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Durrette’s Democratic opponent, Gerald L. Baliles, by assailing Baliles’ running mate, lieutenant governor candidate L. Douglas Wilder, who is black.
“I have a hard time seeing how Jerry Baliles could espouse the record of this man!” declaimed Godwin. “Why, he actually introduced a bill to repeal the state song. He wanted to repeal Carry Me Back To Old Virginnyl
And with that, intended or not, Godwin rang the racial gong in the 1986 campaign.
Wilder did, indeed, introduce such a bill in 1970. The measure obviously got nowhere. He objected to the song because its context is that of a former slave remembering with nostalgia his days of servitude. Wilder also noted that certain words in the song, “Ole Massa” and “this old darkey,” would be offensive to contemporary blacks. The song, its defenders note, was composed by James A. Bland, a noted black songwriter.
But that is all beside the point. The point is that Godwin has once more let his natural inclinations get the better of him and, whether it was intentional or not, has done what many Southside politicians do best. He has skillfully reminded his audience that Durette’s opponent has a black man for a running mate.
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