There's Something About Strong Black Women In Politics That Racists Find Triggering
Donald Trump's attack on four American Congresswomen of colour: Ilhan Omar; Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez; Ayanna Pressley and Rashida Tlaib “Why don't they go back and help fix the totally broken and crime-infested places from which they came. Then come back and show us how it is done." has appalled people around the world. Trump is a Republican, but even many of his own party colleagues have condemned his remarks. The British Conservative Party is the Republicans sister party. But Britain’s own Home Secretary, Sajid Javid, has been forced to reflect publicly on the number of times he has been told to go home: “I’m from an immigrant family, I know what it’s like to be told to go back to where I came from".
And
the whole horrible episode has climaxed with a huge crowd at a Trump rally
chanting “Send her back! Send her back!” in reference to congresswoman Ilhan
Omar.
The
first thing to reflect on is how far downhill American rhetoric on race has
descended under the impact of Trump’s white nationalism. In the 2008 American
presidential election, which was obviously very racially charged, there was a
big Republican rally where a supporter told the Republican presidential
candidate John McCain that she was “scared” of an Obama presidency. McCain
replied promptly “I have to tell you that Obama is a decent person and a person
you do not have to be scared of as President of the United States”. Even more
strikingly at the same rally in response to another supporter who said she
couldn’t trust Obama because he was an Arab, McCain shook his head firmly and
said “No ma’am. He is a decent family man and a citizen who I just happen to have
strong disagreements with on fundamental issues”.
It is a world away from a
Republican presidential candidate firmly pushing back on his own supporters
racism to the current Republican President deliberately whipping up that very
racism.
But
we should not look at these recent events as evidence of some special Trump
barbarism. Since her election to the Italian Chamber of Deputies in 2013,
Cecile Kyenge an Italian of African descent, constantly faced racist abuse.
When she became Italy’s minister for integration, as the country’s first black
minister, it got worse. A fellow Italian MEP, Mario Borghezio, called her
appointment “a shitty choice” by a “bongo-bongo” government. A former
vice-president of the Italian Senate, Roberto Calderoli, said in a public
meeting: “When I see pictures of Kyenge I can’t help but think of the features
of an orangutan.” There seems to be something about a strong black woman in
politics that racists find triggering. I had some experience of this in the
2017 election. Even the Conservative party, itself by singling me out in
posters, Facebook advertisements and speeches made me wonder what dog whistle
politics they were actually playing.
So
Trump’s white nationalist politics are not an aberration. His top supporter and
advisor, Steve Bannon, is advising a number of right-wing European parties
including the French Front National and the soon to be British Prime Minister
Boris Johnson. The fear must be that, here in Britain, images of Trump
supporters chanting “Send her home” will give renewed legitimacy to all the
Powellite and National Front rhetoric of the nineteen seventies about repatriation.
The American writer Adam Serwer has said: “The president’s belief is that
American citizenship is conditional for people of colour, who should be
grateful we are even allowed to be here.” This is a view that will resonate
with many on the right of politics in this country. The same American writer
also said “If multiracial democracy cannot be defended in America, it will
not be defended elsewhere.” This is what is so alarming about Trump’s chanting
supporters. And it is a call to arms for progressives here in Britain.
We
must resist white nationalism even when it is dressed up as a phoney workerism.
There were a number of perfectly intellectually defensible, Tony Benn era,
arguments for coming out of the EU. But underlying some Leave sentiment was a
Little Englander nationalism, which should be rejected. Trump shows us that it
is only a short step from a country happy to elect their first black president,
to crowds baying to send an American Congresswoman “back” because she happens
to be black. Everyone in every mainstream political party in this country, has
a responsibility to make sure we don’t go down that road.
Published in the Huffington Post
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