Originally Posted by
woodworker
Trump presents the focal point for the intersection of race and politics. He's played on the worst fears of disenfranchised or fearful white Americans and galvanized them into a movement. From my vantage point, this represents a huge step backwards for the country.As to an earlier point, I think it's a diversion in the context of this thread to talk about the left stereotyping the right, and about political correctness, notwithstanding that the points may have some validity. The reason I say this is that one doesn't need to use those devices to infer that Trump is racist and to criticize his supporters in light of those statements. One only has to listen to what he's actually said, and, equally important, what he's done.
Context is critical. Take the "Black Lives Matter" movement and the conservative response to it: "All Lives Matter." The latter, "All Lives Matter," was brought out as a counter to "Black Lives Matter." In some other context, it might have been seen as a movement to ensure that there's better relations in all communities between the police and the people that they serve. However, as a response to the "Black Lives Matter" movement, I personally interpret it as telling blacks to stop whining. Its proponents have also implied, unfairly, that blacks are racist in focusing attention solely on their own problems. Thus, it wasn't the content of the message, it was the context or timing of it, and how it was used. It is not a movement or cause but rather an instrument for blunting one.
If, holding my bag of groceries, I walk past a homeless person looking for food, and respond to his request by saying, "there are lots of people in the world who need food," that has a different meaning than if I say this while starting a food bank. In the context of a discussion concerning Trump and racism, talking about the left stereotyping the right or bringing up political correctness seems like offering an excuse for Trump's faults. Of course, I could be misinterpreting the point (wouldn't be the first time), but, by context, that seems to be the typical purpose of those arguments.
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