Author Labels Democratic Party Demonic as American History is being Rewritten When Democrats protest it is demonic.

When Republicans do it, its patriotic, or so Ann Coulter's new book, Demonic: How the Liberal Mob is Endangering America, asserts. From the cries of the French Revolution to "Yes We Can," Coulter ties every liberal protest, every march for freedom, and every dissenting voice with the likes of Mussolini and Hitler and categorically labels them all to be demonic. Anyone who has read anything of this particular pundit is not the least bit surprised by some of her more outrageous claims; however, one would be surprised to know that in this hall of fame of demonic mob leaders she includes civil rights leader, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The nonviolent activism of Dr. King clearly can stand for itself and needs no defense; however, Demonic seems to be a continuation of a concerted effort to rewrite American history for political purposes. Suddenly, Reagan is a president that all Americans should look to as the model of what the presidency should be. Trickle-down economics is renamed Supply-Side Economics, and magically becomes the holy grail of Economic Policy. Sarah Palin incorrectly states that Paul Revere was warning the British on his midnight ride only to have her supporters quickly edit Wikipedia to reflect her version of history. Now, Ann Coulter lays all of the atrocities of segregation, Jim Crow, and the Ku Klux Klan at the feet of the Democratic Party. To add insult to injury, she states that the March on Birmingham was in fact a demonic mob instead of a non-violent act of civil disobedience. All of a sudden, the history we learned in our schools, our churches, and through the voices of our past no longer matches what is being asserted today. The trouble with this effort to rewrite our history is that so many Americans dont know their history well enough to determine the significance of the changes being made. A less informed person may be persuaded to believe that the Democratic Party today, which enjoys nearly ninetyfive percent of the African-American vote, is the same party that existed prior to the Civil Rights Act of 1964, that Dr. King was a demonic mob leader, and that Reagan was the greatest president of all time. One who doesn't know any better might begin to question why they would ever vote Democratic again, considering that so many Democrats were racists and segregationists. Democrats are Democrats, right? Thankfully, we know better. Prior to 1964 the South was dominated by the Democratic Party. Klansmen were primarily Democrats. George Wallace was a Democrat. Strong Thurman was a Democrat. Nevertheless, when Democratic President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act into law in 1964 the Southern "Dixiecrats" clearly felt as though the Democratic Party no longer represented their ideology, subsequently leaving the Party. Coulter alludes to this important detail only in passing by saying that after the passage of the act, "the anti-civil rights wing of the Democratic Party disappeared virtually overnight." Still, she failed to mention where these self-proclaimed racists and segregationists went when they disappeared: the Republican Party. In 1960, Louisiana, Georgia, South Carolina, and parts of Alabama all voted Democratic in the 1960 Presidential election. Between 1960 and 1964, tensions in the South led to transformation in the priorities of the young JFK and the Civil Rights Act became a priority. After his assassination, Lyndon Johnson signed the act into law, serving as the final straw for the

Dixiecrats. In 1964 the Dixiecrats, along with their constituencies, left the Democrat party en masse and migrated to the Republican Party. In that election, Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama, Georgia, and South Carolina all turned red as their electoral votes went to the Republican Party candidate, Barry Goldwater. A nefarious rewrite could easily erase this very important transition simply because not enough Americans know American history for themselves. There is no surprise that the only protestors Coulter sees as non-demonic are members of the Tea Party, and the only presidents that are worthy of recognition are those that had an (R) by their name, even though their ideologies varied wildly throughout the existence of the Party. Needless to say, if all, or even the majority, of the Southern Dixiecrats became Republican in the 1960s, then the Republicansmany of which still wave the Rebel flag todaycannot possibly claim to be the same party as Lincoln who destroyed their dreams of secession. The greatest irony of Coulter's machinations is that while she championed Ronald Reagan as the Republican hero, those of us who know our American history also know that he too was one of the Democrats that turned their coats during the sixties after he felt the "Party left [him]." Maybe it was a case of bad timing, or maybe Reagan actually meant what he said when he stated, If an individual wants to discriminate against Negroesthats their business. With only thirteen percent of high school seniors having a satisfactory knowledge of American history, it becomes painfully clear why this book cannot be considered a joke. The only evidence of demonic activity in this book is her attempt to manipulate the uninformed. This is why it is so important, now more than ever, that we teach history to our children with the same urgency that we teach the sciences; if the past can be rewritten for political gain, then surely our future doesn't stand a chance. 2011 Benjamin P. Dixon