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One of the courses I teach at the Law School is a course on race and when dealing with issues of race among students from diverse backgrounds, you never know what might happen and that’s okay, because it’s all good, as long as people are being sincere about what they know or what they don’t know.

That said, sincerity on issues of race was certainly not on display at the recent Conservative Political Action Committee on Republican minority outreach, CPAC, as it’s called, is the largest annual gathering of right-leaning activists, and an event commonly attended by top Republican presidential contenders.

I’m sure that many of you’ve seen the controversial clips from the CPAC meeting where, during a presentation entitled “Trump the Race Card” by African American presenter, K. Carl Smith, the room was disrupted by statements from a white separatist, Scott Terry.

Terry asked a question to which presenter Smith answered by referencing a letter where Douglass forgave his former slave master.

Terry then questioned the need for forgiveness, responding, “For what? For feeding him and housing him…?” Several audience members cheered, yep.

The disruptions continued and, at one point, when a woman challenged Terry, he responded, “I didn’t know the legacy of the Republican Party included women correcting men in public.”

Wow, I don’t know about y’all, but I’m booking my spot early for next year’s CPAC.  Maybe I’ll get the 3/5th of a human discount.

But it gets worse. After the event, presenter Smith released a statement where he first criticized a black female reporter for asking him how many black women were at the 1848 Women’s Rights Convention he was discussing. Smith called the question quote-unquote, “intentionally disruptive and coercive with no way of creating a positive dialogue.”

He then acknowledges the disruptive comments of the white separatist Scott Terry before going on to offer this silly response: “I further explained to him the Frederick Douglass Republican Message which he embraced, bought a book, and we left as friends.”

Mmmm, so Brotha Smith felt the need to attack the sista who questioned him, but clarify his friendship with the white separatist who is okay with slavery and subjugating women.

You know, guys, I don’t even know if I have a point this week, this thing just fascinated me.

Or, maybe I do have a point. Since Brother Smith is committed to celebrating the Republican party of longgggggggggg ago as the party responsible for ending slavery, I’m sure he may find special meaning in these words of Abraham Lincoln:

“It’s better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to speak out and remove all doubt.”