAL ENTERPRISE ZONES, TO BRING OPPORTUNITY TO
THE BARREN LOTS OF THE SOUTH BRONX, TO THE STREETS OF
WATTS, TO FARM TOWNS AND TO EVERY COMMUNITY IN NEED.
AND ALSO I RENEW MY PROPOSAL FOR TENANT MANAGEMENT OF
PUBLIC HOUSING. WE CAN NO LONGER DENY ANY OF OUR
PEOPLE THE AUTONOMY AND THE DIGNITY THEY DESERVE.
((PAUSE))
- 10 -
AND THEY DESERVE SOMETHING ELSE - A SAFE PLACE TO RAISE
THEIR CHILDREN AND JUST LIVE THEIR LIVES. AND so I'VE
ORDERED HUD TO TARGET AN ADDITIONAL $50 MILLION TO
FIGHT THE DEALERS ON THEIR TURF AND RESTORE ORDER IN
PUBLIC HOUSING PROJECTS.
BUT I ASK YOU TODAY TO HELP ME. JOIN THE BATTLE
TO HELP DRIVE THESE DEALERS OUT ONCE AND FOR ALL.
BECAUSE THERE'S ONE THING I'M SURE OF: 11 IF THE 15,000
PEOPLE IN THIS HALL - YOUR FRIENDS, YOUR FAMILIES, AND
YOUR NEIGHBORS - WHEN AMERICA DECIDES THAT ENOUGH IS
ENOUGH, THE DEALERS WON'T STAND A CHANCE.
YES, WE MUST BRING OPPORTUNITY TO THOSE WHO NEED
IT MOST. BUT OPPORTUNITY WILL BE WASTED IF YOUNG MEN
AND WOMEN LACK THE MEANS TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF IT. AND
THAT MEANS EDUCATION.
TODAY'S JOB MARKET WILL SETTLE FOR NOTHING LESS
THAN FULL LITERACY, AND AN APTITUDE FOR SKILLED LABOR.
AND THOSE WHO ARE INCAPABLE -- AND THEY ARE GREAT IN
NUMBER -- WILL FALL FURTHER AND FURTHER BEHIND.
- 11 -
WHAT'S THE ANSWER? I SEE YOU POINTING THE WAY.
FOR A CENTURY AND A HALF, YOUR CHURCHES HAVE
DEMONSTRATED THE LIBERATING POWER OF LEARNING. NO ONE
BETTER EXEMPLIFIES THIS TRADITION THEN THE REVEREND
HENRY ROSE, BORN INTO SLAVERY AND LIBERATED AT AGE 21.
HENRY ROSE WALKED ALL THE WAY FROM TEXAS TO
VIRGINIA, AND WORKED ON THE RAILROAD UNTIL A BAPTIST
SOCIETY SPONSORED HIM AT A SEMINARY SCHOOL. REVEREND
ROSE WAS so POOR THAT WHEN HE GRADUATED, HE HAD TO WEAR
A BOOT ON ONE FOOT AND A SHOE ON THE OTHER. BUT HENRY
ROSE HAD SOMETHING BETTER THAN A MATCHING PAIR OF
SHOES. HE HAD KNOWLEDGE. HE HAD PRIDE. AND AS A
BAPTIST MINISTER, HE FOUNDED FIVE CHURCHES AND TWO
SCHOOLS, ESTABLISHING INSTITUTIONS WITH GREAT
TRADITIONS OF SERVICE THAT LIVE ON TO THIS DAY.
THERE IS A LESSON FOR US IN THIS REMARKABLE MAN'S
LIFE. IF HE COULD BEAT THE OVERWHELMING ODDS OF
SLAVERY, OPPRESSION AND PREJUDICE TO LEAD A COMMUNITY,
THEN ANY OBSTACLE CAN BE OVERCOME.
- 12 -
AND WE SHALL OVERCOME. WHEN WE GIVE PARENTS AND
STUDENTS GREATER CHOICE. THIS MEANS MAGNET SCHOOLS;
THIS MEANS PUBLIC AND PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS LIKE "SAY
YES TO EDUCATION," WHICH SENDS IMPOVERISHED MINORITY
STUDENTS TO COLLEGE; AND THIS MEANS INCREASED SUPPORT
FOR HISTORICALLY BLACK COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES.
BUT EDUCATION IS MORE THAN SCHOOLING; IT IS
NOTHING LESS THAN THE COMMUNICATION OF VALUES. AND
ONCE AGAIN, YOU ARE LEADING THE WAY. JUST LOOK RIGHT
HERE IN NEW ORLEANS, WHERE THE GREATER LIBERTY BAPTIST
CHURCH IS PREPARING MANY YOUNG MEN FOR ADULTHOOD
THROUGH ITS BLACK MANHOOD TRAINING PROGRAM. ((PAUSE))
BUT TO GET TO SCHOOL, TO GET TO WORK, TO GET TO A
CHILD-CARE CENTER, FAMILIES MUST ALSO BE FREE TO WALK
THE STREETS OF THEIR CITIES WITHOUT FEAR. AND TODAY,
FREEDOM FROM FEAR MEANS FREEDOM FROM DRUGS. ((PAUSE))
THAT IS WHY TUESDAY NIGHT I ANNOUNCED OUR NATION'S
FIRST COMPREHENSIVE, COORDINATED ALL-OUT ASSAULT; A WAY
TO ATTACK THE DRUG MENACE ON EVERY FRONT.
- 13 -
I BELIEVE THE CONGRESS WILL EVENTUALLY WORK WITH
ME, TO MAKE OUR NATIONAL STRATEGY THE LAW OF THE LAND.
BUT, MY SURPRISE -- AND PERHAPS TO YOUR'S AS WELL --
BEFORE I EVEN PRESENTED MY PLAN TO YOU, THE PARTISAN
ATTACKS HAD ALREADY BEGUN.
THIS IS NOT THE ISSUE FOR PARTISAN POLITICS. THIS
IS NOT THE TIME FOR PARTISAN POLITICS. THIS IS THE
TIME TO COME TOGETHER AND, FOR THE FIRST TIME IN OUR
HISTORY, PASS A NATIONAL STRATEGY TO FIGHT DRUGS.
