Social justice and government policy.

[hifiguy]

There is only so much that the most well-intentioned government can do on issues which at a fundamental level involve personal attitudes rather than public policy, and there are limits, which should be readily apparent, to the latter.

There are still plenty of racist assholes around 50 years after LBJ's Civil Rights and Voting Rights acts became law. Governmental policy can and MUST secure and enforce some kinds of rights in the public square - women's control over their own bodies, the right to vote, non-gerrymandered congressional districts, access to good education and health care, genuinely equal legal rights for LGBT people, the enactment of just and fair economic policies that benefit the majority, et al., but there is precious little it can do to change the individual attitudes that are at the root of many "social justice" issues. You can't outlaw or police the bigotry and nastiness inside people's heads.

Politicians can lead by example, as LBJ did on civil rights, but societal evolution and changing destructive attitudes is as much a part of that kind of change, if not more, than governmental policies. A law can't by itself change hearts and minds, and to expect any individual politician to wave a magic wand and change certain things overnight is beyond the scope of reality. Public policy has to do all that it can, but it can't do it all and to ignore this is to ignore human nature.

[1StrongBlackMan]

1. I, largely, agree ...

Governmental policy can and MUST secure and enforce some kinds of rights in the public square - women's control over their own bodies, the right to vote, non-gerrymandered congressional districts, access to good education and health care, genuinely equal legal rights for LGBT people, the enactment of just and fair economic policies that benefit the majority, et al.,

Do this, and I don't give a crap about the individual bigot, as he/she would have no power to enforce his/her bigotry, beyond his/her arm's length.

[bravenak]

2. Hell yeah.

[TheKentuckian]

3. The individual bigot can still do considerable damage especially in concert with other individual

bigots see the entire law enforcement, prosecution, and sentencing debacles.

The most insidious shit is substantially beyond the direct reach of legislation the biggest impact agenda on equality would be to end the stupid and failed drug war, reigning in the over powered and rogue police, and outlawing "Terry stops".

[1StrongBlackMan]

5. Enforce the anti-racist systemic (political) rules ...

and the rogue (bigoted) cop goes to jail ... but more, likely, doesn't do his/she craziness because he/she knows he/she has no support.

[TheKentuckian]

6. I'm not clear on what rules you are speaking to here nor who would enforce them.

The blue line is a far tougher nut than you seem to imply here, getting folks to convict cops is even tougher, reigning inlimiting interactions even harder to sell, and getting people even black people to focus on the institutional nature of racism with the police is a mountain to climb.

[1StrongBlackMan]

7. Okay ...

The OP talked about what politicians could do to address isms, and indicated that enforcing the rules wouldn't change individual bigotry.

My point was if the rules were enforced, I would care whether an individual was bigoted because they would have no power to affect me ... other than talking bad about me and/or calling me names, which I couldn't/wouldn't care less about.

[hifiguy]

4. Kick