GOP's slick Black History ads fall short, miss the point

http://www.cnn.com/2014/02/05/opinion/gillespie-gop-black-history-ad/

Editor's note: Andra Gillespie is associate professor of political science at Emory University. She is the author of "The New Black Politician: Cory Booker, Newark and Post-Racial America." She is currently working on new projects about race and the Obama administration and blacks and their relationship with the Republican Party.

(CNN) -- It's February and Black History Month, and networks and major consumer brands are reprising their annual ad campaigns honoring the contributions of African-Americans to the arts, politics, technology and commerce.

This year, a new player is sponsoring Black History Month ads: the Republican National Committee.

In spots airing on black radio and television stations in select media markets, the RNC praises the contributions of black Republicans such as Louis Sullivan, a former secretary of health and human services under President George H.W. Bush.