A Georgia state state Republican Party official, who is also a member of the Augusta Housing Authority, is resisting calls for his resignation over a racially-charged email, according to the Associated Press.
"We will be making the downtown Whiter with moving 200 whites in and moving 500 blacks out! The numbers will affect political boundaries school board lines, commission district lines, State Representative district lines, and Senate district lines," Dave Barbee wrote in an Aug. 27 email allegedly sent to the developers, Braye and Clay Boardman, regarding an Authority plan that would close a public housing project so the Medical College of Georgia may expand, the WCBT-TV reported.
The full text of the message appears in the Metro Spirit. Here is one paragraph from that publication:
"Gentlemen I am begging you both not to give in on the revitalization of downtown Augusta!!! The problem with the politicians is the White/Black ratio in downtown Augusta. The development of the property beside St Paul’s Church is high income folks who will tend to be White and now we are closing GM and moving Black folks out. We will be making the downtown Whiter with moving 200 whites in and moving 500 blacks out! The numbers will affect political boundaries school board lines, commission district lines, State Representative district lines, and Senate district lines."
The Augusta Chronicle reported that it's unclear who first received forwarded copies of the private message. But state Senator Ed Tarver, a black Democrat, ended up with a copy and sent it to other members of Augusta's legislative delegation. Barbee, who is white, said he regretted the message became public and that it did not reflect his official position as an authority member, according to WMAZ. State Lawmakers, and the Mayor, all asking for Barbee's resignation, reports WRDW.
Subscribe by Email