WE CAN BEAT THE SCOURGE OF DRUGS IF WE FIGHT AS A
NATION UNITED.
TO PROVIDE CHILD-CARE, TO IMPROVE EDUCATION, TO
CREATE OPPORTUNITY AND TO DEFEAT DRUGS -- THESE ARE
STEPS TO STRENGTHEN FAMILIES THAT REQUIRE NOTHING LESS
THAN A SUSTAINED NATIONAL EFFORT, A NATIONAL
PARTNERSHIP. I BELIEVE GOVERNMENT CAN AND SHOULD BE A
STRONG PARTNER. BUT I ALSO BELIEVE THAT THE SOLUTION
TO THE SOCIAL PROBLEMS FACING US TODAY ULTIMATELY
DEPENDS ON WHAT YOU AND YOUR COMMUNITIES DO.
- 14 -
I LIKE WHAT'S BEEN TESTED AND FOUND TO BE TRUE.
YOUR FAITH HAS BEEN TESTED. YOUR VALUES HAVE BEEN
FOUND TO BE TRUE. AND IT IS YOUR FAITH AND YOUR VALUES
THAT AMERICA IS TURNING TO TODAY.
so I'M AN OPTIMIST. I BELIEVE WE CAN REACH OUT TO
FAMILIES IN NEED. I BELIEVE WE CAN SEE A STRENGTHENING
OF THE MANY PATTERNS OF FAMILY LIFE. AND I BELIEVE WE
WILL SEE A SHARING OF VALUES -- VALUES ROOTED IN THE
CONVICTION THAT WE, AS INDIVIDUALS AND AS FAMILIES ARE
ENGAGED IN A SINGLE, WONDERFUL ENTERPRISE CALLED
AMERICA.
GOD BLESS YOU AND GOD BLESS THE UNITED STATES OF
AMERICA.
#
#
#
Davis/Martin
Sept. 6, 1989
Draft: Nine
Title: Baptists
PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS: NATIONAL BAPTIST CONVENTION USA, Inc.
New Orleans Convention Center
Sept. 8, 1989/2:30 p.m.
Reverend Cloud and Richardson, Ben Hooks
Reverend Jemison, members of the staff and members of the
board of directors. Friends.
( (You know, with so many Baptists here in New Orleans, I
almost expect to hear: "When the Saints Come Marching In") )
( (PAUSE))
((The last time I was here, I addressed thousands of
Republicans. Now I am addressing twelve thousand Baptists, and
I'm just as anxious to make a good impression today as I was
then. But Barbara put it all in perspective for me. She said:
"Now George, just imagine you're standing in front of another
Sunday school class. ") )
( (But I never had a Sunday school class this big. ))
((PAUSE))
Well, I have come to New Orleans to tell you something, and
I will say it plainly: Your good works are the inspiration of
America.
And you, in turn, draw your inspiration from the faith of
great church. It was the first American Baptists in Rhode Island
who led the campaign for religious toleration. It was the
Baptists who played an important role in securing our freedom of
religion in the American Constitution. It was the Baptists who,
Wine ona
2
as pioneers, built sturdy new churches on the empty plains and
prairies of the West. But it is another tradition that we honor
in New Orleans today. We honor your parents and grandparents,
who were also brave pioneers -- pioneers who blazed trails into
another frontier -- the freedom frontier. ((PAUSE))
It took this convention, the leadership of your pastors and
I
people, to extend the struggle for freedom to all men and
women. ( (PAUSE) ) It took leaders like Dr. Martin Luther King
and Ben House
Jr., Wyatt Tee Walker, E.V. Hill, Jerry Moore and T.J. Jemison,
And it took nothing less than another Great Awakening -- an
awakening to the promise of civil rights. ((PAUSE))
I have watched this movement blossom in my lifetime, from my
days in college to my days in Congress. So know one thing: in
the struggle for equality and opportunity, your hopes and dreams
are among the highest aspirations of my Presidency. ((PAUSE))
We're on a journey to a new century, and we've got to leave the
tired old baggage of bigotry behind.
Of course, discrimination is not the only problem that we
face today. Just as you led America in the civil rights
movement, so you are now leading communities struggling with
another national problem.
Is it crime? Not quite. Is it homelessness? No, not by
itself. Is it drugs? Yes, but it is even more than that. As
serious as all of these problems are, they are related to another
one -- the decline of the most basic of all institutions -- the
family. Too many children in America are growing up without
3
direction, without values, without esteem for themselves or
anyone else. So our goal is simple, and it is vital: We must
work together to save the American family. ( (PAUSE) )
Family life is my source of strength, as it is for Barbara,
and as it is for you. Strong families are bound by more than
blood; they are bound by the precious memories of Christmas
morning, a toddler's first steps, a grandfather's tall tales, and
the lasting pride of a graduation ceremony. And our families are
bound together by something else: simple acts of learning and
teaching; simple acts to instill the values of fairness, honesty
and hard work.
of course, there are more single parent families today than
ever before. And, difficult though it may be, most single
parents are raising happy, well-adjusted children with the help
of family and friends, and by drawing on their own inner
strength. But imagine the lonely plight of a single mother who
has no help; who has no money; who has no ability to keep her
kids from being lost -- lost to the unhealthy life of the
streets. So to save the American family also means providing
support for these parents, who are struggling against tough odds.
Nor can we ignore the difficulties of poor working couples
with children. The challenge of strengthening these families
requires both public and private efforts. And church leadership
is meeting the challenge -- in ministries like that of E.V. Hill
of Los Angeles, where hungry families find sustenance; in
4
ministries where Baptists are providing families with everything
from high chairs to a hand-up.
You know that no matter how close-knit your family may be,
the decline of the American family is not just someone else's
problem. It is everyone's problem. When one generation is
raised without values, it starts a chain of misery that weighs
down future generations. About half of all black families with
children are headed by one parent, and many of these parents are
overwhelmed. And because they are overwhelmed, more than four
out of ten black children live in poverty. And because of this,
it is becoming harder for your churches to reach so many
promising young men and women.
