Richard Arrington backs Ron Sparks in governor's race

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Former Birmingham Mayor Richard Arrington said today he will endorse Ron Sparks in the race for the Democratic nomination for governor.

Arrington, who in 1979 made history by becoming Birmingham's first black mayor, said he knows that some will be surprised by his decision to endorse Sparks, who is white, instead of U.S. Rep. Artur Davis, who is attempting to become the state's first black governor.

"I have spent most of my life making decisions based on race," Arrington said. "Now, as my political life is waning, I want to move away from doing that and reach out to blacks and whites in hopes that we can make good decisions together, and I think Ron Sparks will be a good governor."

Arrington said just as the burden was on whites to reach out to blacks during the civil rights struggles of the 1960's, maybe now the burden is on blacks to show they can reach out to whites in an effort to find common ground.

"I think if we are ever to move forward, across racial lines in this state, we have got to begin to trust each other, work with each other, and I think Ron Sparks can be the kind of governor that helps to make that possible."

http://blog.al.com/spotnews/2009/10/richard_arrington_backs_ron_sp.html