A phone call conversation where African delegates to the United Nations were referred to as “Moneys” by former US President Ronald Reagan in 1971 has been released by THE ATLANTIC.
BBC reports that the recording was unearthed by Tim Naftali, a clinical associate professor of history at New York University, who had directed the Nixon Presidential Library, which kept all Mr Nixon’s tapes, from 2007 until 2011.
The racist remarks were made when then Governor of California, Ronald Reagan called President Richard Nixon on phone to express his dissatisfaction on the outcome of the United Nations vote to recognize The peoples Republic of China and to expel Taiwan.
BBC reports that after the vote, members of the Tanzanian delegation had started dancing in the UN General Assembly.
Mr Reagan then called Mr Nixon on phone the next day, and asked if he- (Nixon) had watched the vote on television.
He then proceeded to say:
“To see those, those monkeys from those African countries – damn them, they’re still uncomfortable wearing shoes!”
Mr Nixon then laughed.
Listen to the conversation here.
BBC reports that President Nixon himself on recounting his conversation with Reagan told his secretary of state
Quote: “He saw these… these cannibals on television last night, and he says, ‘Christ, they weren’t even wearing shoes, and here the United States is going to submit its fate to that,’ and so forth and so on.”
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