How can you teach respect for a hard-earned dollar, when
easy drug money flourishes? ( (PAUSE) )
How can you teach that achievement is found in quiet moments
and subtle rewards, when a murderous materialism // glitters//
with the promise of gold chains,// fast cars// and fashion
clothes? ((PAUSE))
How can you persuade young men and women to have faith in
themselves if their parents have lost all faith? ( (PAUSE))
In short, without strong families, how can values triumph
over vice?
The answers can only come from the heart, from the heart of
every parent. And the answers can come from you, from the people
of our churches.
5
I have come to New Orleans today to pledge my support and to
recognize your heroic efforts. We can work together in many ways
to strengthen families, with greater choice in child-care and
education; and by replacing the crippling fear of crime with the
promise of opportunity.
First, let me begin with child-care. Often, while parents
work, love and care come from the extended family --
grandparents, aunts and uncles. And in many ways, the church
community is the greatest extended family of all. You have
already taken a load off the shoulders of working parents, some
single; some together. And in this same spirit, I offer a few
ways government can help.
I have proposed a child-care tax credit, to be focused on
those who need such assistance the most -- low-income families.
But this approach is different from past programs, because
it would empower parents, not the government, to choose the best
care for their children -- be it a grandparent, a neighbor or a
local church. We need to give parents a choice in their
children's care, not take it away.
Yet some in Congress do not agree. Perhaps it is time we
sent them a message. Just as we should support single-parent
families, so we should also support two-parent families where one
parent chooses to care for the children at home. And we should
never, discriminate against religiously-affiliated child care.
((PAUSE))
6
I felt for myself, in Washington, D.C., the spirit of family
and love that permeates the day-care center at Shiloh Baptist
Church. I am determined to protect Shiloh and every other
church-affiliated child-care center in America. (PAUSE))
But child-care for families is not enough. Families need
opportunity: I want to renew my proposal for federal enterprise
zones, to bring opportunity to the barren lots of the South
Bronx, to the streets of Watts, to farm towns and to every
community in need. And also I renew my proposal for tenant
management of public housing. We can no longer deny these people
the autonomy and the dignity they deserve. ((PAUSE))
These are ways to bring opportunity to those who need it
most. But opportunity will be wasted if young men and women lack
the means to take advantage of it. And that means education. * inpert
Today's job market will settle for nothing less than full
literacy, and an aptitude for skilled labor. And those who are
incapable -- and they are great in number -- will fall further
and further behind.
What's the answer? I see you pointing the way. For a
century and a half, your churches no have one demonstrated better the exemplifies
liberating power of learning. Annie Rose, a community leader in
told
Alexandria, Virginia, tells a fascinating story about her father.
that tradition than the Peverend
You see, Annie Rose is 95 years old, and her father, Henry Rose,
were
and
was born into slavery
Liberated at age 21, Henry Rose walked all the way from
Texas to Virginia, and worked on the railroad until a Baptist
Miss Annie B.
7
society sponsored him at a seminary school. Annie Rose says her
father was so poor that when he graduated, he had to wear a boot
on one foot and a shoe on the other. But Henry Rose had
something better than a matching pair of shoes. He had
knowledge. He had pride. And as a Baptist minister, he founded
five churches and two schools, establishing institutions with
great traditions of service that live on to this day.
There is a lesson for us in this remarkable man's life. If
he could beat the overwhelming odds of slavery, oppression and
prejudice to lead a community, then any obstacle can be overcome.
And we shall overcome. Opportunity comes when we give
parents and students greater choice. This means magnet schools;
this means public and private partnerships like "Say Yes to
Education," which sends impoverished minority students to
college; and this means increased support for historically Black
Colleges and Universities.
But education is more than schooling; it is nothing less
than the communication of values. And once again, you are
leading the way. Just look right here in New Orleans, where the
Greater Liberty Baptist Church is preparing many young men for
adulthood through its Black Manhood Training program. ( (PAUSE) )
But to get to school, to get to work, to get to a child-care
center, families must also be free to walk the streets of their
cities without fear. And today, freedom from fear means freedom
from drugs. ( (PAUSE) ) That is why Tuesday night I announced our
8
nation's first comprehensive, coordinated all-out assault; a way
to attack the drug menace on every front.
I believe the Congress will eventually work with me, to make
our national strategy the law of the land. To my surprise -- and
perhaps to your's as well -- before I even presented my plan to
you, the partisan attacks had already begun. This is bad
politics, bad policy and bad for America.
I challenge those who hunger for a partisan issue to take
the high road instead, to work for our national strategy, not
against it.
I challenge those who seek more spending and more taxes, to
instead seek more cooperation and bipartisanship. We can beat
the scourge, as long as we are a nation united.
To provide child-care, to improve education, to create
opportunity and to defeat drugs -- these are steps to strengthen
families that require nothing less than a sustained national
effort, a national partnership. I believe government can and
should be a strong partner. But I also believe that the solution
to the social problems facing us today ultimately depends on what
you and your communities do.
I respect old fashioned common sense, and have no great love
for the imaginings of social planners. I like what's been tested
and found to be true
Your faith has been tested. Your values have been found to
be true. And it is your faith and your values that America is
turning to today.
9
So I'm an optimist. I believe we can reach out to families
in need. I believe we can see a strengthening of the many
patterns of family life. And I believe we will see a sharing of
values -- values rooted in the conviction that we, as individuals
and as families are engaged in a single enterprise called
America.
Thank you for all that you've done and for what you will
continue to do to make America a better place. And thank you for
inviting me to New Orleans.
God bless you and God bless America.
#
#
#
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
Sept. 6, 1989
INFORMATION
MEMORANDUM FOR THE PRESIDENT
FROM:
MARK DAVIS,Mt)
THROUGH:
CHRISS WINSTON
CW
SUBJECT: Baptists
I. SUMMARY
The National Baptist Convention USA, 7.5 million members strong,
is the nation's largest black denomination; and the third largest
Protestant denomination in the country.
