“That Conversation about Race” category archive
The Whitelash 0
Darcia F. Narvaez explores the human cost of what she refers to as “movement conservatism,” which is defined in detail in the opening of her article. She cites several specific examples from the research of Jonathan Metzl (citation at the link), arguing that the policies are rooted in racism, but ultimately rebounded to harm the white voters who supported them.
Follow the link for very specific examples, and, as you do, remember the words of Lyndon Johnson.
(Broken link fixed.)
The Turning Point 0
Thom sees a disturbing but all too believable confluence of events.
The Permeation 0
If you are unsure of what “systemic racism” means, this is a pretty good example.
Q (& A) 0
The SPLC tries to unpack QAnon. Since an increasing number of persons seems to taking the bait, it’s a worthwhile and timely read. Here’s a bit, which points out that QAnon fits in a long tradition of hate, fear, bigotry, and lies.
QAnon is, according to Genocide Watch’s Gregory Stanton, a rebranded “Protocols of the Learned Elders of Zion,” perhaps the most influential antisemitic pamphlet of all time, written by Russian anti-Jewish propagandists around the turn of the twentieth century. The pamphlet was a collection of myths about a Jewish plot to take over the world and included a central Blood Libel mythology, which posited that Jews kidnapped and killed Christian children whose blood they would then mix into matzos.
Still Rising Again after All These Years 0
The editorial board of the Las Vegas Sun considers reasons why the Republican Party strives to gut out the vote and argues that the root of them lies in its decision to become the party of only some of the people. Indeed, they argue that the party is no longer in any classical way “conservative”; it’s not interested in conserving anything.
They list several factors leading to their conclusion.
- Going back decades, the GOP’s overall campaign strategies have pitted Americans against each other by dividing the population into “us” versus “them” — us being white voters, them being voters of color.
- Today, the Republican Party must suppress votes because it’s a minority — and is one by choice.
- The GOP understands that “us” is a minority group led by an even smaller minority — certain big-money interests . . . .
- The GOP’s absolute refusal to try to create a bigger tent by listening to the needs of a larger population — and therefore court them — means one thing: It doesn’t want to represent anyone other than its narrow leadership.
- The corollary of this is that the modern GOP wants to silence everyone else.
Their reasoning echoes a point that I have made many times in these electrons: Richard Nixon’s odious “southern strategy” has come full circle. The Republican Party is now the party of the Secesh.
Follow the link for a detailed discussion of each of those factors and for the Sun’s larger conclusions.
Republican Family Values (Updated) 0
At the Idaho State-Journal, Michael Corrigan draws on his own experiences to discuss the Trump administration’s practice of family separation kidnapping. A snippet:
One thing that never changed, however, was the fear every child demonstrated when they were dropped off. “I want my mommy” was a repeated mantra. Even after a month of daily routines, the children expressed a fear of abandonment until they were reassured.
Please do read the rest.
Addendum:
Will Bunch has a suggestion.