Comments on: Yes, Minorities Could Vote Republican

By: Bryce

Bryce — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 04:23:28 +0000

How is the Republican Party gonna come into town and create strong families. There just gone ride in from whiteville on their white horses and teach them how to be good christian middle class white suburban Americans. How are private schools a good solution in communities where people cant afford their rent water bill and buy food. What does regulation got to do with anything anyway. We need more small businesses in our urban communities, particularly African American owned businesses. Its gonna take government money and education and a lot of resources to make that happen. or i suppose you could just sit back and wait for it to happen by magic.

By: 888

888 — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 22:06:21 +0000

Non-sense — the majority of blacks and hispanics are conservative. They just cannot get themselves to vote conservative because they think they’re selling out to the white man. They don’t understand that by clinging to the Democrats, they’re actually enslaving themselves to the perpetual lies and empty promises of the Democratic Party and the liberal elitists who enjoy the brainwashing of the masses to ensure the masses’ allegiance and all-important votes.

I’m an Asian woman, and I’m very proud to be a conservative. When I travel, at domestic and international airports, I wear a tee-shirt that proclaims “Proud Member of the Conservative Movement”. I’m not ashamed or embarrassed to state emphatically that I have conservative views. It’s too bad other minorities are. That’s why they always seem to be angry, miserable and disillusioned. The minorities who do not live the double life and are secure with their conservatism, are happier in their outlook and in their prospects for a better tomorrow because they don’t have to deny truths and they don’t allow anyone to brainwash them.

By: TOhio

TOhio — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 18:06:43 +0000

81. Strawman

Thank you! Excellent article. You’re right. Nobody wants to talk about this type of stuff and how it works.

By: Strawman

Strawman — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 03:24:58 +0000

77 TOhio, part of the problem is when there are successes, nobody wants to notice:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/08/opinion/08brooks.html

By: Dero

Dero — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 03:14:30 +0000

Forgot to finish my thought. My first solution was for if the GOP went the route of actually accepting identity politics. (as i said, right now they try to have things both ways)

If they go the route of ignoring them, then they have to GO THE COMPLETE ROUTE. Stop showing favoritism towards what you personally *think* are American values. I’m an atheist, i really don’t give a damn what your bible says about gays. I’m Black, i don’t want to hear you calling some lily white town “real america.” If I were Hispanic I don’t want to hear “english only” platforms being tied to your support for stronger border patrol. etc. etc. Anything that implies “I’m not bigoted but I think my values/culture are better than yours” has to be thrown out the window.

I didn’t mention the latter solution in my original post because I don’t see how the latter could be compatible with conservatives at all. Conservatives are too tied to the idea of the cultural superiority of this imaginary monolithic American culture that they’ve created in their heads. Giving that up would be too hard for a group that defines itself by it’s religion/protestant work ethic, etc. etc.

By: Dero

Dero — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 02:54:22 +0000

It all comes down to acceptance/rejection of identity politics. The problem is that conservatives try to have it both ways. It’s sort of funny because part of being conservative is a respect for cultural norms and traditions yet conservatives can’t even bring themselves to admit that the nature of being American is that we don’t all have the same shared cultural experience. And the more conservatives push this sort of “real american” culture as something that identifies all of us, the more people that don’t share that cultural experience think you have nothing to say to the rest of us. It’s like conservatives play their own version of identity politics by positing some white protestant rural cultural experience as somehow the neutral experience. This narrative leaves a lot of people out yet anyone that says “wait a minute, what about blacks, latinos, people that live in cities, non-christians etc.” is accused of engaging in divisive identity politics. Like I said, sorta funny.

Having people that can talk about racial politics with some sort of self-awareness of their own “otherness” (wish i had a better word for that) would be great. That would go a long way towards gaining credibility. Someone that can speak on minority issues without reverting to some dumbass “well, we’re all Americans so I’m going to pretend your issue doesn’t exist” sort of talk.

By: Bilgeman

Bilgeman — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 22:52:41 +0000

#60 Strawman;
“It’s easy to do the James Baker thing, and draw the logical inference “f*** the Jews, they don’t vote for us, anyway”. Baker’s logic is impeccable, as far as it goes. But it’s wrong and offensive on it’s face.”

As well as walking smack-dab into the trap that racism is.

If you refer to “Black Americans” you are being racist…even if you ARE a Black American yourself.
It’s a bad habit to have, and like most bad habits, tough to break Free from.

The Conservative movement should completely eschew talking about race or ethnicity in any form whatsoever, and limit itself zealously to hitting on the values that most folks in this country share, (or should be sharing).

When challenged by an opponent and the dispute is couched using the language of race, it should be identified as the racism that it is.

I think there’s ore in this vein, since I suspect that there’s a whole lot of Americans who will have been more than fatigued by “Race” and “Ethinic” thought and talk.

By: TOhio

TOhio — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 16:42:53 +0000

In addition to appealing to the religious and social conservatism that exists in the Black community, I think that there is another very important policy point that Republicans need to emphasize – school vouchers.

There are African-Americans in inner-city areas who want a better education for their children. These people know that this is the real ticket to a better life out of the ghetto. But they are trapped in bad schools. Why? Because the Democrats are in cahoots with the public school teacher’s unions.

Ghetto schools are failures. There are parents who want out but can’t afford to move to a better school district. Some struggle to send their kids to local Catholic schools and some (very few) are able to get scholarships for their kids to attend better local private schools. The rest are trapped in a failing system that will help keep them in poverty.

This whole thing is an outrage and provides an enormous opening for Republicans. School vouchers even the playing field and enables parents who want to send their children to better schools, to do so. The people who would most likely use these vouchers are the very ones who desire to work themselves out of poverty.

Education is the best ticket out of the ghetto and the Republican Party is all about people “learning how to fish for themselves instead of being given fish everyday.”

Why isn’t the Republican Party fielding candidates in the inner city who are passionate about school vouchers? Why isn’t this something that the party is advocating on a national level?

I bet you that if someone did a study of all of the members of the Congressional Black Caucus, they would find that these people send their kids to private schools or live in upscale neighborhoods with excellent schools. None of them have kids going to school in the very ghettos that they are advocating for other African-Americans. (We already know that President Obama and his wife have always sent their kids to private school.)

School vouchers point out the hypocrisy of African-American leaders and is an excellent way to show the “fish for yourself” philosophy of conservatism. I believe that this would definitely get more African-Americans to vote Republican.

By: Blarty Blarckleblart

Blarty Blarckleblart — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 15:42:43 +0000

Bill and Clayton: the point of the story about my housekeeper is that overt racism is alive and well in the U.S. It isn’t about what her motivations are, or whether there are really white people in Idaho.

As for “limousine liberal” – work hard and someday you too may be able to afford a housekeeper.

By: Pat J

Pat J — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 04:28:30 +0000

I chuckle at the Michael Steele approach. Bring out the fried chicken and mashed potatoes. Yeah that will bring the black people out to vote Republican. Why not use tacos and burritos to bring out the Hispanics? Yeah that will work.