II. DISCUSSION
This speech addresses the socially conservative views of this
group, based on the premise that values begin with strong
families. It relates stronger families to 1) your child-care
provision, which supports religiously affiliated child care; 2)
opportunity programs like enterprise zones and tenant-management
of public housing; 3) the value of education, and 4) freedom from
fear, which means freedom from drugs.
Please take particular note of page 8. This passage describes
the low-road approach of those who criticize your drug plan.
Gov. Buddy Roemer and Ben Hooks may attend. This speech is
telepromptered.
is
i
June - July
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
Old town Alexandria
Alfred St Baptist Church
683-2222
Annie Rose
Miss Annie B.
683-3520
Library of British Embassy
3
GOOD COP
But to get to school, to get to work, to get to a child-care
center, families must also be free to walk the streets of their
cities without fear. And today, freedom from fear means freedom
from drugs. ((PAUSE)) That's why Tuesday night I announced our
nation's first comprehensive, coordinated all-out assault; a way
to attack the drug menace on every front.
Insent.
I believe the Congress will eventually work with me, to make
our national strategy the law of the land. To my surprise -- and
perhaps to yours as well -- partisan commercials attacking our
ONtelevision
plan were on the air even before I presented it to you. This is
bad politics, bad policy and bad for America.
I challenge those who hunger for a partisan issue to take
the high road instead, to work for our national strategy, not
against it.
I challenge those who seek more spending and more taxes, to
instead seek more cooperation and bipartisanship.
And I ask those who want a D-Day against drugs to remember
that the war didn't end on the very day General Eisenhower
invaded Normandy. We can only win this war against drugs, battle
by battle. Together.
Davis/Martin
Sept. 4, 1989
Draft: Seven
Title: Baptists
PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS: NATIONAL BAPTIST CONVENTION USA, Inc.
New Orleans Convention Center
Sept. 8, 1989/2:30 p.m.
Reverend Jemison, members of the staff and members of the
board of directors.
( (You know, with so many Baptists here in New Orleans, I
almost expect to hear: "When the Saints Come Marching In") )
((PAUSE))
}
((The last time I was here, I addressed thousands of
Republicans. Now I am addressing sixteen thousand Baptists, and
I'm just as anxious to make a good impression today as I was
then. But Barbara put it all in perspective for me. She said:
"Now George, just imagine you're standing in front of another
Sunday school class. "))
( (But I never had a Sunday school class this big. ))
((PAUSE))
Well, every Sunday school student knows that it is written
in the Bible that wherever two or three people gather together to
worship, there is a church. And, in many ways, that is what we
have here for a few days in New Orleans -- the biggest
congregation inside the biggest church on Earth. i (PAUSE))
You draw your inspiration from the faith of a great church.
It was the first American Baptists in Rhode Island who, as sons
of Pilgrims, led the campaign for religious toleration. It was
2
the Baptists who played an important role in securing our freedom
of religion in the American Constitution. It was the Baptists
who, as pioneers, built sturdy new churches on the empty plains
and prairies of the West. But it is another tradition that we
honor in New Orleans today. We honor your parents and
grandparents, who were also brave pioneers -- pioneers who blazed
trails into another frontier -- the freedom frontier. ( (PAUSE) )
It took this convention, the leadership of your pastors and
your people to extend the struggle for freedom to all men and
women.
(
(PAUSE))
It took leaders like Dr. Martin Luther King
Be Hooks
leave
Jr. , Wyatt Tee Walker, E.V. Hill, Jerry Moore and T.J. Jemison.
we
the
nt
And it took nothing less than another Great Awakening -- an
ndjust
awakening to the promise of civil rights. ( (PAUSE))
"and
an
?
I have watched this movement blossom in my lifetime, from my
cople
days in college to my days in Congress. So know one thing: in
the struggle for equality and opportunity, your hopes and dreams
are the highest aspirations of my Presidency. ( (PAUSE) )
It was just more than a year ago that I was privileged to
give a nominating address here, one in which I promised our
country would stand for a greater tolerance. I said, "We've come
far, but I think we need a new harmony among the races in our
country. We're on a journey to a new century, and we've got to
leave the tired old baggage of bigotry behind."
Of course, discrimination is not the only problem that we
face today. Just as you led America in the civil rights
3
movement, so you are now leading communities struggling with
another national problem.
Is it crime? Not quite. Is it homelessness? No, not by
itself. Is it drugs? Yes, but it is even more than that. As
serious as all of these problems are, they are related to another
one -- the decline of the most basic of all institutions -- the
family. Too many children in America are growing up without
direction, without values, without esteem for themselves or
anyone else. So our goal is simple, and it is vital: We must
work together to save the American family. ((PAUSE))
Family life is my source of strength, as it is for Barbara,
and as it is for you. Strong families are bound by more than
blood; they are bound by the precious memories of Christmas
morning, a toddler's first steps, a grandfather's tall tales, and
the lasting pride of a graduation ceremony. And our families are
bound by something else: simple acts of learning and teaching;
simple acts to instill the values of fairness, honesty and hard
work.
Of course, there are more single parents today than ever
before. And, difficult though it may be, most single parents are
raising happy, well-adjusted children with the help of family and
friends, and by drawing on their own inner strength. But imagine
the lonely plight of a single mother who has no help; who has no
money; who has no ability to keep her kids from being lost --
lost to the unhealthy life of the streets. So to save the
4
American family also means providing support for these parents,
who are struggling against tough odds.
Nor can we ignore the difficulties of poor working couples
with children. The challenge of strengthening these families
requires both public and private efforts. And church leadership
is meeting the challenge -- in ministries like that of E.V. Hill
of Los Angeles, where hungry families find sustenance; in
ministries where Baptists are providing families with everything
from high chairs to a hand-up.
You know that no matter how close-knit your family may be,
the decline of the American family is not just someone else's
problem. It is our problem. When one generation is raised
without values, it uncoils a chain of misery that weighs down
future generations. Almost half of all black families are headed
by one parent, and many of these parents are overwhelmed. And
because they are overwhelmed, four out of ten black children live
in poverty. And because of this, it is becoming harder for your
churches to reach so many promising young men and women.
