By now people nationwide are familiar with New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin's comments on Martin Luther King Day. For those who haven’t heard, I’ll summarize. Nagin got in trouble for two separate comments. First, he said that Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans because “God is angry with us.” Second, he said that New Orleans was a “chocolate city” before the storm, and would be a “chocolate city” again.
The “chocolate city” remark probably has gotten the most mileage, because it is the easiest to ridicule. Referring to black people as “chocolate” is in some circles mildly demeaning, and in others is used endearingly. Sometimes it has sexual overtones, as in “I’m gonna get me some chocolate tonight.” Either way, it was an oddball way to open a political address. I doubt Nagin meant anything by it. I think it was just an attempt at humor. All politicians need to attend a comedy workshop, where they can learn the golden rule of comedy – LEAVE IT TO THE PROFESSIONALS. If you don’t know how to be funny, don’t try. There is no easier way to look stupid than to make ill-timed stabs at humor.
As for the “God is mad at us” argument, this is really peculiar. More than one religious conservative has taken his licks from the media for issuing the old the-victims-must-have-deserved-it argument. For him to have touched this tar baby seems colossally stupid. What was he thinking?
I happened to hear part of Nagin’s speech live on the radio, so I can tell you what he was thinking. He was trying to pull of an imitation of Martin Luther King. His speaking style and vocal intonations were straight from the pulpit. He even went into a long and sometimes confusing reverie about seeing Dr. King in a dream and asking him his opinion on how things were going here on earth. It was hard to tell sometimes if Nagin was talking, or if he was paraphrasing the advise of his imaginary Dr. King. And of course that is leaving aside the question of if Ray Nagin would even know what King would say if he were alive. Does he really know?
Nagin is a businessman by trade. Martin Luther King was a Baptist minister, and one of the best orators this country has ever seen. Nagin would have had an easier time strapping on a pair of Nikes and imitating a Michael Jordan highlight reel than trying to approach King’s speaking style. I still get chills every time I hear the “I Have A Dream” speech, and I have heard it hundreds of times.
In trying to imitate King, Nagin drove himself into a difficult situation. He tried to weave King’s powerful sense of faith in God and divine morality into his words. Dr. King’s speeches were all about morality, and faith, and purpose, and he did it better than just about anybody. Mr. Anybody Politician can’t just put that mantle on like a Santa Claus suit and prance around for everyone’s pleasure. King got shot for saying what he said. If you are going to imitate the Reverend, you had better be sure of yourself.
Nagin was just fooling around. He was doing an imitation for a mostly black crowd, a supportive crowd, and he was trying to make them feel good. He was telling them what they wanted to hear. But Martin Luther King never told people what they wanted to hear. He told them what they needed to hear, and the heck with the consequences.
Ray Nagin is not an articulate man. He dresses sharp, looks good, appears bright and educated, but when he opens his mouth the words come stumbling out like drunks out a Bourbon Street bar after last call. In a way, he reminds me of George W. Bush, who also looks like he should be articulate but isn’t. W has one huge advantage over Nagin – he has advisors who tell him what not to say.
If Nagin wants to study great oratory (and who doesn’t!), I refer him to Harry S Truman. Truman was not a great writer or orator, but he was effective because he knew his limits and spoke plainly and honestly. Truman rarely put on airs. He played himself, and had a very successful run doing it.
Ray, meet Harry. Harry, this is Ray.