No Compromise with Racism

What is so appalling for us who grew up in the sixties and seventies, when this country seemed to be moving beyond its racist past, is how quickly racism became respectable once again. It started in 1980 when Ronald Reagan became President while denouncing "welfare queens." Then there was the growing acceptance of racist humor, from "The Black Joke Book" to the prevalence of radio shock jocks. By 1988, when Bush I became President by pandering to fears of "black crime," the racist revival was well under way. The emergence of new racist pundits, like Charles Murray, gave the New Racism a degree of "intellectual" respectability.

Donald Trump has entered the GOP fray, campaigning against Mexicans. The curious fact about racism is that the same rhetoric that it used to target one group of people can just as easily be used against another group. Make no mistake about it; anti-immigrant rhetoric has always been racist. It has always been about targeting and vilifying people. We remember how Trump set himself up as the champion of the "birthers." We at first thought it was cynical self promotion, But it turns out that he really believes his own bullshit. The big lie about American racism is that it was mainly a problem for the poor and uneducated but in reality the rich and powerful have been crucial to maintaining the culture of racism. Trump, nothing but a real estate hustler who happens to be hustling the most expensive real estate in the world, shows that the rich are possibly the worst bigots of all.

In this situation, we must remember that an attack on the rights of one group are an attack on the rights of everyone.

No Compromise with racism!