How can you teach respect for a hard-earned dollar, when
easy drug money flourishes? ((PAUSE))
How can you teach that achievement is found in quiet moments
and subtle rewards, when a murderous materialism 11 glitters//
with the promise of gold chains,/ fast cars// and fashion
clothes? ((PAUSE))
5
How can you teach a young black man, living in poverty, to
work for a better future, when he has a greater chance of going
to prison than of going to college? ((PAUSE))
In short, without strong families, how can values triumph
over vice?
The answers can only come from the heart, from the heart of
every parent. And the answers can come from you, from the people
of our churches.
I have come to New Orleans today to pledge my support and to
recognize your heroic efforts. We can work together in many ways
to strengthen families, with greater choice in child-care and
education; and by replacing the crippling fear of crime with the
promise of opportunity.
First, let me begin with child-care. Often, while parents
work, love and care comes from the extended family --
grandparents, aunts and uncles. And in many ways, the church
community is the greatest extended family of all. You have
already taken a load off the shoulders of working parents, some
single; some together. And in this same spirit, I offer a few
ways government can help.
I have proposed a child-care tax credit, to be focused on
those who need such assistance the most -- the working poor.
But this approach is different from past programs, because
it would empower parents, not the government, to choose the best
care for their children -- be it a grandparent, a neighbor or a
6
local church. We need to give parents a choice in their
children's care, not take it away.
Yet some in Congress do not agree. Perhaps it is time we
sent them a message. Just as we should support single-parent
families, so we should also support two-parent families where one
parent chooses to care for the children at home. And we should
never, never discriminate against religiously affiliated child
care. ((PAUSE))
I felt for myself, in Washington, D.C., the spirit of family
and love that permeates the day-care center at Shiloh Baptist
Church. And, if necessary, I am determined to protect Shiloh and
every other church-affiliated child-care center in America with
my veto pen. ( (PAUSE) )
But child-care for families is not enough. Families need
opportunity: I want to renew my proposal for federal enterprise
zones, to bring opportunity to the barren lots of the South
we
say
Bronx, to the streets of Watts, to farm towns and to every
can
community in need. And also I renew my proposal for tenant
people.
management of public housing. We can no longer deny these people
the autonomy and the dignity they deserve. ( (PAUSE))
These are ways to bring opportunity to those who need it
most. But opportunity will be wasted if young men and women lack
the means to take advantage of it. And that means education.
Today's job market will settle for nothing less than full
literacy, and an aptitude for skilled labor. And those who are
7
incapable -- and they are great in number -- will fall further
and further behind.
known
she
What's the answer? I see you pointing the way. For a
century and a half, your churches have demonstrated the
Annie
Rose
liberating power of learning. Ms. Annie Rose, a community leader
3
in
Alexandria, Virginia, tells a fascinating story about her father.
Mrs. or
You see, Annie Rose is 95-years-old, and her father, Henry Rose,
was born into slavery.
Liberated at age 21, Henry Rose walked all the way from
Texas to Virginia, and worked on the railroad until a Baptist
society sponsored him at a seminary school. Annie Rose says her
father was so poor that when he graduated, he had to wear a boot
on one foot and a shoe on the other. But Henry Rose had
something better than a matching pair of shoes. He had
knowledge. He had pride. And as a Baptist minister, he founded
five churches and two schools, establishing institutions with
great traditions of service that live on to this day.
There is a lesson for us in this remarkable man's life. If
a he could beat the overwhelming odds of slavery, oppression and
prejudice to lead a community, then any obstacle can be overcome.
And we will overcome. Opportunity comes when we give
parents and students greater choice. This means magnet schools;
this means public and private partnerships like "Say Yes to
Education," which sends impoverished minority students to
college; and this means increased support for historically Black
Colleges and Universities.
8
But education is more than schooling; it is nothing less
than the communication of values. And once again, you are
leading the way. Just look right here New Orleans, where the
Greater Liberty Baptist Church is preparing many young men for
adulthood through its Black Manhood Training program. ((PAUSE))
But to get to school, to get to work, to get to a child-care
center, families must also be free to walk the streets of their
cities without fear. And today, freedom from fear means freedom
from drugs. ( (PAUSE) ) That is why Tuesday night I announced an
all-out assault, a way to attack the drug menace on every front.
Nowhere are drug dealers more vicious, more predatory, than
in the inner-city. They've turned whole communities into war
zones, making the routine of daily life miserable and dangerous
for thousands of honest families. It is time to get tough. Let
us join together to sweep out these merchants of death, to
reclaim our cities, to reclaim our streets. ((PAUSE))
To provide child-care, to improve education, to create
opportunity and to defeat drugs -- these are steps to strengthen
families that require nothing less than a sustained national
effort, a national partnership. I believe government can and
great line,
+
should be a strong partner.
"A
A to m aster talk we 5" about was ve that
given
As I said here just a little more than a year ago:
government that remembers that the people are its master is
good and needed thing. I respect old fashioned common sense, and
have no great love for the imaginings of social planners. I like
what's been tested and found to be true." If
9
Your faith has been tested. Your values have been found to
be true. And it is your faith and your values that America is
turning to today. Americans will always come back to our basic
traditions, our values.
So I'm an optimist. I believe we will reach out to families
in need. I believe we will see a strengthening of the many
patterns of family life. And I believe we will see a sharing of
values -- values rooted in the conviction that we, as individuals
and as families are engaged in a single enterprise called
America.
Thank you for all that you've done. And thank you for
inviting me to New Orleans.
God bless you and God bless America.
#
#
#
069634SS
Document No.
WHITE HOUSE STAFFING MEMORANDUM
9/5/89
9/6/89 NOON
DATE:
ACTION/CONCURRENCE/COMMENT DUE BY:
PRESIDENTIAL REMARKS: NATIONAL BAPTIST CONVENTION, USA
SUBJECT:
ACTION FYI
ACTION FYI
VICE PRESIDENT
MCCLURE N/C phone
SUNUNU
NEWMAN
SCOWCROFT
PORTER Roger nuds took et
DARMAN
STUDDERT N/C plione
BATES
N/C
UNTERMEYER
BREEDEN
ROGERS
[
WINSTON
CARD
PINKERTON
CICCONI
DEMAREST
BENNETT what return
until 3pm
FITZWATER
PETERSMEYER
GRAY
HAGIN
REMARKS:
Please forward any comments directly to Chriss Winston,
Rm. 122, x2930, no later than NOON Wednesday, September
6, with a copy to my office. Thank you.
