By Emily Cutler | Videos | May 17, 2016 |
By Emily Cutler | Videos | May 17, 2016 |
Ok, first off, yes, I understand maybe you’re getting a little tired of politics. But this is as much a sociological/historical segment as a political one, meaning I’m physically unable to keep myself from posting about it. Secondly, no, I’m not saying every Evangelical Christian nor every Trump supporter is racist. What I and Full Frontal’s amazing piece from last night are arguing is that no one should be surprised that a political movement which began because of a religious organization’s desire to continue practicing racist policies is filled with racists.
See? As infuriating as this entire election year (and a half) has been at times, isn’t it fascinating to see why people believe the jacked up shit they do? How could someone believe women aren’t as equally capable as men? How could someone believe that Mexicans/Muslims present a large enough threat to the country that they should be banned entirely? It’s like when I hear someone who thinks Ian has the best Gallagher story, or cheese belongs on a taco. What is this heresy? It’s onion and cilantro only. Onion and cilantro only! ONION AND CILANTRO ONLY!
The important taco related issues aside, the segment does help alleviate some of the rage-y incomprehension I experience when I hear Trump supporters talk. Because their current positions are a culmination of 35 years of one of the nation’s two political parties intentionally enforcing racist, sexist, homophobic lies. Inherent to being “conservative” is the idea that things shouldn’t really change, and if they must, they should change slowly. It’s a belief that can (usually) only be held by people in a position of power, and (usually) only challenged by those who understand the inequality required by that system. So of course white, straight men (and some women) are going to hate the feminist, gay-friendly, diverse group of heathen assholes who are trying to change the country. From their perspective, we’re the ones ruining things because everything was fine before. It’s a sign of how poorly I think of Trump supporters, but I’m comforted by a thought I’d never considered before: they don’t hate us because they’re racist/ sexist/ homophobic. They’re racist/ sexist/ homophobic because they hate us.