Playing the Race Card

In general, I have found that stereotypes get to be stereotypes for a reason: there is some truth to them. The big problem with stereotypes is that, even if they cease to be valid, they are as difficult to remove as a government program.

For example, there is a stereotype in this country that liberals are much less likely to be racists than conservatives, yet most conservatives I know get really pissed off if you call them racists. There’s another stereotype in this country that liberals are much more likely to be anti-American than conservatives, yet most liberals I know get really pissed off if you call them un-American or unpatriotic. Stereotypes are often wrong and they are always aggravating.

I lived in the South during the civil rights/Vietnam protest years, and I remember many conservatives who were segregationists, and proud of it. I also remember that many liberals from that era burned flags and supported Ho Chi Minh - some even did stuff like blow up the Pentagon - blatant un-American and unpatriotic behavior, yet they, too, were proud of themselves.

Times do change, and so do people. For example, some of my current conservative friends and acquaintances were liberal activists during the civil rights movement. Their politics have changed, but not their strong opposition to prejudice in general and racism in particular. I still know a few conservatives who are racists, but even their views have softened considerably. They seem to be frustrated more than angry, and much of their angst is about subjects like reverse discrimination and victimization.

Fifty years ago, the “n” word was as common as the “f” word is today, but these days the “n” word is a rare occurrence, except of course from black rappers who seem to revel in both words. Now there’s a deserving stereotype: “gangsta rappers”. I attribute all sorts of misogynistic, criminal, anti-social, uncivilized, racist, and other nasty sentiments to gangsta rappers and their music. But those attributions are directed toward their genre, not their race. I certainly do not think that way about the black lawyer, carpenter, businessman, plumber, clergyman, etc. who lives down the street or across the country. Like most of my conservative friends, I am very likely to judge people on their competence, character, and behavior, but I could care less about their race or ethnicity. I don’t mean to suggest that racism no longer exists among conservatives – it does – but it is usually considered unacceptable and backward and it has been relegated to the periphery.

In any case, if we’re going to be comparing liberals and conservatives, the discussion is about politics, not race. Conservatives generally agree that Clarence Thomas and Condoleezza Rice are wonderful role models to be respected and admired by all, and that Nancy Pelosi and Howard Dean are beneath contempt. My liberal friends, on the other hand, are very critical of both Thomas and Rice, and generally supportive of Pelosi and Dean. Does this mean my liberal friends are racists? Of course not - in both cases, the nasty remarks are about politics, not race. So much for racism.

Up until recently, I’m pleased to say that I don’t ever remember being called a racist or a bigot. Lately, though, it seems to be happening more and more – by folks who leap to the incredibly false and insulting assumption that any person or group that disagrees with President Obama does so because of his race. For many Obama supporters, the definition of racism has now become disagreement with the President or his policies. Countless politicians, clergy, media and press reporters, and other liberals, have publicly referred to people who oppose the President’s health care plan, or bailouts, or deficit spending, or corporate takeovers, as racists. Some of the same people have called folks who participated in “tea parties” or the recent “9.12 march on Washington” fascists, racists, bigots, and other epithets. In fact, the accusations seem to have come most quickly and most often from black politicians, clergy, and celebrities.

By any definition, this is “playing the race card”. Just because I disagree with a black president, politician, clergyman, or any other black person, does not mean that I am a racist. It simply means that I disagree with the person. I have a right, indeed a bounden duty, to express my political opinions, and the real agenda of those who would label me a racist is to censure my right of free speech – to shut me up.

This “race card” game is dangerous sport. Everyone knows how sensitive black people are to racial slurs, but I’m less certain that liberals know how sensitive conservatives are to charges of racism. For many years now, Hollywood and television and video games have featured black characters hurling racial epithets at black and white people. This has been considered acceptable, perhaps out of some sense of “white guilt”. But now the epithets have crossed over from the entertainment world to the real world.

A few days ago, I heard a well educated and reasonable conservative friend say, “When black liberals brand me a racist, that’s a slur, and I get so pissed off that I want to hurl the “n” word right back at them.” That’s the way it is with slurs, racial or otherwise. As soon as you use one, the discussion stops and the fight begins.