Trump and the Racist Wing of the Republican Party Don't Realize Something

[MineralMan]

It's too late. Changing immigration policies will have no effect on the diversity of the United States. That ship left port a long time ago on a one-way voyage, and will not be returning. White people are already no longer the majority in some of our states, and it's not illegal or undocumented immigrants who have made that happen.

That is already the case, and nothing any US administration can do will change what has already become reality. To attempt to Make America White Again is a cosmic waste of time. It's not white. It hasn't been white for a very long time, and there's not a damned thing Trump and his racist buddies can do about it.

I suggest that they find something else to get bothered about. They're just wasting their time.

[HopeAgain]

1. Who says they want to stop with immigration?

We all know where racism taken to its inevitable conclusion goes...

[MineralMan]

4. Trump is a passing fancy.

We have it in our power to make it pass sooner than you might think. All we have to do is come together and bring others with us.

What Trump and his racist supporters want is not necessarily what will happen. It's our decision, if we're willing to make it.

[HopeAgain]

14. I hope you are right

And I agree with you about it's too late to achieve what they want through immigration (I'm in South Florida) and about getting involved.

What I am concerned with is the global nature of these nationalist/racist movements and the fact that the momentum for these movements seem to be about a lot more than just Donald Trump. I would not be at all surprised if Macron is replaced by Le Pen, for example. White nationalist movements are on the rise in the U.S., France, Germany, Poland and who knows where else?

[MineralMan]

16. Hope is good. Action is better.

Truly, what we need to do is simply to activate the majority in this country. That is all that it will take. Simply get everyone to the polling place and the Republicans time will be over. We need to do it one voter at a time, helped by other voters to actually exercise the right to vote.

Wherever you, or any of us are, we encounter people who can but do not vote. We need to help them decide to take control into their own hands. One voter at a time. If every Democrat brought one more voter to the polling place, the Republicans would be history. Just one voter. But, we all have to do it. We can't rely on others to do what we should do.

It is that simple, really. If we want it, we can do it.

[Caliman73]

20. Trump is a passing fancy, but White Supremacy has been around a long time.

I don't think that the ideology will last forever, but it has been around, all over the world, for centuries. Trump is a sloppy, ugly manifestation of the ideology.

I watched an older show, "The American Experience" on the Reconstruction after the Civil War. It was interesting and alarming. The level of ferocity in the South and general apathy in the North for the rights of the Freedmen left me feeling a bit less optimistic than I usually am.

We need to remember that this is not just about the ugly, overt racism of Trump and his supporters, but the subtle forms of institutional racism that lead even progressive White people to believe that Black and Brown people are just not working hard enough to lift themselves up. The same goes for women, immigrants of any type, LGBT people, and other marginalized groups. America needs to do a lot of soul searching.

I am a person of color, but I am a man and I am straight, and educated, and middle class, so everyday, I must examine my attitudes that are influenced by my gender, orientation, abilities, and socioeconomic status; to remember that not everyone has those advantages and when I nonchalantly think that things that I never have to contend with are not major obstacles to other people who do have to contend with them on a daily basis, that makes me act in ways that are not helpful and think of policy solutions that maintain my own advantage.

[MineralMan]

22. You are right, of course.

Those of us with privilege of one sort or another definitely need to step up and work with those who lack privilege. No question about that. We're all going to have to work to change things, or they will not change.

[loveandlight]

23. yes to all you have expressed

Trump is just the ultimate expression of the white supremacy that is institutionalized in our country and will not go away without deliberate work from all of us. The wealthy white male rule in this country will not be taken down without a serious fight and Trump is just the beginning. We need to be conscious and and self-aware in combating this ideology, and in it for the long haul. Your last paragraph so perfectly explains what we each need to do coming from our differing backgrounds to win this fight. Thank you for sharing.

[Caliman73]

24. Thank you.

It is difficult work and I have to admit that I regularly fail, but it is something, especially when I look into the eyes of my sons and daughter, that I know I have to do if I want them to have a better world to live in.

[WestIndianArchie]

5. Danger

That is the danger of allowing these racist/white supremacists to hold state power. This can go to a really bad place.

[Ohiogal]

2. You are right

but, in my experience, the racists in the GOP are exceptionally bothered by the belief that illegal immigrants are getting some sort of special monetary benefits, welfare, Medicaid, etc. that white people are not getting. Even the idea of an English language tutor in schools bothers them. They have this notion that illegals are draining our economy getting all this "free stuff" that they keep talking about.

[MineralMan]

8. Yes. That is the misinformation they are putting forth, of course.

Why do we not demonstrate that that information is false? We need to change the way we recruit voters. We're not doing that correctly, I think.

[Ohiogal]

13. I agree.

I get so frustrated hearing these lies put forth by the right wing and very little effort being made by Democrats to discredit them. Granted, they don't accept facts very well.

[MineralMan]

26. Don't try to change the minds of Republicans.

That's a waste of time. Instead, convince everyone else to exercise their right to vote, and the problem will end. There's only one solution to this, but it's a very simple one, and one we can all help make happen.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

3. Isn't the "racist wing" pretty much the whole GOP now,

whether intentionally or by acquiescence?

