In the latest move to change place names in light of U.S. racial history, leaders of Orange County’s Democratic Party are pushing to drop film legend John Wayne’s name, statue and other likenesses from the county’s airport because of his racist and bigoted comments.
»MORE: Queen Latifah: Let ‘Gone With the Wind’ be gone forever
The Los Angeles Times reported that earlier this week, officials passed an emergency resolution condemning Wayne’s “racist and bigoted statements” made in a 1971 interview and are calling on the Orange County Board of Supervisors to drop his name, statue and other likenesses from the international airport.
The resolution asked the board “to restore its original name: Orange County Airport.”
“There have been past efforts to get this done, and now we’re putting our name and our backing into this to make sure there is a name change,” said Ada Briceño, chair of the Democratic Party of Orange County.
According to those who crafted the resolution, the effort to oust Wayne, a longtime resident of Orange County who died in 1979, is part of “a national movement to remove white supremacist symbols and names (that are) reshaping American institutions, monuments, businesses, nonprofits, sports leagues and teams.”
In a 1971 Playboy magazine interview, Wayne made bigoted statements against Black people, Native Americans and the LGBTQ community.
He said, “I believe in white supremacy until the Blacks are educated to a point of responsibility. I don’t believe in giving authority and positions of leadership and judgment to irresponsible people.”
Wayne also said that although he didn’t condone slavery, “I don’t feel guilty about the fact that five or 10 generations ago these people were slaves.”
The actor said he felt no remorse in the subjugation of Native Americans.
“I don’t feel we did wrong in taking this great country away from them. ... (O)ur so-called stealing of this country from them was just a matter of survival,” he said. “There were great numbers of people who needed new land, and the Indians were selfishly trying to keep it for themselves.”
Wayne also called movies such as “Easy Rider” and “Midnight Cowboy” perverted, and he used a gay slur to refer to the two main characters of the latter film.
Orange County Supervisor Don Wagner told the Times that he had just heard about the Democratic resolution and was unaware of its wording or merit.
Support real journalism. Support local journalism. Subscribe to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution today. See offers.
Your subscription to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution funds in-depth reporting and investigations that keep you informed. Thank you for supporting real journalism.
Download the new AJC app. More local news, more breaking news and in-depth journalism. AJC.com. Atlanta. News. Now.
Download the new AJC app. More local news, more breaking news and in-depth journalism. AJC.com. Atlanta. News. Now.
With the largest team in the state, the AJC reports what’s really going on with your tax dollars and your elected officials. Subscribe today. Visit the AJC's Georgia Navigator for the latest in Georgia politics.
Your subscription to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution funds in-depth reporting and investigations that keep you informed. Thank you for supporting real journalism. Visit the AJC's Georgia Navigator for the latest in Georgia politics.
https://www.ajc.com/news/democrats-want-john-wayne-name-statue-removed-from-airport/kYLiJGohyMnb9g0b6oK4KN/
2020-06-28 19:02:18Z
CBMia2h0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmFqYy5jb20vbmV3cy9kZW1vY3JhdHMtd2FudC1qb2huLXdheW5lLW5hbWUtc3RhdHVlLXJlbW92ZWQtZnJvbS1haXJwb3J0L2tZTGlKR29oeU1uYjlnMGI2b0s0S04v0gFzaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuYWpjLmNvbS9uZXdzL2RlbW9jcmF0cy13YW50LWpvaG4td2F5bmUtbmFtZS1zdGF0dWUtcmVtb3ZlZC1mcm9tLWFpcnBvcnQva1lMaUpHb2h5TW5iOWcwYjZvSzRLTi9hbXAuaHRtbA
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Democrats want John Wayne’s name, statue removed from airport - Atlanta Journal Constitution"
Post a Comment