A North Carolina NAACP chapter is under fire after denouncing efforts by white candidates to be appointed interim mayor of Charlotte, raising fresh concerns about open racial hostility in local politics.
According to The Post Millennial, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg branch of the NAACP posted a lengthy Facebook statement condemning white residents who have expressed interest in filling the vacancy created by the resignation of Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles, a Black Democrat. The post declared, "It is seriously disturbing for white folks to be lobbying to be the interim Mayor in Charlotte. Our Mayor who recently resigned is a Black woman who is a registered Democrat. While Black representation is being undermined and stripped nationwide; White folks are either tone deaf or worse....self centered! It's not about YOU!"
The message, widely criticized online as anti-white racism, did not name any individual but appeared aimed at former Mayor Jennifer Roberts, who has volunteered to serve as interim mayor.
The branchs statement continued by explicitly warning the city council against choosing a non-Black replacement. "In Charlotte, Black Voters have been intentional about having Black representation. What is the consensus after several discussion; If the City Council votes a non-Black person in as interim Mayor again...voters will hold you accountable next year," the post read. Roberts, a Democrat who previously served as mayor from 2015 to 2017, has positioned herself as a caretaker option, but the NAACPs rhetoric suggests race, not qualifications or policy, is being elevated as the deciding factor.
Hundreds of commenters pushed back against the post, calling it divisive and discriminatory, but the local NAACP leadership doubled down. In a follow-up on her personal page, branch president Corine Mack wrote, "On our NAACP Charlotte-Mecklenburg Branch page, white people are losing their minds in defense of Charlotte having the right to have a white Mayor. Anyone can run next year! This year the City Council will elect the interim Mayor. It is very interesting to watch some white people in a frenzy about Black people loving and supporting Black people. Meanwhile, they create movements and spaces solely for white people all of the time. The outrage must be about any Black person who dares to have an independent thought and opinion. Poor things!"
Mack escalated further, assigning collective blame to white Americans for the nations racial tensions. "White people created race and racism. But, they continue to play the victim and create fake narratives. Everything in this country is predicated on race...white people did that! I won't be silenced! In the meantime, I'm praying for this country," she added. For many observers, such sweeping accusations underscore how identity politics has drifted far from the ideal of equal treatment under the law and toward open hostility against disfavored groups.
Roberts, by contrast, framed her interest in the interim role as a response to community requests rather than a racial power play. She wrote, I did not foresee this happening in my career path, but so many people in the community have asked me to offer my service as interim mayor that I feel called to do so." As Charlottes city council weighs its choice, the episode highlights a broader national divide: whether public office should be guided by competence and service to all citizens, or by rigid racial quotas that undermine the very civil rights principles the NAACP once championed.
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