Re: “Cartoon wrong on race” by Shannon Ball, Friday Letters.
While the letter is correct in that a higher percentage of Republicans voted for the 1964 Civil Rights Act, it is still misleading. Of the 11 former Confederate states, no Republican voted for the bill in either house, while one Democratic Senator and seven Democratic House members voted for it. Of the 39 other states, 45 Democratic Senators voted for it and 145 Democratic House members voted for it. Of Republicans, 27 senators were for it and 138 House members were for it.
Strangely enough, the 11 Southern states once known as the Solid South for the Democrats became the Solid South for the Republicans since the 1964 Civil Rights Act and the 1965 Voting Rights Act.
One wonders why — Could it be that the perception of Southerners is that the GOP is more in line with their attitudes?
I suppose statistics can be used to prove anything.
John Hodge, Grand Saline