Blacks and the Democratic Party

I thought of putting this in elections, but it’s better off here.

There seems to be an unspoken rule in American politics; if you’re Black (or even partly Black), you vote Democrat. If you’re Black and don’t vote Democrat, you’re an Uncle Tom, a traitor, an oreo or any other such negative racial epithet. I would say that the latter is undoubtedly the experience of any Black person in the U.S. who has ever let someone know they plan to vote or have voted Republican. There is, as far as I can tell, no other group within the U.S. that is expected to be as monolithic a voting bloc as are Blacks in reference to the Democratic party nor is there any other group in which single persons in that group are so derided from deviating from the “norm”. The simple question is why is this? I’ve actually wondered about this for quite some time, but have yet to come up with a suitable answer.

(In case you’re wondering, the most recent case of this involves Stacey Dash. After stating her support for Romney on Twitter yesterday, she was met with quite a fair amount of criticism criticizing her, for lack of a better term, “blackness”.)

Omg a self-pitying OP!

Not at all. It is a question worth asking, though.

Oh, please; there’s nothing complicated about it. The Republican Party is the party of white racism; as long as that’s true it’s foolish for anyone identified as “black” to vote for them. They might as well vote for the KKK.

Humans form groups, and whatever hatreds they might have for opposing groups, there’s a special kind of hate for people who were once members (or perceived as being members) and are now in opposition (or perceived as being in opposition).

There’s nothing about it relating specifically to blackness or conservatism - the pattern gets repeated across multiple cultures and situations. For what is specific to modern blacks and the Republican/Democrat divide… I’d guess it starts with the Dixiecrats and the later Southern Strategy.

Gay Republicans probably receive similar treatment, I’d say much stronger in fact.

I’d also be curious to see what would happen if a well known neo nazi skinhead white separatist leader openly admitted to being a Democrat.
Note, by the way, that while probably any black celebrity “coming out” as Republican will result in some number of reactions of the type you describe, there are VASTLY more people who do NOT react in that way. Do I think that blacks who hold conservative view are wrong, holding incorrect views that are not in their interest, views which will ultimately make America worse? Yes. But then, I think that about ALL conservatives… that’s what disagreeing is. Doesn’t mean I think that you’re an Uncle Tom… just an Uncle Wrong.

Yeah, I don’t know why you are so perplexed by this. The GOP, for several decades, has campaigned against diversity and inclusion, actively reached out bigots and racists, created an environment to make Blackness a liability, and marginalized anyone who disagrees with them. Even now, the party will not confront the fact that there is structural racism in their party that turned off most Black voters. Black people are not a monolithic block, they just realize there is no benefit to voting for someone whose party that harbors a large number of people who hate them because of what they look like.

Although I don’t support people bullying Stacy Dash for her political beliefs in the way it seems some people have, it is reasonable to infer that a Black person who would vote for the GOP puts politics above racial identity. That is fine if you have those values, but I don’t personally think it’s commendable given the history of this country.

Ignoring the usual histrionics, I think it’s humorous that you talk about White racism when most of the comments directed towards Blacks who vote for Republicans are racist in nature.

But that doesn’t explain the expectation that Blacks have to, or even should, vote Democrat or the reason that those who do are subjected to claims which question their racial identity.

As it relates to this topic, I happen to disagree. Just look at Der Tris’ post and you can see that it’s related specifically to race. In fact, if you were to go over to the liberal blogosphere, you will find many comments which instantly focus on race.

19 out of 20 blacks who vote will vote for Obama. Heck, one out of 20 chickens might run to Colonel Sanders, not knowing any better.

I don’t automatically disrespect a black person for being a Republican, maybe they have their reasons. I usually wait until I hear them before deciding whether they are sell-outs or sincere in embrace of evil. Colin Powell and Clarence Thomas are sell-outs who got plenty in exchange for the sale of their souls. No respect. Condoleeza Rice, true believer and incompetent at her job, but I don’t think she sold her soul.

Not all Republicans are racist. But almost all racists are Republican. It would be like being a gay Republican, much if not all of the party loathes you, so why vote for them? Some few do, but it isn’t common.

This very year Republican state legislatures are attempting to require voter IDs purely because blacks and other minorities tend to be those without them.

I don’t get how energetic a defense the OP is expecting us to give on behalf what some liberal said somewhere.

Heck, I assume the OP defines “liberal blogosphere” as “blogs written by people I disagree with.”

What’s “humorous” about it? I didn’t say that black people should oppose the Republicans because of social justice (although they should, of course); I said they oppose the Republicans because the Republicans are their enemy. The Republicans hate them, therefore it is foolish for anyone identified as “black” to support them.

