Let’s get one thing straight from the get go. There is only one way to court racists and bigots: that’s by pandering to their racism and bigotry.
It’s an important point to keep in mind going forward, since there is now a meme being pushed that argues otherwise. That meme being that by suggesting that some Trump supporters might be attracted to some of his economic and anti-establishment positions Bernie Sanders is courting racists and even,believe it or not, Nazis.
It seems that “courting” racists and bigots now includes articulating the belief that an appeal to the broadest shared interest can overcome the divisive appeals of racism, sexism and homophobia. In other words, that telling white people that they are being played for suckers by appeals to racism and that they would be better off making common cause with their fellow citizens of every race, creed or color, is actually an appeal to racist sentiments.
At least that would seem to be the reasonable conclusion to draw from those who’ve been assailing Sanders for this suggestion. Stripped of its emotional demagogy, that is essentially the complaint: that Sanders is attempting to draw people away from Trump’s racist snake oil with his economic message and that is, somehow, a bad thing.
If the argument seems to strain credulity, I suspect that is because it is actually fueled by fear. Not a baseless, imaginary fear but one grounded in historical experience.
Let’s be plain, POC have little reason to put their trust in the white working class. Historically they have not been a consistent or reliable ally. Often they have acted as a ferocious and violent opponent to racial justice. This is simply fact and it is folly to ignore or minimize it. The idea that someone might be recruiting racist and bigots to the Democratic Party is certain to send chills down the spine of anyone familiar with the history of white political betrayal of African Americans, Latinos and native peoples.
Yet how can any of this be seen as either justification or rationale for allowing the racist, xenophobic appeals of a Donald Trump to run rampant and uncontested? Can we simply sit by while this poison festers?
Evidently some people think so, because that is the logical consequence of refusing to even attempt to wean people away from racism. Some have even argued that any attempt is pointless because racists cannot be reformed.
Unlike a lot of folks,I do have first hand knowledge and experience of people who have recovered from being virulent racists. I’m talking about people who had been sucked into the most extreme forms of white racism and white supremacy; KKK, Nazi Skinheads, etc. In every instance such people were salvaged by confronting them with the fact that they had shared interests with the very people they were indoctrinated to hate.
I have a hard time imagining that the average Trump supporter is any worse than they were.
I don’t blame any person of color for looking askance at any outreach to such folk. What’s crucial though is whether such outreach appeals against, rather than appealing to, ingrained racism. It’s difficult to “other” people once you’ve recognized that you share a common interest with them.
Sanders isn’t appealing to anyone on the basis of bigotry or racism.
His appeal is consistent with his history in that he believes that an appeal to the broadest shared interest can overcome the divisive appeals of racism, sexism and homophobia.
People may disagree with him but such disagreement doesn’t justify misrepresenting him as pandering to racists, appealing to Nazi sympathies or betraying the memory of his murdered kin.