Reading Dispatches from the Race War by Tim Wise.
Trick-or-treaters had to work for their Halloween treat at our house because my Dad liked to ask questions before he gave out candy. “Who are you supposed to be?” “Why did you chose that costume?” And finally, “who are you really?”
That last question made me roll my eyes because my Dad knew every kid in the neighborhood, and every kid’s brother and sister and parents and pets. I have no doubt he knew exactly who was wearing every costume.
It was charming for my father to pretend he didn’t know the local trick-or-treaters. It is not charming for us to pretend we don’t know who is parading before our eyes on the TV screen or wherever we find our news. Like the current Speaker of the House. He dresses like a prep school student-body president and calls himself a “conservative” and a “Bible-believing Christian.” But he has embraced the Great Replacement Theory[1] which is about as racist as you can get.
No one wants to be known as a racist, so MAGA Republicans call themselves “conservative.” It’s a costume, a mask. Inquire into the details of their “conservative” values and you will find the racist world-view.[2] It is the same chum Trump loves to throw in the water: stoking fear in white Americans that people of color are out to take what we have, and “poison the blood of our country.”[3]
The liberal media is pretending too. It likes to say that the upcoming elections are about preservation of democracy. But that’s because even white liberals don’t want to hear about “white supremacy” or deal with the fact that the reason our democracy is no longer a sacred value to the GOP is because the GOP believes too many Black and brown people are being allowed to vote.
It’s about white supremacy.
We ought not pretend that we don’t know who these people are and what they are about.
[1] Last summer (May 23, 2023) he was talking about the need for immigration reform and said that Democrats supported an open border (they do not) because they hope to turn all immigrants into Democratic party voters. FWIW, before an immigrant can vote, he or she needs to become a citizen. That takes about ten years.
[2] I am reading Tim Wise’ Dispatches from the Race War (City Lights Books, 2020.) In an essay called “You May Not Be Racist But Your Ideology Is: Why modern conservatism is racist.” He parses the conservative values and points to the racism which underlies them.
[3] Imagery straight out of Hitler’s Mein Kampf, and used by Trump in a 9/27/2023 interview. Trump Escalates Anti-Immigrant Rhetoric With ‘Poisoning the Blood’ Comment, NYT 10/7/93.
Photo by Conner Baker on Unsplash
