As a candidate for mayor, the Rev. Glenn King’s slogan is “The man with the right direction.”

He lives by it, too. He works it in as much as possible making sure that the voters know that he believes he is the right man for the job.

So it’s no surprise when asked about politics and race in Selma, King says he’s the man for all Selmians, black and white.

“As the man with the right direction, whites and blacks see me as the one who gives from the heart to all citizens,” he said, “regardless of race, white, black or Hispanic. I stand for all citizens of Selma.”

In talking to voters, King said he has discovered that Selma’s whites and blacks want many of the same things.

“The admiration values and the goals of blacks and whites are basically the same,” King said. “Both blacks and whites want a committed person they can count on and trust to do the job as mayor of Selma.”

As evidence of Selmians, ability to ignore racial barriers, King points to his own past. In his race for the state representative seat in 2002, King said he won many of the white ballot boxes.

“Whites and blacks have given me encouragement,” he said.

King says voters crossing racial lines is a trend all across the south.

“Many black politicians have managed to attract white voters in the doubly conservative districts,” King said. “When you look at the south, like Atlanta, where more than two-thirds of the voters are white, the white voters are willing to support (black candidates). This is one of the more hopeful development in southern politics.”

“They were united to come to the table and win for the right direction,” King said.

King also said that despite it’s reputation, it’s important to remember that Selmians are not in lockstep along racial lines.

Many already vote their conscience and their heart.

“Not everybody has drawn racist lines, but the majority of people are united to be able to win for what is right,” King said. “It has been shown in Selma in Dallas County, for decades, whites have run against blacks and won and vice-versa.”

King says the times are a-changing in Selma.

“I suggest that some three decades after the Civil Rights Movement that racial (tensions) born of desegregation have started to fade,” King said. “The old prejudices are giving away to more independent stuff.

All this stuff that happened in the George Wallace days, we all had some bad folks, some white folks and some blacks folks. Slowly but surely these things are turning around.”