So Donald Trump’s tweeted that four progressive women of color serving in the House of Representatives should go back to the countries they came from, with the clear implication being that they are somehow less than American because of the color of their skin. The fact that Ayanna Pressley, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Rashida Tlaib were all born in the United States and Ilhan Omar is a naturalized U.S. citizen is meaningless to Trump’s supporters because their definition of “American” begins and ends with the color of their skin.
So interesting to see “Progressive” Democrat Congresswomen, who originally came from countries whose governments are a complete and total catastrophe, the worst, most corrupt and inept anywhere in the world (if they even have a functioning government at all), now loudly……
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 14, 2019
….and viciously telling the people of the United States, the greatest and most powerful Nation on earth, how our government is to be run. Why don’t they go back and help fix the totally broken and crime infested places from which they came. Then come back and show us how….
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 14, 2019
….it is done. These places need your help badly, you can’t leave fast enough. I’m sure that Nancy Pelosi would be very happy to quickly work out free travel arrangements!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 14, 2019
That’s why it doesn’t matter that Ilhan Omar has been a U.S. citizen longer than First Lady Melania Trump. It also explains why Trump supporters somehow exempt Melania and her family from their crusade against chain migration. She’s white. And oh yeah, showing off the First Nipples certainly didn’t hurt her popularity with the base:
Racism Equals Victory for Trump in 2020?
Not only are Trump’s tweets the textbook definition of racism, but they also seem to be part of a clear political strategy for his 2020 re-election campaign, taking us officially into “lowest common denominator” territory when it comes to political discourse in America. Racism is now a prominent plank in the Republican Party platform, and Donald Trump is doing a bang-up job in the role of Tom Sawyer, convincing others to whitewash the whole damn thing.
But the real problem is the undeniable fact that Trump’s racist antics only make him more popular among Republican voters. Despite the tweeted insanity we bore witness to this past weekend, Trump presently sits as a favorite to be reelected next year, though this most likely has more to do with being nearly a year away from identifying a winner of the Democratic primary than anything else. According to a new USA Today/Ipsos poll, Trump’s approval rating among Republican voters shot up 5 points to 72 percent after his attacks on the four Democratic Congresswomen.
By way of further analysis, only 37 percent of Republicans found Trump’s tweets about “The Squad” to be offensive, and a whopping 57 percent agreed with him. Think about that- 57 percent of those polled were willing to admit to a total stranger taking a political poll that they supported racist statements by Trump. Some small part of me is relieved that the other 43 percent at least had the decency to lie to the pollster.
Then you have idiots like this, who are all named Karen and all want to speak to a manager:
Although Trump’s overall approval rating sits at 41 percent, he lies and claims he is over 50 percent to perpetuate the groupthink mentality he is perpetually pushing on the electorate. If enough people think it’s okay to be openly racist, then the social stigma attached to such rhetoric diminishes. It’s the equivalent of telling the country it’s okay to tell a racist joke as long as you check to make sure there are no people of color within earshot.
How Do You Solve a Problem Like a Nazi President?
As if the normalization of racism isn’t bad enough, it feeds an even uglier monster- the self-fulfilling prophecy of Trump’s seemingly inevitable re-election. The more Republican voters reward Trump’s batshit crazy behavior with blind devotion, the more the pundits and talking heads in the media will feed the beast by talking about how his strategy is working. But what’s the alternative? How can you ignore the dangerously hateful garbage spewing directly from the President of the United States? You can’t.
So what’s the solution? How about Making Racism Unacceptable Again? Instead of rolling our eyes and biting our tongues when a friend or relative comments on Trump and how “he’s not wrong,” speak up and tell them how fucked up their comments are. If you see someone being a racist jackass on social media, take a screenshot and send it to their employer; they’ll have plenty of time to think about the consequences of their actions while standing in the unemployment line.
Instead of shying away from confrontations with Trump supporters who are quick to let you know that they are not personally racist as a way of absolving themselves of responsibility for supporting him, call them out. The only thing worse than someone being a racist is someone who isn’t a racist but lacks the courage to denounce those who are racist. If you need concrete examples, look no further than just about every Republican elected official in America; they’re collectively about as worthless as a white dress on Melania Trump in a rainstorm.
Supporting Trump’s Racism Must be a Binary Issue
The only way out of the Pandora’s Box of Trump’s racist tweets is to make it a binary issue: you either agree with Trump and are therefore entitled to be painted with the same brush or you speak up against his hateful rhetoric. Anything less enables the cowardly silence of those who deep down know better. A mere denial isn’t enough; Donald Trump is actively engaging in some of the most racially-charged politics since Nazi Germany. The burden of proof is on each of us to stand up and be counted not only in the eyes of history but of each other.
Come on, America. Let’s Make Racism Unacceptable Again.
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