blogged by: @RaquelHarrisTV
On Tuesday, Georgia’s Republican state Rep., Jason Spencer told his former black colleague that she and others supporting the removal of Confederate monuments “could go missing.”
LaDawn Jones, attorney and former state Democratic Rep., says she was shocked because she and Spencer regularly had debates in person and online which never escalated to such harsh comments.
It all started when Spencer posted a picture on Facebook of the Jefferson Davis Memorial. Jones criticized the post saying the objects shouldn’t be supported by tax dollars, to which Spencer replied saying, “Continue your quixotic journey into South Georgia and it will not be pleasant.”
“The truth. Not a warning,” he continued. “Those folks won’t put up with it like they do in Atlanta. It best you move on.”
“I can guarantee you won’t be met with torches but something a lot more definitive,” he added. “They will go missing in the Okefenokee [swamp]. Too many necks they are red around here. Don’t say I didn’t warn you about ’em.”
Since the exchange, Jones has revealed that she doesn’t fear for her life, despite her colleagues disturbing remarks.
“If it were anybody other than Jason Spencer, then I would be alarmed. But we had a unique relationship in the Georgia legislature. If that had come from anybody else, I’d take it as a serious threat.”
She added, “his comments reflect a more systematic problem with racism.”
In turn, Spencer said he made those comments only to warn Jones of “how people can behave about this issue.”
Spencer has served as Georgia’s state representative since 2010.
What are your thoughts on Spencer’s comments?
