It is interesting to consider the perspectives of racial groups in America, especially in relation to the past presidential election. Roughly half of America, mostly coming from rural backgrounds, have voted on a man who would ban Muslims and called Mexicans rapists. Many of these Trump voters, who are white people, feel like they are the victims in the status quo. Affirmative action has offered a "line-cutting" for many minority groups, which is unfortunate if you are a white, straight male.
It's easy to understand where these Trump supporters are coming from. They see progress for minority communities, LGBTQ+ communities, and women's rights grow at an immense rate compared to an infinitesimal growth in theirs. They feel crowded out. They are not at the center of attention or power anymore. However, it's important to realize that is not the case in America.
Two out of three Americans on welfare as of 1993 are white. The biggest beneficiary of affirmative action are white women. Yet the Trump platform increasingly blames a social decay that seems to empower (ironically) the most privileged in American society. While minority groups were once seen as hardworking, they are now picking up welfare checks in import-cars. These people believe that 40% of people work in for the government, which he places near-treasonous levels of distrust upon. The people that believe him are the insurance agents, the families of contractors. The perspective Trump wants his base to believe in is horrendous to the dreamers and immigrants seeking for a better life in America, and severely misrepresents the terms of privilege and victimization.
While white people complain about not being able to say the n-word, their Mexican counterparts are still searching for their children legally forced apart and placed in isolating cages. Whatever the conditions may be for these children, Trump supporters don't care if they are reunited because to them, Mexicans and these children are "animals". Does being an American mean that you are entitled to keeping your child without the fear of government separation? If so, what makes these caged up children "American" and not "animals"? In the 20th century, the idea of americanizing Mexican immigrants was implemented, in hopes of taking up the "self-made-man" values. Mexican third-graders were given sewing lessons instead of academic courses, and Mexican women were taught how to prepare the dining table so as to not be sloppy as a waitress. African-Americans have to keep in mind they are black whenever they encounter the police or when they are in court. Yet out of these oppressions, minority groups, not just Mexicans and blacks, created a duality in their culture due to a shared experience of marginalization where aspects of American culture were integrated into their own traditional practices. It is a beautiful thing, getting a Korean BBQ taco in the streets of LA. On the other hand, many of Trump's base don't see this historical and social dynamic. There is a force behind the microaggressions and stereotypes of different races. This force is so ingrained in American society that it is easy to ignore at the will of white people. Roe v. Wade is within the possibility of removal. Separating toddlers from their parents was borne from a mindset that a brown person isn't a human, unlike a white person. People don't deserve an asylum from a civil war just because they preach a different religion, and are different in color. Is this the America we envision, or should we fulfill a duty of accepting our differences just because it is the right thing to do?
It's easy to understand where these Trump supporters are coming from. They see progress for minority communities, LGBTQ+ communities, and women's rights grow at an immense rate compared to an infinitesimal growth in theirs. They feel crowded out. They are not at the center of attention or power anymore. However, it's important to realize that is not the case in America.
Two out of three Americans on welfare as of 1993 are white. The biggest beneficiary of affirmative action are white women. Yet the Trump platform increasingly blames a social decay that seems to empower (ironically) the most privileged in American society. While minority groups were once seen as hardworking, they are now picking up welfare checks in import-cars. These people believe that 40% of people work in for the government, which he places near-treasonous levels of distrust upon. The people that believe him are the insurance agents, the families of contractors. The perspective Trump wants his base to believe in is horrendous to the dreamers and immigrants seeking for a better life in America, and severely misrepresents the terms of privilege and victimization.
While white people complain about not being able to say the n-word, their Mexican counterparts are still searching for their children legally forced apart and placed in isolating cages. Whatever the conditions may be for these children, Trump supporters don't care if they are reunited because to them, Mexicans and these children are "animals". Does being an American mean that you are entitled to keeping your child without the fear of government separation? If so, what makes these caged up children "American" and not "animals"? In the 20th century, the idea of americanizing Mexican immigrants was implemented, in hopes of taking up the "self-made-man" values. Mexican third-graders were given sewing lessons instead of academic courses, and Mexican women were taught how to prepare the dining table so as to not be sloppy as a waitress. African-Americans have to keep in mind they are black whenever they encounter the police or when they are in court. Yet out of these oppressions, minority groups, not just Mexicans and blacks, created a duality in their culture due to a shared experience of marginalization where aspects of American culture were integrated into their own traditional practices. It is a beautiful thing, getting a Korean BBQ taco in the streets of LA. On the other hand, many of Trump's base don't see this historical and social dynamic. There is a force behind the microaggressions and stereotypes of different races. This force is so ingrained in American society that it is easy to ignore at the will of white people. Roe v. Wade is within the possibility of removal. Separating toddlers from their parents was borne from a mindset that a brown person isn't a human, unlike a white person. People don't deserve an asylum from a civil war just because they preach a different religion, and are different in color. Is this the America we envision, or should we fulfill a duty of accepting our differences just because it is the right thing to do?