To me Lester Garfield Maddox will always be the face that I see when I think of a Democrat.
Lester was Governor of Georgia from 1967 until 1971, then he became Lieutenant Governor under Jimmy Carter. Before all of that he ran a family style restaurant in Atlanta called the Pickrick Cafeteria, which he managed to keep segregated well into the late 1960s. He even went so far as to banish a handgun and an ax handle to defend his cafeteria against people of color, forcing them to stay out.
Even with all this he was elected Governor of Georgia in 1966, by defeating Republican rival Bo Callaway. As Governor, old Lester continued to manifest his anti-black sentiments. Upon the death of Martin Luther King, Jr, he denied the slain civil rights leader the honor of lying in state in the Georgia state capitol building, also in 1968 he highly endorsed George Wallace of Alabama for President of the the United States.
Lester's favorite saying was "Phooey", and he used it liberally when ever he did not agree with something. His other great claim to fame was that he liked riding his bicycle backwards around the Governors mansion, while sitting on the handle bars. He was photographed many times by the national news services doing this.
On the good side Old Lester loved to have his picture taken with groups of visiting school children, who made the field trip to Atlanta to tour the state capitol. The Old Chief was no exception, and was lined up along with Mrs. Cranfords fourth grade class on the steeps inside the rotunda, to have our picture made with the smiling Governor. Phooey!
After serving as Governor and Lieutenant Governor, Old Lester ran a bar and souvenir shop in the original underground Atlanta where you could buy autographed ax handles. As teenagers we on occasion managed to sneak in under-age to drink beer and see some of the local rock bands of the day play there. Old Lester never seemed to mind, always one to make up his own rules. He also tried his hand at being a stand up comedian, and was the inspiration for a Randy Newman song titled "Rednecks". He ran for Governor again in 1974, but lost to George Busby, and he staged one last unsuccessful bid for the office in 1990.
To me Old Lester is the prime example of why the Democratic party symbol is a donkey, only I would have used a different name for the creature.
Phooey, Old Chief Sends,
Lester was Governor of Georgia from 1967 until 1971, then he became Lieutenant Governor under Jimmy Carter. Before all of that he ran a family style restaurant in Atlanta called the Pickrick Cafeteria, which he managed to keep segregated well into the late 1960s. He even went so far as to banish a handgun and an ax handle to defend his cafeteria against people of color, forcing them to stay out.
Even with all this he was elected Governor of Georgia in 1966, by defeating Republican rival Bo Callaway. As Governor, old Lester continued to manifest his anti-black sentiments. Upon the death of Martin Luther King, Jr, he denied the slain civil rights leader the honor of lying in state in the Georgia state capitol building, also in 1968 he highly endorsed George Wallace of Alabama for President of the the United States.
Lester's favorite saying was "Phooey", and he used it liberally when ever he did not agree with something. His other great claim to fame was that he liked riding his bicycle backwards around the Governors mansion, while sitting on the handle bars. He was photographed many times by the national news services doing this.
On the good side Old Lester loved to have his picture taken with groups of visiting school children, who made the field trip to Atlanta to tour the state capitol. The Old Chief was no exception, and was lined up along with Mrs. Cranfords fourth grade class on the steeps inside the rotunda, to have our picture made with the smiling Governor. Phooey!
After serving as Governor and Lieutenant Governor, Old Lester ran a bar and souvenir shop in the original underground Atlanta where you could buy autographed ax handles. As teenagers we on occasion managed to sneak in under-age to drink beer and see some of the local rock bands of the day play there. Old Lester never seemed to mind, always one to make up his own rules. He also tried his hand at being a stand up comedian, and was the inspiration for a Randy Newman song titled "Rednecks". He ran for Governor again in 1974, but lost to George Busby, and he staged one last unsuccessful bid for the office in 1990.
To me Old Lester is the prime example of why the Democratic party symbol is a donkey, only I would have used a different name for the creature.
Phooey, Old Chief Sends,
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