Like many deep blue liberals, I was both shocked and horrified at the outcome of the 2014 midterms. As I lay wallowing in my own self pity I began to realize a very important American lesson. White people are going to get theirs no matter who is in congress. White people are going to get theirs no matter who is in the White House. White people are going to get theirs no matter who is on the Supreme Court of the United States.
Let me explain. More to follow after the little Illuminati symbol below.
The laws of this land will always be written to benefit white people and disenfranchise everyone else. It doesn't matter if its George Washington or George Bush. It doesn't matter if its Abraham Lincoln or Barack Obama. Its just doesn't matter.
1790 Naturalization reserved for whites. The 1790 Naturalization Act reserves naturalized citizenship for whites only.
1830 Indians dispossessed of lands. Throughout the 19th century, American Indian lands are taken away and given to white settlers.
1854 Nonwhites barred from testifying. In People v. Hall, the California Supreme Court reverses the conviction of a white man in a murder trial, ruling that the testimony of key Chinese witnesses is inadmissible because "no Black or mulatto person, or Indian, shall be allowed to give evidence in favor of, or against a white man."
1857 African Americans denied citizenship. In the Dred Scott decision, the U.S. Supreme Court upholds the Fugitive Slave Act and declares that "Negroes," whether free or enslaved, are not citizens. As Chief Justice Taney puts it, they have "no rights which any white man is bound to respect." Free Black people are taxed like whites, but they do not enjoy the same protection and entitlements.
1887 Jim Crow segregation begins Beginning in the late 19th century, southern states codify a system of laws and practices to subordinate African Americans to whites. The "new" social order, reinforced through violence and intimidation, affects schools, public transportation, jobs, housing, private life and voting rights.
1913 Alien land laws discriminate against Asians. California passes the first alien land law, prohibiting "aliens ineligible to citizenship" from owning or leasing land. Although the language isn't explicitly racial, the law only applies to Asian immigrants and it gives white farmers an unfair advantage by keeping Japanese and other competitors out.
1924 Immigration quotas favor "Nordics". The 1924 Johnson-Reed Act overhauls U.S. immigration and creates the first quota system based upon national origin. The act favors immigrants from northern and western Europe over "the inferior races" of Asia and southern and eastern Europe.
1934 U.S. housing programs benefit whites only. Beginning in the 1930s and 1940s, the federal government creates programs that subsidize low-cost loans, opening up home ownership to millions of Americans for the first time. Discriminatory policies and practices help create two legacies that are still with us today: segregated communities and a substantial wealth gap between whites and nonwhites.
1935 Minorities denied social security and union protection. In 1935, Congress passes two laws that protect American workers and exclude nonwhites.
1994 Black-white wealth gap. Black and Latino mortgage applicants are 60% more likely than whites to be turned down for loans, even after controlling for employment, financial, and neighborhood characteristics.
The Power Of Illusion
I didn't even mention the war on drugs. Never mentioned the gross disparities in the judicial system. Didn't mention that if you have a black sounding name you're more likely to have your resume simply thrown in the trash. Didn't mention black college graduates are no more likely to get a job than white high school graduates. Didn't mention any of the racial injustices, with all things being equal, that are perpetrated on people of color. We know what that's all about.
I'll tell you what's at the bottom of it. If you can convince the lowest white man he's better than the best colored man, he won't notice you're picking his pocket. Hell, give him somebody to look down on, and he'll empty his pockets for you. --Lyndon B. Johnson
You start out in 1954 by saying, "N***r, n**r, n**r." By 1968 you can't say "n**r" — that hurts you. Backfires. So you say stuff like forced busing, states' rights and all that stuff. You're getting so abstract now [that] you're talking about cutting taxes, and all these things you're talking about are totally economic things and a byproduct of them is [that] blacks get hurt worse than whites. And subconsciously maybe that is part of it. --Lee Atwater
You see, minorities are always playing catchup to white people. As soon as we get one right, there are two or three rights taken away from us. They are taken away by the misguided notion that racism is ancient history. That if we just let things play out in a civilized society we can all sing kumbaya at the end of the day. However, at the end of the day, we have a SCOTUS stripping voting rights. We have Congress obstructing basic functions of government. We have state and local governments allowing its citizens to police the neighborhoods of other people.
At the very end of the day, the politics of fear motivate white people more than the politics of justice. Sadly, I have to trust white people at my own peril. Thirteen percent of a voting population can't change America. We need the seventy percent to change America.
This diary is not a white guilt trip diary. I truly hope you don't see it as such. I know you didn't personally own any slaves, but even you know that without our greatest sin, this country wouldn't be the greatest country man has ever known. I'm just showing you that racism is deeply rooted in our fabric of society. Its not some abstract social construct that can't be independently verified by you. Its not some mass delusional theory that Reverend Al Sharpton cooked up in the kitchen. Its not some fictitious grievance industry that Bill O'Reilly opines about. Its real and I just gave you the facts.