Why America can't escape its racist roots

[malaise]

https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2020/06/orlando-patterson-explains-why-america-cant-escape-its-racist-roots/
<snip>

GAZETTE: Two years ago, you spoke to the Gazette on the 50th anniversary of the Kerner Report, which blamed white society’s racism as the underlying cause of the race riots of 1967. You said then that maybe we needed another report that looks at the roots of the racial inequities in the country. What is your take now?

PATTERSON: Reports are always useful if well done. There are now many studies of race and inequality, in fact it’s a virtual industry. There’s no shortage of thorough and well-informed research. But it would do no harm to have a group of people bring together the main results of the findings of recent studies, as well, including the views of influential people, not just academics, but also community, political, and religious leaders, who can say where they think we are and where we are going in terms of race relations in America. That’d be important especially now, after the killing of George Floyd. Many people must be asking themselves what has happened over the past half a century or more, since those first set of defining riots of the ’60s, not to mention the Rodney King riots in 1992. Is the element of white supremacy and chronic racism so deeply rooted that no amount of not just protests, but reform and institutional change is going to make a difference? That’s a depressing view. My sense is that there’s something new in these demonstrations.

GAZETTE: What is new about these protests, compared to the protests of 1967, 1968, or 1992, or the more recent ones organized by the Black Lives Matter movement?

PATTERSON: For one thing, and this is even true of the Rodney King demonstrations in 1992, the difference is the composition of the demonstrators. One cannot help but be struck by the significant proportion of the protesters who are white, Hispanic, and Asian. It was interesting, for example, that when the police brutally broke up a demonstration near the White House and trapped protesters on a road, a South Asian man took 70 of them in his house. My sentiment is that this is a more diverse, although still predominantly black, expression of outrage. I think it has to do with the moment we’re living right now. People seemed horrified that we’re seeing this sort of thing after all these years, but they also sense that something is profoundly wrong. What’s terrifying about this moment is that the foundational institutions of our democracy are under assault, that the fundamental norms upon which our Constitution and our system of government rests are being threatened.

Lots more at link

[Solly Mack]

1. K&R

[struggle4progress]

2. Racism serves specific material interests: it creates an easily-identifiable lumpen-proletariat

that can be exploited. The history of this is long. Blacks? lazy savages who we improve with slavery. Oops -- slavery now illegal? Well, then, blacks are criminals who belong on chain-gangs so we can rent them out to industry! Chain-gangs out-of-fashion? We'll just keep many of you unemployed so you'll grasp at shit work for shit wages! Asian? They should work on the railroad or do laundry and be booted out of the country if they want better jobs. Hispanic? How about some nice stoop labor with a short hoe and we'll deport you if you open your mouth

[malaise]

3. You nailed it

and it's why governments promoting social change are overthrown - labor must remain cheap everywhere

[Varaddem]

5. We'll deport you if you open your mouth

I sometimes wonder if the meat industry Employs so many illegal immigrants so that they cannot shut down the line.Safety? Let’s get rid of the inspectors

[Varaddem]

4. Back in the 80s or early 90s

There were some theories that the crack in the inner city was to quell insurrections over Reagan policies. Is that when Republicans started ruling instead of governing?
Propaganda worked to make white people feel exceptional no matter what their circumstances. Was it project for a new American century that actually wrote down that we needed in Pearl Harbor type of event for them to reclaim power?
The right does not feel history matters unless it’s from 2000 years ago .
People were even OK with money being taken out of school systems for tax breaks. What happens to Society when they do that? Look out the window.