According to We Will Rockdem, anyway. And yeah, these are the same folks bemoaning the lack of civility in our current political climate. Granted, I don’t expect much from the hacks that post there, particularly one who just recently suggested pro-life women hated themselves, but it strikes me as stupid to declare the hundreds of thousands gathered in DC racist, all from one video. I could just as easily find pictures from Leftist protests under Bush, where a few dutifully carried signs with anti-Semitic overtones, and declare every liberal to be a Jew hater.
The larger issue, though, is the attempt to delegitimize criticism of Obama by constantly throwing out the race card. It’s a potent attack, because it isn’t something one can easily defend themselves against. After all, how do you prove you’re not a racist? Do you have to have a certain amount of black friends, have watched reruns of The Cosby Show within the last thirty days, etc? However, with each use it loses more of its punch, and the tools continuing to throw it out there are making a mockery of it besides. Do Democrats really care about race relations, or do they just want to use it as a weapon to constantly bludgeon the opposition with? I know which way I’m leaning.
Incidentally, using race to shield Obama does him nor Democrats any favors. The concerns of a large swath of the electorate are very real and very genuine, and liberals diminish them at their electoral peril. Not only are they firing up a conservative base that is already well-engaged, they ignore the moderates and independents who are looking upon the Obama administration with an increasingly wary eye. From the record deficit to a larger federal role in healthcare to cap and tax, er, trade, there are very important policy issues out there that a lot of people are concerned about. It has nothing to do with hating on a black man.
UPDATE: No, I don’t intend to post a link to every instance of the race card being played…but only because I already have a full-time job:
“It’ s not conducive to the coalitions we need to build in this country,” said Vera Hope, 60, of Mount Rainier as she left a booth promoting health prevention. “I’m disgusted and upset by the hostility. Let’s call it was it is — it’s just a disguise for right-wing racists. They are fomenting a climate of violence to provoke people.”
Uh huh.
#1 by zen on September 14th, 2009
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Where do you get the “hundreds of thousands” figure?
By no means do I believe that everyone attending the march is racist, but there certainly were numerous race-based signs and sentiments expressed by those in attendance. After looking through many reports and photos, I have yet to find a single non-white person at the march. If you have any, can you please post here? That in itself does not equate racism, but contributes to the perception.
I strongly feel that many unhappy marchers are so because they view the nation as losing something it once was. And I do feel that for some (many?) race plays a part in this perception. Often there’s a sentiment that we’ve lost the good old days, which seem to equate to a fantasy-based, nostalgia of times past. Perhaps it should be remembered that Mayberry didn’t have any minorities, or gays, and women were quite subservient.
The spending policies do not fully explain why people are marching, since spending and bailouts began with the previous administration. Yet there were no marches organized. Government programs were legislated, wars were launched, all on deficit spending. And yet still no marches. I haven’t seen a single sign denouncing these policies by any marchers, so again, if please point to them if you can.
#2 by republitarian on September 14th, 2009
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“I have yet to find a single non-white person at the march. If you have any, can you please post here? That in itself does not equate racism, but contributes to the perception.”
What percentage of blacks vote for democrats? Does that contribute to a perceptions?
#3 by Anon on September 14th, 2009
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The figure comes from here: http://reason.com/blog/show/136041.html. Is he right? I have no idea, but the pictures I’ve seen look like there were more than the 50,000 I saw reported elsewhere.
Unfortunately I am having trouble including pictures in the posts, but here’s one: http://www.lookingattheleft.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/MG_0011-1-2.jpg. There are others, though I do think its ridiculous to engage in bean counting like that. I took the liberty of quickly looking over old pics of Leftist protests under Bush, and they seem just as lily white as the DC rally. Admittedly I don’t usually look at these pictures and play find the black people, but I’m not sure that’s a good angle on which to base anything.
Is there a sense amongst “them” that the country is losing something? Probably, but I don’t think its nostalgia for the days of separate lunch counters and segregation. I believe its more about slipping ever so slowly towards a European-style nanny state that has most people concerned. I’m sure you see the benefits of such a move and would file that away under “progress”, but individualism, a desire to have a “limited” federal gov’t, and an inclination to distrust DC are deeply rooted.
Is there an element of partisanship to them? Naturally, just as there was with the ones under Bush. But, I think you’d be hard-pressed to find any conservatives who were pleased with the spending under Bush. I doubt there are signs at the rallies and they’d be better served by doing so, but in a few of these townhalls Republican lawmakers got an earful too about that sort of thing (esp. those that voted for TARP). I think, too, there is a sense that with the bailouts under Bush it was a crisis situation, so many probably talk themselves into excusing it. The prior two elections tell you something about how impressed people were with the GOP. But its not just Republicans who are concerned. Indies, as well, are skeptical.
The bottom line is I don’t think race is a real factor here. Continuing to suggest that it is THE motivating factor, or even an important element, just ignores the fact that perhaps Obama is moving too fast with too much, and people are uncomfortable with that.
#4 by jeff on September 14th, 2009
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These are the same people that never mentioned a word about Von Jones who is really a racist. What a bunch of hypocrites.
#5 by Formerly known as John Doe on September 14th, 2009
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“Anon” seems to have a writing style that is vaguely familiar. Can’t. Quite. Place. It.