I love Country Music.

I'm a 51 year old black woman who grew up in the deep South lip-syncing to The O'Jays and slow dancing to the sound of the late great Johnny Taylor. Some where along the way I found my self listening to Traditional Country music. As a child growing up in the 1950's, in a predominantly black community were country-and-western music wasn't in my house and Blacks weren't supposed to like country music. Some thought Blacks' contribution to American music was in jazz, blues and funk only. So, Country music was dismissed as poor white folks' blues and associated with a regions of the nation that symbolized prejudice and racial bigotry. Even some of mainstream white America viewed country as lower class and less desirable especially its twangy chords. I don't really no what drew me to country music unless it was the hit Clarence Carter had out call "Patches. " After watching an d listening to Sheryl Crow last night at the DNC I got