We are living in scary times. Back in 2008, I remember the unbridled joy with which much of America celebrated the election of Barack Obama, our first African-American president. Tom and I went to Seattle and people were literally dancing and drumming in the streets. People were hugging and the people all around us were so thrilled at this historic event.
But it didn't come easy. The whole campaign was marred with racist innuendos. Obama was accused of being Muslim (not that anything was wrong with being Muslim, but the accusation was meant as an insult). He was accused of associating with terrorists. His citizenship was called into question. He was simultaneously accused of being "uppity" and mocked for being a "community organizer". He received death threats while campaigning. Michelle was compared to a gorilla. The whole thing was extremely ugly. Yet not only did Obama prevail and win, he won by a landslide.
While many of us celebrated, there were those who were really angry. For white voters, particular those who weren't cosmopolitan or comfortable with diversity, Obama's election was a shock. "When coupled with the broad decline in incomes and living standards caused by the Great Recession, it seemed to signal the end of a hierarchy that had always placed white Americans at the top, delivering status even when it even when it couldn't give material benefits," writes Jamelle Bouie in Slate.com.
That night I read hateful things on my Facebook news feed. One person said, "I think I'm going to vomit." The next evening at soccer practice, one of my daughter's teammates stated, "We're going to die," presumably because Obama had been elected. She was 10 at the time--I'm sure she was repeating what her parents had said.
Throughout President Obama's tenure, he has been treated with such disrespect. From a Congressman yelling "You lie!" during his State of the Union address, to the Trump birther accusations, to the Republican obstructionism, Republicans have tried their hardest to delegitimize him. Their latest ploy is their threat to block his Supreme Court nominee. However, the majority of Americans feel this is the wrong thing to do, and that the highest court in the land should not go with only 8 justices for a year.
During all of this, moderate Republicans stayed silent. Those who might have spoken out against this abhorrent behavior did not. Many in fact engaged in this behavior as a wink and a nod to their constitutents. How many Republicans were caught using racist language, or were found to be members of organizations that were known to have connections to white nationalist groups?
However, it was an unspoken rule that being openly racist was unacceptable. However, Trump apparently feels he doesn't have to play by the same rules as everyone else. He seems to not have any shame or embarrassment about saying things that most civilized people wouldn't say. He knows what these mostly white, mostly working class, mostly non-college-educated supporters are angry about and he manipulates these people and their anger by tapping into it and fanning the flames. He doesn't provide answers--he just ratchets up the anger. So now, these people somehow feel emboldened to wear their racism, xenophobia and bigotry proudly for the world to see. It's frightening.
At one rally, a white man sucker-punched a young African-American man. He was subsequently arrested for assault. The violence visited upon protesters has continued to escalate. In Chicago, people decided enough was enough and thousands of protesters showed up at the Trump rally, forcing Trump to cancel it. It was interesting to note, however, that the Trump people had scheduled the rally to take place at the University of Illinois in Chicago, a campus that is 25% Latino, 25% Asian and 10% African-American. Looks like he WANTED there to be violence. Why else would he hold it there? Trump is an attention whore--to him, media coverage is a good thing, regardless if it's good or bad.
So when Trump doesn't win the presidency, what's going to happen to all of these people who support Trump? They've been very open now about their racism, their xenophobia. Are they ever going to learn that they can't live in the 21st century hating everyone that doesn't look like them? It' not going to work.
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