[MineralMan]

7. The "whole GOP" is a minority. That is what we must recognize.

Once we do, we can return them to a minority status in government. If we want to do that, it is within our power to do that.

But, we must want to. We must want to and work toward that goal. If we do not, then we acquiesce to the GOP and its goals.

The GOP is not the majority in the United States. Let's demonstrate that, OK?

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

6. What's amusing is that Trump wants more Norwegians,

but Norwegians don't want to come here because they think, with some justification, that compared to Norway the U.S. is a dritthule.

[MineralMan]

9. He doesn't really want Norwegians. They'd come here and

vote for Democrats. Trump is a stupid, stupid man. What he should really want is more people who don't bother to vote, if he hopes to achieve his goals. I welcome any Norwegians who want to come here. They're used to Democratic Socialism where they are now. Bring them on. We can use more voters.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

12. Trump probably thinks that all white people vote Republican.

He won't be getting them from Norway, though. More Americans are moving there than the other way around. http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/ct-norway-trump-20180113-story.html

[Wellstone ruled]

21. Oh man,you nailed it.

You and I both witnessed that ship leaving the dock.

[tymorial]

11. It's also pretty funny when you consider that the Nordic model

Is more closely aligned with liberal politics/policy than it does with traditional conservatism.

[unblock]

10. the phrase "illegal immigrant" is meant as a pun or sorts.

they don't mean it just to imply undocumented immigrants.

yes, they do talk about undocumented immigrants because they're on firmer ground objecting to to people who didn't follow all the procedures.

however, the phrase is designed to reinforce the bigoted notion that all immigrants, legal or otherwise, are "illegal".

we hear it as a qualifier -- certain immigrants are "illegal";
white supremacists hear it as a description -- all immigrants are "illegal".

and, of course, they won't stop at the 1st generation either. anyone who is black or of hispanic decent is an "immigrant" and therefore "illegal" in their view.

[MineralMan]

15. Actually, there's not much they can legally do to

immigrants who have become naturalized citizens. Naturalization ceremonies happen all the time, in every major population center. Occasionally, we see them on TV, but they go on regularly. When you look at one of those ceremonies, you can see the future of our country in the diverse mix of people taking the oath of citizenship.

I live in the Twin Cities of Minnesota, a thoroughly diverse pair of large cities, along with surrounding suburbs. People in rural Georgia or Kentucky have no freaking idea of what America actually looks like. None.

America is not white, in the way people who reject diversity mean. It has not been for a long time now. There is no going back, regardless of what Republicans want to do.

Once we realize that and simply turn out and reject Republican values, as we easily could do, we can get on with things. I'm hoping that time is coming soon.

[unblock]

17. there certainly are things they can do. not all of the legal, of though.

but they can certainly fight to try to keep white men on top of the hierarchy for as long as possible, and they can try to use government powers to do so. such things have been done in many countries, mostly at the low points of their histories.

i'm also hoping for some solid electoral victories and a peaceful return to sanity, and for the white supremacists to fade into ignominy and obscurity.

i'm not entirely sure our institutions are strong enough, though.

[awesomerwb1]

18. I agree with all you said.

Unfortunately, the organizations driving all this anti-immigrant propaganda are very powerful and have somehow managed to become "mainstream" enough that they are quoted all over the place and are invited to shows on CNN etc to spout off their BS.

Please Google John Tanton. He is the founder or co-founder of these organizations:

Ever seen "FAIR" in an immigration related article?

Heard of "studies" from CIS on an immigration related article?

the paid for anti-immigration ads on TV others have commented on they saw on MSNBC from NumbersUSA?

From WiKi:

"John H. Tanton (born 1934) is an American retired ophthalmologist and activist in efforts aimed at reducing immigration levels in the United States. He was the founder and first chairman of the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR), an immigration-reduction organization. He was the co-founder of the Center for Immigration Studies, a non-profit research group; and NumbersUSA, a grassroots lobbying group. He was chairman of U.S. English and ProEnglish. He is the founder of The Social Contract Press, which publishes the quarterly journal The Social Contract. He founded the pro-eugenics organization Society for Genetic Education."

[MineralMan]

19. It's a pity that progressive organizations don't exist.

Wait...there are many of them. Please join one and participate in its work.

[awesomerwb1]

27. You need to chill and stop being so defensive

I'm already very active in a few organizations already thank you.

If you already knew about those organizations, maybe you could post information about them like I did (and do as much as I can) so people become more informed and not fall for all the anti-immigrant garbage floating around.

Have a great day. And no, I wasn't stepping on your lawn.

[kydo]

25. Maybe that's not the real end game. Keeping USA white is dead but having whites in complete

control of everything might be the goal. Real in your face control. Like jim crow days apartheid control. Like white americans are the only real ones. They get the cards that say first class citizen. Everyone else is second class labor force. Its sad, wrong and bull shit. However maybe that is what they want. They just know saying it makes them evil. So they try to disguise it as something else.