General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Here's what each and every Trump voter has in common: [View all]better
(884 posts)Now before you hit reply and start flaming, please hear me out.
First of all, it is worth noting that our opposition party has completely forsaken critical thinking and honest intellectual observation in favor of "everyone who's not with us is evil" thinking, and we do ourselves no favors by joining them in taking up this kind of rhetoric, or by ignoring or refuting evidence to the contrary.
Secondly, there is a huge difference between being racist or condoning racism and failing to recognize it for what it is.
I, too, personally know more than a few people who voted for Trump, whom I know beyond any doubt not to be racist or to condone racism. Unfortunately, they also pay inadequate attention to politics and/or pay attention to fake coverage, without realizing that it is fake.
One of the most insidious aspects of racism is that those who want to enact policies rooted in racism do not need to sway people to share in their racist ideology. They only need to sway people to support their policies. And there are two types of people who support such policies. Those who support them because they are racist, and those who support them for some other reason. Hillary made this distinction herself in the "deplorables" speech.
There is definitely something to be said for calling out actual knowing racism wherever it is spotted, but we ultimately undermine our own objectives when we label someone racist solely on the basis of what policies or politicians they support. The policies and politicians one supports can be informative, for sure, but it matters a great deal more why they support them.
Someone supporting racist policies out of ignorance or misinformation of course does not excuse their support of those policies, or absolve them of their responsibility for their impact. But it does mean that it may well be possible to bring them to the light, by enlightening them, much more so than if they supported those policies because they actually are personally racist.
We face two kinds of opposition in this fight. Opponents who want to be on the wrong side, and opponents who simply do not realize that they are. Personally, I think we would be wise to remember that the latter of those two are redeemable, and we could really use their support.