MEMPHIS, TN (abc24.com) - Not everyone agrees with her politics, but almost everyone agrees what happened to Charlotte Bergmann on a local radio show was wrong.
In a video gone viral, the Ninth Congressional District candidate was verbally berated by talk show host Thaddeus Matthews. Race played a big role in the spat.
Bergmann said she was there to talk about her billboard which says "Martin Luther King was a Republican." She claims things took a turn when Matthews wasn't satisfied with her answers to his questions.
There was cursing, name calling and finally an unceremonious exit.
“Get up and get your a** up out of here. Get your stupid, ignorant a** out of my studio. Another token a** Negro that wants white folks to approve you,” Matthews said.
“If this had happened to an average woman in her home, what would this have escalated into? I view this as a type of abuse,” Charlotte Bergmann said.
That's how Bergmann describes her time on Thaddeus Matthews radio show.
Matthews is known for tough talk, even controversy, but many believe this time he went too far. He even called Bergmann's 'blackness' into question.
“I'm tired of you Negroes being bought by white folks you want to walk in here. I don't need to shake your hand, get you’re a** the hell out my building - I'm scared because some of that whiteness might rub off on me,” Matthews said.
Only a minority of African-Americans are Republicans. Charlotte Bergmann is one of them.
“I don't think that's fair, whatever views those black candidates have to make them be a Republican or decide that's the party they want to be with, I hope those views are for all the people,” Memphis resident Sandra Covington said.
For what it's worth, Bergmann said being subjected to Matthews' verbal tirade is paying off.
“My fundraising efforts have improved tremendously, substantially. My phone rings constantly; people are calling not just within the United States but internationally,” Bergmann said.
The real question is, will she be able to turn that sympathy into votes.
Even with Millington in the Ninth Congressional District, which is by and large democratic, chances are, probably not.
We were unable to get a hold of Thaddeus Matthews, but after his confrontation with Bergmann he apologized for what happened.