RESPONSE:
James W. Cicconi
Assistant to the President
and Deputy to the Chief of Staff
Ext. 2702
3
movement, so you are now leading communities struggling with
another national problem.
Is it crime? Not quite. Is it homelessness? No, not by
itself. Is it drugs? Yes, but it is even more than that. As
serious as all of these problems are, they are related to another
one -- the decline of the most basic of all institutions -- the
family. Too many children in America are growing up without
direction, without values, without esteem for themselves or
anyone else. So our goal is simple, and it is vital: We must
work together to save the American family. ((PAUSE))
Family life is my source of strength, as it is for Barbara,
and as it is for you. Strong families are bound by more than
blood; they are bound by the precious memories of Christmas
morning, a toddler's first steps, a grandfather's tall tales, and
the lasting pride of a graduation ceremony. And our families are
together
bound by something else: simple acts of learning and teaching;
simple acts to instill the values of fairness, honesty and hard
work.
Of course, there are more single parents (families today than ever
before. And, difficult though it may be, most single parents are
raising happy, well-adjusted children with the help of family and
friends, and by drawing on their own inner strength. But imagine
the lonely plight of a single mother who has no help; who has no
money; who has no ability to keep her kids from being lost --
lost to the unhealthy life of the streets. So to save the
4
American family also means providing support for these parents,
who are struggling against tough odds.
Nor can we ignore the difficulties of poor working couples
with children. The challenge of strengthening these families
requires both public and private efforts. And church leadership
is meeting the challenge -- in ministries like that of E.V. Hill
of Los Angeles, where hungry families find sustenance; in
ministries where Baptists are providing families with everything
from high chairs to a hand-up.
You know that no matter how close-knit your family may be,
the decline of the American family is not just someone else's
problem. It is everyones our problem. When one generation is raised
starts
without values, it uncoils a chain of misery that weighs down
about
with children
future generations. Almost half of all black families are headed
by one parent, and many of these parents are overwhelmed. And
because they are overwhelmed, morethan four out of ten black children live
in poverty. And because of this, it is becoming harder for your
churches to reach so many promising young men and women.
How can you teach respect for a hard-earned dollar, when
easy drug money flourishes? ((PAUSE))
How can you teach that achievement is found in quiet moments
and subtle rewards, when a murderous materialism // glitters//
with the promise of gold chains, // fast cars/ / and fashion
clothes? ((PAUSE))
5
How can you teach a young black man, living in poverty, to
work for a better future, when he has a greater chance of going
to prison than of going to college? (PAUSE))
?
In short, without strong families, how can values triumph
over vice?
The answers can only come from the heart, from the heart of
every parent. And the answers can come from you, from the people
of our churches.
I have come to New Orleans today to pledge my support and to
recognize your heroic efforts. We can work together in many ways
to strengthen families, with greater choice in child-care and
education; and by replacing the crippling fear of crime with the
promise of opportunity.
First, let me begin with child-care. Often, while parents
work, love and care comes from the extended family --
grandparents, aunts and uncles. And in many ways, the church
community is the greatest extended family of all. You have
already taken a load off the shoulders of working parents, some
single; some together. And in this same spirit, I offer a few
ways government can help.
I have proposed a child-care tax credit, to be focused on
lowincome
families.
those who need such assistance the most -- the working poor.
But this approach is different from past programs, because
it would empower parents, not the government, to choose the best
care for their children -- be it a grandparent, a neighbor or a
6
local church. We need to give parents a choice in their
children's care, not take it away.
Yet some in Congress do not agree. Perhaps it is time we
sent them a message. Just as we should support single-parent
families, so we should also support two-parent families where one
parent chooses to care for the children at home. And we should
never, never discriminate against religiously affiliated child
care. ((PAUSE))
I felt for myself, in Washington, D.C., the spirit of family
and love that permeates the day-care center at Shiloh Baptist
Church. And, if necessary, I am determined to protect Shiloh and
every other church-affiliated child-care center in America with
my veto pen. ((PAUSE))
But child-care for families is not enough. Families need
opportunity: I want to renew my proposal for federal enterprise
zones, to bring opportunity to the barren lots of the South
Bronx, to the streets of Watts, to farm towns and to every
community in need. And also I renew my proposal for tenant
management of public housing. We can no longer deny these people
the autonomy and the dignity they deserve. ( (PAUSE) )
These are ways to bring opportunity to those who need it
most. But opportunity will be wasted if young men and women lack
the means to take advantage of it. And that means education.
Today's job market will settle for nothing less than full
literacy, and an aptitude for skilled labor. And those who are
7
incapable -- and they are great in number -- will fall further
and further behind.
What's the answer? I see you pointing the way. For a
century and a half, your churches have demonstrated the
liberating power of learning. Annie Rose, a community leader in
Alexandria, Virginia, tells a fascinating story about her father.
You see, Annie Rose is 95-years-old, and her father, Henry Rose,
was born into slavery.
Liberated at age 21, Henry Rose walked all the way from
Texas to Virginia, and worked on the railroad until a Baptist
society sponsored him at a seminary school. Annie Rose says her
father was so poor that when he graduated, he had to wear a boot
on one foot and a shoe on the other. But Henry Rose had
something better than a matching pair of shoes. He had
knowledge. He had pride. And as a Baptist minister, he founded
five churches and two schools, establishing institutions with
great traditions of service that live on to this day.
There is a lesson for us in this remarkable man's life. If
he could beat the overwhelming odds of slavery, oppression and
prejudice to lead a community, then any obstacle can be overcome.
And we will overcome. Opportunity comes when we give
parents and students greater choice. This means magnet schools;
this means public and private partnerships like "Say Yes to
Education," which sends impoverished minority students to
college; and this means increased support for historically Black
Colleges and Universities.
