More young Black Americans calling themselves conservative
Political commentator Charrise Lane and Conscious Conservative Movement CEO Felecia Killings on why young Black Americans identify as conservative.
Two young Black conservatives said on Monday that all Black Americans are not progressives. According to Pew Research, 25% of Black Democrats consider themselves "conservative" and 43% say they are "moderate."
"I think right now, conservatives and Republicans have an opportunity to bridge this gap to make these alliances," Conscious Conservative Movement CEO Felecia Killings told "Fox & Friends" host Ainsley Earhardt.
Killings said her father raised her to be conservative. She explained further that Black Americans are conservative in their values and that her organization, Conscious Conservative, bids to bridge the education and training gap between Black Americans and American conservatism. It also seeks to engage White conservatives to show that there are commonalities among both racial groups.
"It’s about understanding Black history, it’s about understanding that Black history is on the side of conservatism and if we can espouse these messages in a more empowering way as opposed to a degrading, dehumanizing manner we’ll see more Black Americans, Black millennials, especially among Black male voters, we’ll start to see more of them aligning themselves with conservative politics. Because conservatism has promised to protect our growing Black wealth which we are eagerly building day in and day out," she said.
Killings' comments came after Virginia Lieutenant Governor-elect Winsome Sears became the first woman of color to be elected statewide in Virginia.
Former Republican Delegate Winsome Sears celebrates winning the race for Lt. Governor of Virginia .(REUTERS/ Jonathan Ernst) (REUTERS/ Jonathan Ernst)
Sears attributed her victory to voters being sick of seeing Black and White people being pitted against each other.
"They’re tired of the Black against White and the Asian against Latino," Sears said of those who voted for her during a "Fox News Sunday" interview. "They’re tired of it, and they’re tired of politicians who won’t let the wounds of the past heal."
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Charrise Lane was raised in a Christian home and her grandparents are pastors. Her mother raised her to be Christian. Lane didn’t realize she was conservative until middle school. At Victor Christian Academy in Orlando, Florida, a predominantly Black Christian school, she was advised by her teacher to research both political parties.
After doing that, she said conservatism came "naturally" to her.
"I will say that historically, Black Americans, we are conservative. When it comes to conservatism I believe that that does not align, basically, it doesn’t have to do anything with political parties. When you are conservative it has to do with values and that’s what I told everyone. You can be conservative and not be Republican. You can be conservative and be a Democrat and also be independent, so the point is, Black Americans are historically conservative, and just because they are Black doesn’t mean they have to be liberal or they have to be Democrat."
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