2011 picture of Trayvon Martin posted from The Daily Caller
I am one of those “old white guys” who was around in the
1960s. I was raised in California, but
ended up in Valdosta, Georgia. I remember
being cautioned to be careful in the “dark section of town.” I remember being shocked to see the “Whites
Only” signs. I remember walking along
the street and being conscious of people with dark skin tone looking at me as
if I were going to harm them. I wanted
to exclaim, “Don’t judge me by the color of my skin!”
I am also a Vietnam veteran.
I remember wearing a uniform through airports and feeling the same sense
of being an outsider. My presence was
inappropriate to many of the traveling public.
Our President’s sense of being treated with suspicion is
familiar to me, as well as every other human being. We all have experiences where we feel
uncomfortable in public situations. The
feeling is so common that our entertainment industry frequently uses it as a
theme. Who hasn’t seen one of the “Shrek” films that romanticize the travails of
a lovable ogre?
So what do we make of the President’s call for “a
conversation on race.” Republicans want to
support the idea. We all want to remove
any stigma attached to those like the lovable Shrek. It’s a sign of our Grand Gullibility.
In 1829, Mary Howitt published a poem titled “The Spider
and the Fly.” The first line of the
poem is “'Will you walk into my parlour?' said the Spider to the Fly.”
Keep that in mind as you contemplate “a conversation on
race.” The Democratic Party teaches
Americans that Republicans are racists. The Party does it by inference, claiming that
members of the Democratic Party are not racists, yet racism is a chronic
problem in our American culture. We are
left to contemplate the question, “If Democrats are not racists, which
political group could possibly be the problem?”
The Party also claims that its members are uniquely subjected
to racism, as evidenced by the fact that nine out of ten American voters with
dark skin tone tend to vote for the Democratic Party. There is no other American identity group so
strongly aligned with a political party.
The odds are thus about ten to one that individuals with dark skin tone
are attracted to the Democratic Party, which puts them in direct conflict with
Republicans.
Given that “a conversation on race” is intended to drive
home the idea that Republicans are racists and want to harm people with dark skin
tone, what possible good could come from this “conversation?”
Maybe it will expose The Reality.
“The Reality” is this: Racism in America is a political
construct. It is meant to strengthen the
Democratic Party by teaching its members to hate the opposition party. It is unseemly, but it works.
Here is a thought experiment to help better understand the
issue:
If nine out of ten Americans with dark skin tone voted for Republicans, could the Democratic Party
still teach that Republicans are racists?
Would people believe that Americans with dark skin tone are inherently
racist? (I imagine this would bring an
end to the “raaaaacism”
industry immediately!)
Also, what if I head on down to the office of the Clerk
and Recorder and register as a Democrat?
Will I still be considered a racist?
(Since there is no racism within the Democratic Party, I will be
immediately exonerated. With the stroke
of a pen, I am cured of my affliction!)
These examples might show how racism is used in America as a
political weapon, but there is still a problem.
Republicans don’t seem to be capable of embracing the obvious.
We are skipping down the street to the melody of "La Vie en Rose." Our Republican "Grand Gullibility” still defines us.