8
But education is more than schooling; it is nothing less
than the communication of values. And once again, you are
leading the way. Just look right here New Orleans, where the
Greater Liberty Baptist Church is preparing many young men for
adulthood through its Black Manhood Training program. ((PAUSE))
But to get to school, to get to work, to get to a child-care
center, families must also be free to walk the streets of their
cities without fear. And today, freedom from fear means freedom
from drugs. ((PAUSE)) That is why Tuesday night I announced an
all-out assault, a way to attack the drug menace on every front.
Nowhere are drug dealers more vicious, more predatory, than
in the inner-city. They've turned whole communities into war
(Nsevt A
&
zones, making the routine of daily life miserable and dangerous
for thousands of honest families. It is time to get tough. Let
us join together to sweep out these merchants of death, to
reclaim our cities, to reclaim our streets. ((PAUSE))
To provide child-care, to improve education, to create
opportunity and to defeat drugs -- these are steps to strengthen
families that require nothing less than a sustained national
effort, a national partnership. I believe government can and
should be a strong partner. But I also believe that the
As I said here just a little more than a year ago: "A
government that remembers that the people are its master is a
good and needed thing. I respect old fashioned common sense, and
have no great love for the imaginings of social planners. I like
what's been tested and found to be true."
Solutions to the social problems fraccing us today utemately
depends anwhat you and your communities do.
9
Your faith has been tested. Your values have been found to
be true. And it is your faith and your values that America is
turning to today. Americans will always come back to our basic
traditions, our values.
So I'm an optimist. I believe we will can reach out to families
call
in need. I believe we will see a strengthening of the many
patterns of family life. And I believe we will caster see a sharing of
values -- values rooted in the conviction that we, as individuals
and as families are engaged in a single enterprise called
America.
Thank you for all that you've done And thank you for
inviting me to New Orleans.
God bless you and God bless America.
#
#
#
and for what you will contenue
to do to make america a better
place.
Davis/Martin
Sept. 7, 1989
Draft: Eleven
Title: Baptists
PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS: NATIONAL BAPTIST CONVENTION USA, Inc.
New Orleans Convention Center
Sept. 8, 1989/2:30 p.m.
Reverend Jemison, Reverend Clark and Richardson, Dr. Ben
Hooks, board of directors. Friends.
((You know, with so many Baptists here in New Orleans, I
almost expect to hear: "When the Saints Come Marching In") )
((PAUSE) )
((The last time I was here was last August 18th. I was
and
running for President, I addressed thousands of Republicans. Now
I am addressing fifteen thousand Baptists, but the feeling of
speaking before such a huge audience is the same. But Barbara
put it all in perspective for me. She said: "Now George, just
imagine you're standing in front of another Sunday school
class. "))
( (But I never had a Sunday school class this big.) )
( (PAUSE) )
Well, I have come to New Orleans to tell you something, and
I will say it plainly: Your good works are the inspiration of
America.
And you, in turn, draw your inspiration from the faith of
great church. It was the first American Baptists in Rhode Island
who led the campaign for religious toleration. It was the
Baptists who played an important role in securing our freedom of
2
religion in the American Constitution. It was the Baptists who,
as pioneers, built sturdy new churches on the empty plains and
prairies of the West. But it is another tradition that we honor
in New Orleans today. We honor your parents and grandparents,
who were also brave pioneers -- pioneers who blazed trails into
another frontier --- the freedom frontier. ( (PAUSE) )
It took this convention, the leadership of your pastors and
people, to extend the struggle for freedom to all men and women.
((PAUSE) ) It took leaders like Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.,
Wyatt Tee Walker, E.V. Hill, Jerry Moore, T.J. Jemison, and Ben
Hooks. And it took nothing less than another Great Awakening --
an awakening to the promise of civil rights. ( (PAUSE) )
I have watched this movement blossom in my lifetime, from my
days in college to my days in Congress. So know one thing: in
the struggle for equality and opportunity, your hopes and dreams
are among the highest aspirations of my Presidency. ( (PAUSE) )
We're on a journey to a new century, and we've got to leave the
tired old baggage of bigotry behind.
of course, discrimination is not the only problem that we
face today. Just as you led America in the civil rights
movement, so you are now leading communities struggling with
another national problem.
Is it crime? Not quite. Is it homelessness? No, not by
itself. Is it drugs? Yes, but it is even more than that. As
serious as all of these problems are, they are related to another
one -- the decline of the most basic of all institutions -- the
3
family. Too many children in America are growing up without
direction, without values, without esteem for themselves or
anyone else. So our goal is simple, and it is vital: We must
work together to save the American family. ((PAUSE))
Family life must be our source of strength. It is for
Barbara, me, and it is for you. Strong families are bound by
more than blood; they are bound by the precious memories of
Christmas morning, a toddler's first steps, a grandfather's tall
tales, and the lasting pride of a graduation ceremony. And our
families are bound together by something else: simple acts of
learning and teaching; simple acts to instill the values of
fairness, honesty and hard work.
of course, there are more single parent families today than
ever before. And, difficult though it may be, most single
parents are raising happy, well-adjusted children with the help
of family and friends, and by drawing on their own inner
strength. But imagine the lonely plight of a single mother who
has no help; who has no money; who has no ability to keep her
kids from being lost -- lost to the unhealthy life of the
streets. So to save the American family also means providing
support for these parents, who are struggling against tough odds.
Nor can we ignore the difficulties of poor working couples
with children. The challenge of strengthening these families
requires both public and private efforts. And church leadership
is meeting the challenge -- in ministries like that of E.V. Hill
of Los Angeles, where hungry families find sustenance; in
4
ministries- where Baptists are providing families with everything
from high chairs to a hand-up.
You know that no matter how close-knit your family may be,
the decline of the American family is not just someone else's
problem. It is everyone's problem. When one generation is
raised without values, it starts a chain of misery that weighs
down future generations. About half of all black families with
children are headed by one parent, and many of these parents are
overwhelmed. And because they are overwhelmed, more than four
out of ten black children live in poverty. And because of this,
it is becoming harder for your churches to reach so many
promising young men and women.
