I deal with many of the same realities that other people involved in the movement are dealing with. At this point there's a strong sense of exhaustion in the air; this time of year you may find it's critical to press reset and enter the summer fully refreshed. Unfortunately, we all know this is easier said than done.
Shady Aftermath
The aftermath of this election ushers in the dawn of a reality we’ve long discussed; the dawn of an ideological white nationalist political party has returned. White supremacy ran for president and won. Racism was on the ballot as VP and garnered support like a champion. Homophobia in the house and sexism for senate made strides like a Clydesdale in an open field.
Trump’s United States was functioning long before I was born. Many would argue it never left because the truth is their values are deeply embedded in the fabric of American democracy. This country is exactly the country we’ve all known it to be. These are age old generational values, there is no generation gap for the politics of fear mongering.
Our options: One candidate ran a campaign chocked full of obscene racist gestures and sexist vulgarities. The other candidate ran with a political track record which would suggest that Black people are anything but her friends. It doesn’t matter which way the gravity pulled your soul in this election, most directions offered a safe space to the new white nationalist party. Liberals expected marginalized poor black and brown voters to send Hillary Clinton to the white house. An expectation that Black people would show up in droves to support the same family that has sent so many of our loved ones to prison is absurd. The fate of the country was pseudo placed upon the shoulders of the people that were least likely to benefit from her presidency, many of whom are disenfranchised due to the mass incarceration trend.
The media has flooded our television screens with questions around this moment, but we can be clear about what exactly took place with this election -- white America showcased their apathy for common sense and allowed fear and hatred to roar like lions in the jungle. We were already living in Donald Trump’s America and many of us have been in denial about it. Over 50% of white women voted for Trump, not Hillary. White Evangelicals showed out at the polls for Trump as well. But the real shocker -- 13% of Black men voted for Trump and the fear of a black planet earned 33% of the male latino vote, despite its eagerness to build a wall along the border.
Many of us would’ve supported Clinton because we still believe in the Democrats. Some people are shedding tears of unemployment while we grieve for our futures. Several high profiled activists won’t be receiving cabinet jobs and speaking tour honorariums. There will be no celebratory lap for the Clinton political dynasty. She lost, it’s over. We aren’t apart of her vision for a better tomorrow so this allows us to be more candid. We don’t have to subscribe to the woes of her defeat as if they are our own. We were never really with her because she was never with us.
White privilege, sexism, and anti muslim sentiment and behavior has found refuge on Pennsylvania Ave. once again. And we can no longer afford to underestimate the power of racism, but note racism in a pants suit is still racism. We face similar issues despite the president elect. Obama, the Black president, militarized the continent of Africa more so than any president in modern american history. His confronts of racism and police brutality are as watered down as they’ve always been. This tells us that even though 80% of black men voted for Hillary Clinton she realistically wasn’t going to do shit for us. Some of us would’ve been a lot happier about the outcome, but for many this was just as defeating as Trump’s victory.
A 70 year old billionaire with a horrid orange tan and bad hair replacements was elected to president of the United States. This is the America we’ve always known. There is no need to expect anything different to happen here. We survived Doomsday, but was it really unpredictable? The world is on the brink of the next world war.
The person with the nuclear access codes has changed, but we are still the targets. For the next four years we have a clear and direct enemy. Voting has never defeated white nationalism and it never will. Today we see clearly the need to reintroduce Blackness to the American psyche as both an identity and a radical politic. We see clearly our neglect of a TRUE class analysis contributed to this position. Both candidates highlighted the existence of racism in America as a political position for the commonwealth and for many people this is the ushering in of a new set of realities.
But know that WE are still the same people that sparked over 250 slave rebellions during the transatlantic slave trade. Donald Trump is president, but we aren’t Bernie, we are the real political revolution. The real political revolution is a story of resistance. Either way it goes this was the only real choice we had in this election. If don’t we don't want this to happen again the message is clear -- RESIST OR DIE.
Election Day 2016
This is ultimately the day we’ve all been waiting for, so let’s celebrate. The end of this election season is finally here. For the last couple of months we’ve all been forced to deal with two of the craziest crazies to ever run for the oval office. The immediate torture is nearly over, but here comes the second phase. The array of emotions displayed by the general public during this time has been vast to say the least.
Bernie Sanders ran on a ticket of broken promises and political fantasies. His bid for the democratic nomination was shot down like a thief in the night. In the end he conceded and endorsed Hillary, back to business as usual. The great white hype, Donald Trump has run a vigorous campaign designed to intimidate anyone that opposes him. Many of us have been victimized by these tactics which are childish, offensive, and really just plain stupid. Unfortunately many of us have responded to this fear mongering by joining forces with Hillary Clinton, you know in the name of stopping Trump.
I don’t know that he’s qualified to run the empire, but he talked a good, well loud game. America has positioned itself to select a candidate that will keep their values intact despite whomever wins. We can’t be disillusioned about the values the United States stands for and promotes. Trump will build a wall and Hillary will inevitably drop bombs so logically it seems most Americans are comfortable doing what must be done to save ourselves.
The middle class is barely surviving these days and is struggling to maintain that identity. When Clinton's husband left office thousands of Blacks were forced into the streets and left homeless. The housing crisis and mass incarceration seemed to be his only big ticket items, outside of adultery. Hillary is indeed her own person. She has campaigned on the strength of her own record, but oddly enough her politics reflect her husbands like a mirror image. They’re on the same team. He’s with her and she’s with him; there is no definitive difference between the Clintons when it comes to the sway of the pendulum.
The day after the election many of us will wake up to an America that has given white nationalism a boost. They will be upset, angry, and ready to administer violence to Black bodies. The challenge for all of us is rebuking the narrative that a vote for Hillary is a vote against white nationalism. If she wins she won’t stand with you while you’re attacked. If she loses she’ll most likely lean into it as a means of punishing us. Voting has never defeated white nationalism and it never will. In a very odd sense voting for the lesser of two evils actually empowers this discourse in our society. White supremacy searches for affirmation in spaces that allow it to expand its muscle; fear and social polarities reinforce a series of detrimental ideas. Trump is prepared to use the stupidity of white nationalists to the benefit of his agenda.
The Black movement today is more responsive than Black movements of the past. We don’t create infrastructures out of necessity, we respond to crisis. Through this election both candidates present another crisis to us. Some of the real work will involve pushing the Bernies and Hillarys and Jills to speak and act against these hate crimes long after the election. After they no longer need us, but no longer have ignorance of many issues as their scapegoat.
Despite whomever wins or loses, the hate has been unleashed and the white nationalist political identity has found a willing vessel in Trump and his voters. The commentary online surrounding this election and many people's decision to vote for Clinton seems to be rooted in the fact that they want to stop Trump. So what will white Democrats, liberals, and progressives in power do during times like these? I expect they will do what they always have.
Absolutely nothing.
TefPoe -- via handsupunited.org
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