The report of my goal being to bring the Democrat party down is greatly exaggerated.

But that’s what was alleged by Panola County Democrat Chairman Lourine Robinson in an email sent to me by some of my Democrat friends and shared with Democrats with whom she has email addresses.

Oops!

She also told me in an email and a registered letter received Friday, “My name nor title, Lourine Robinson-Chairman of the Panola County Democrat Executive Committee, should not appear in your newspaper without my permission . . .”, stating that material printed, “without proof, has caused great damage to my health and reputation.”

This newspaper is not named The Panola Democrat or The North Mississippi Republican, it is The Panolian.

We at this newspaper, like many, do not claim party affiliation and have seldom endorsed individual candidates.

A quote heard this weekend is fitting here, “Y’all contains all,” and that is who we are trying to reach here, all Panolians.

In another shared e-mail she wrote, “Be sure your facts are true when you print anything concerning me.”

I try to print the truth, but in the same email she accuses me of printing lies concerning a hearing where, “you (me) were sitting close enough to hear and see everything that occurred. . .”

But I wasn’t at that hearing. I was in Kalamazoo, Michigan visiting friends.

She also withdrew a letter to the editor after reading the edited version. All material including letters, news stories, editorials that go into this newspaper, including this column, is edited.

I certainly don’t want to damage anyone’s health or reputation. And I am certainly not wanting to, “. . . bring down the Democrat party.”

Although not party affiliated, my grandfather for whom I’m named was active in the Democrat party serving as both County Chairman for many years and on the state Dem. Executive Committee. And I did, as a college student, work tirelessly on former Democratic Governor Cliff Finch’s first statewide campaign when he ran for Lt. Governor in 1971. We lost.

Having lived through turbulent times when one party controlled all, I realize the need for multiple parties’ ideologies to keep and maintain a semblance of balance in government at all levels.

But with half of the County Democrat elected officials questioning leadership of the local party and several prominent African-Americans running outside their traditional Democratic party as independents, my question is, “Why am I being accused of bringing the Democratic party down?”

Seems someone else is doing that already.