It's a question I ask in earnest in response to debate elsewhere on DailyKos. It's an assumption by some, not all, and not me that I feel needs to be further examined.
Do we, people with an interest in ending systemic racial injustice in America, need the White Moderate's support? If so, then to what extent? What does that support need to look like?
Do we need the White Moderate to show up to protests (let's be honest here, not gonna happen)? Do we need the White Moderate to write their congressperson? Answer a telephone poll a certain way?
Or to put it bluntly, is it enough to just make sure the White Moderate doesn't feel motivated, doesn't feel it's sufficiently in their interest, to stand in our way?
The way I see it: In a world like our's, being a political moderate can only exist in an abundance of apathy (and safety, cause apathy in many contexts is a luxury). I feel that apathy can actually be leveraged to the advantage of the opponents of the status quo.
The specific context that inspired this diary is in response to people in comments sections who were saying that the protests in New York and elsewhere should stop in response to the (unrelated and unaffiliated) murder of two police officers. (I opposed this suggestion because I felt it would be construed by the media as an admission of guilt of sorts.)
The rationale was that the perceived disrespect would alienate the white moderate.
So what?
What is really the consequence here? The White Moderate is apathetic to issues of systemic racial injustice, so, as long as they don't directly feel threatened then I don't think it should make a difference.
It's not my reading of history and current events that we need the White Moderate, we just need them to not oppose us and I'm not persuaded that protesting against the NYPD in proximity to an unaffiliated crime will be the tipping point because apathy's a terrible large stone to move, one way or the other.
Meanwhile, we shouldn't fret or waste energy trying to gain proactive support from the White Moderate, something that is mostly unattainable and for the most part unnecessary.