How can you teach respect for a hard-earned dollar, when
easy drug money flourishes? ((PAUSE))
How can you teach that achievement is found in quiet moments
and subtle rewards, when a murderous materialism // glitters//
with the promise of gold chains,// fast cars// and fashion
clothes? ((PAUSE))
How can you persuade young men and women to have faith in
themselves if their parents have lost all faith? ((PAUSE))
In short, without strong families, how can values triumph
over vice?
The answers can only come from the heart, from the heart of
every parent. And the answers can come from you, from the people
of our churches.
6
families, so we should also support two-parent families where one
parent chooses to care for the children at home.
And some want to discriminate against church-sponsored
child care. I say that's wrong.
When it comes to child care, we need more churches not more
government intervention. (Pause)
We need more congregations taking care of our children not
government manuals telling us how to do it. (Pause)
When it comes to child care we don't need more bureaucracy.
We need more Baptists (Pause) and we need thousands of other
church members who understand the real concerns of parents in
towns and cities across this land.
And that's why we need a child care policy that puts money
in the pockets and choice in the hands of parents because,
contrary to what some might think, parents still know best when
it comes to their own childrens' care.
But child-care for families is not enough. Families need
opportunity: I want to renew my proposal for federal enterprise
zones, to bring opportunity to the barren lots of the South
Bronx, to the streets of Watts, to farm towns and to every
community in need. And also I renew my proposal for tenant
management of public housing. We can no longer deny any of our
people the autonomy and the dignity they deserve. ((PAUSE)) And
they deserve something else - a safe place to raise their
children and just live their lives. And so I've ordered HUD to
target an additional $50 million to fight the dealers on their
7
turf and restore order in public housing projects. But I ask you
today to help me. Join the battle to help drive these dealers
out once and for all. Because there's one thing I'm sure of:
if the 15,000 people in this hall - your friends, your families,
your neighbors - when America decides that enough is enough, the
dealers won't stand a chance.
Yes, we must bring opportunity to those who need it most.
But opportunity will be wasted if young men and women lack the
means to take advantage of it. And that means education.
Today's job market will settle for nothing less than full
literacy, and an aptitude for skilled labor. And those who are
incapable -- and they are great in number -- will fall further
and further behind.
What's the answer? I see you pointing the way. For a
century and a half, your churches have demonstrated the
liberating power of learning. No one better exemplifies this
tradition then the Reverend Henry Rose, born into slavery and
liberated at age 21.
Henry Rose walked all the way from Texas to Virginia, and
worked on the railroad until a Baptist society sponsored him at a
seminary school. Reverend Rose was so poor that when he
graduated, he had to wear a boot on one foot and a shoe on the
other. But Henry Rose had something better than a matching pair
of shoes. He had knowledge. He had pride. And as a Baptist
minister, he founded five churches and two schools, establishing
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institutions with great traditions of service that live on to
this day.
There is a lesson for us in this remarkable man's life. If
he could beat the overwhelming odds of slavery, oppression and
prejudice to lead a community, then any obstacle can be overcome.
And we shall overcome. Opportunity comes when we give
parents and students greater choice. This means magnet schools;
this means public and private partnerships like "Say Yes to
Education," which sends impoverished minority students to
college; and this means increased support for historically Black
Colleges and Universities.
But education is more than schooling; it is nothing less
than the communication of values. And once again, you are
leading the way. Just look right here in New Orleans, where the
Greater Liberty Baptist Church is preparing many young men for
adulthood through its Black Manhood Training program. ( (PAUSE) )
But to get to school, to get to work, to get to a child-care
center, families must also be free to walk the streets of their
cities without fear. And today, freedom from fear means freedom
from drugs. ( (PAUSE) ) That is why Tuesday night I announced our
nation's first comprehensive, coordinated all-out assault; a way
to attack the drug menace on every front.
I believe the Congress will eventually work with me, to make
our national strategy the law of the land. To my surprise -- and
perhaps to your's as well -- before I even presented my plan to
you, the partisan attacks had already begun.
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This is not the issue for partisan politics. This is not
the time for partisan politics. This is the time to come
together and, for the first time in our history, pass a national
strategy to fight drugs.
We can beat the scourge of drugs is we fight as a nation
united.
To provide child-care, to improve education, to create
opportunity and to defeat drugs -- these are steps to strengthen
families that require nothing less than a sustained national
effort, a national partnership. I believe government can and
should be a strong partner. But I also believe that the solution
to the social problems facing us today ultimately depends on what
you and your communities do.
I like what's been tested and found to be true. Your faith
has been tested. Your values have been found to be true. And it
is your faith and your values that America is turning to today.
So I'm an optimist. I believe we can reach out to families
in need. I believe we can see a strengthening of the many
patterns of family life. And I believe we will see a sharing of
values -- values rooted in the conviction that we, as individuals
and as families are engaged in a single, wonderful enterprise
called America.
God bless you and God bless the United States of America.
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I have come to New Orleans today to pledge my support and to
recognize your heroic efforts. We can work together in many ways
to strengthen families, with greater choice in child-care and
education; and by replacing the crippling fear of crime with the
promise of opportunity.
First, let me begin with child-care. Often, while parents
work, love and care come from the extended family --
grandparents, aunts and uncles. And in many ways, the church
community is the greatest extended family of all. I've seen that
spirit of family and love permeate the day-care center at Shiloh
Baptist Church in Washington. Your great church has already
taken a load off the shoulders of working parents, some single;
some together. And I am determined to protect Shiloh and every
other church-sponsored child care center in America as we work to
solve the child care problems of this country. In that spirit, I
offer a few ways government can help.
I have proposed a child-care tax credit, focused on those
who need such assistance the most -- low-income families.
But this approach is different from past programs. It would
empower parents, not the government, to choose the best care for
their children -- be it a grandparent, a neighbor or a local
church. We need to give parents a choice in their children's
care, not take it away.
Yet some in Congress do not agree. Perhaps it is time we
sent them a message. Just as we should support single-parent