Again; the Republicans are their enemy, and the Democrats are the only realistic alternative.

Of course; the motivation of the Republicans for their hatred is racism, therefore it’s an issue of race.

The Republican Party, the party of Lincoln, used to be considered the default party for those who society calls ‘blacks’. That bloc began to split during the FDR administration, along with a lot of other solidly Republican groups. Then in the 50s Hubert Humphrey urged the Democratic Party to reject their tradional support of racists within their coalition. They did. But the final straw was the Republican Party’s acceptance of the former Dixiecrats and their use in the Southern Strategy. With Obama as president the racial issue has become highlighted. Similar things happened with Catholics who became solidly Democratic when Kennedy became president, then drifted toward Republican as the abortion issue hit the big time.

Again, I don’t think those attacks are polite or warranted, but I think you are ignoring why it occurs. Whether you agree or not, the GOP is known by most to be the home of the vast majority of racists and bigots; people who often dedicate their time and efforts to making things harder for minorities. If you are a minority who chooses to throw your lot in with these people, you value the perceived GOP policy benefits over the well known costs. As such, others will assume you may value policies over racial identity. Obviously, you are entitled to feel that way, but it’s understandable why others may feel that choice makes you a sell out.

Can you blame blacks for not voting with the party that says slavery was “a blessing in disguise”, that it must have been OK because Jesus never condemned it, that disfranchising them is "doing them a favor", and whose presidential candidate presumably spent the first 31 years of his life believingblacks can’t get into heaven?

That is not remotely true.

I know a lot of white democrats rather foolishly believe that, but polling data and the experiences of most minorities proves that wrong.

The MSNBC host and Nation editor Chris Hayes made such a comment and was promptly smacked down by a bunch of commenters who produced a slew of data to prove his claim wrong.

Here’s a video where he explains his comment and then freely admits that all the polling data proves him wrong.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/46979738/ns/msnbc-up_with_chris_hayes/#48788079

In a further video wherein he’s in a round table with a number of black commenters one points out, and the others all agree that no African-American would be shocked at polling data showing what large percentages of white democrats also agreed with forbidding blacks from marrying whites and similar explicitly racist views and laws.

Chris then comments that after his comment he was bashed on twitter almost exclusively by two groups of people. “White conservatives and blacks.”

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/46979738/ns/msnbc-up_with_chris_hayes/#48788278

There are lots of differences between white democrats and white Republicans and white progressives and white conservatives, but to assume that “virtually all” white racists are Republicans and/or conservatives is complete crap and empirically false.

That said, it is certainly correct the Republican party has been making highly racialized attacks for a long time.

Oh please.

In addition to the polling data related by Hayes when he issued his apology I’ve seen way to many white liberals on subways practically shit all over themselves in fear when a group of young black men get on and knew far too many in college who would practically trip over themselves crossing the street when they’d see a group of blacks approaching to do anything but laugh at such a statement.

I know you mean well, and I’m sure you’d like to think that, but to paraphrase Ta-Nehisi Coates, Atlantic blogger,

“I’m shocked to discover polls show white democrats are just as racist as white republicans’ said by no black person ever.”

Fair enough, ignorance fought. From his chart it shows that the numbers for white people that poll racist are 31 vs. 49 Dem to Pub, with 20 Independent. Surprising. I would wonder how the breakdown of the Indies are. Are they disproportionately spun-off Republicans? In any case, I assumed the Dem numbers would be at the 27% crazification number.

That said, the powerful members of the Republican party wish to enact policy positions that would be bad for citizens of color. So how about if I call the Republican policies as anti-black as opposed to the Republicans as racist in general.

Don’t worry, it’s a fairly easy and common mistake to make.

That is certainly fair, or at least in regards to certain policies.

I am curious why the OP would post the question on this board.

For the most part, the respondants could have been accurately predicted to comprise a core of posters from the far Left who are happy to demonize the Republicans, (in the way that several of their opposite numbers on the Right spend inordinate amount of effort demonizing Democrats), and for whom accusations of racism are simply one more arrow in their quiver.

To discover why the black community would respond to Ms. Dash in the way that they have, one would be better served asking the actual black community. Only two members of that community have posted, here, and there are not enough black posters on this board to get anything like a representative sample of opinions.

The Southern Strategy and the sort of comments expressed by Republican congresscritters quoted, above, certainly explain why many black people reject the Republican Party, but to understand why there is a visceral antipathy that results in black conservatives being branded “race traitors,” soliciting the answer from a bunch of Left-leaning white guys seems a less than optimum approach.