prejudice?

[mrhnau]

I recently read some blog that was commenting about recent statements regarding race vs. sex in the Democratic nomination process.

Just had a question. With regard to this election process, is it more difficult to be a racial minority or a woman? If we expand it out to the Republican part, is it harder to be a racial minority (Obama, Richardson), a woman (Clinton) or a religious minority (Romney)? We have seen this in the past with Elizabeth Dole and Leiberman, but I was curious what people thought today.

 

[Big Don]

It is far easier to do as I do and just hate everyone equally until they, individually are worthy of your respect.

 

[Ray]

Just had a question. With regard to this election process, is it more difficult to be a .... religious minority (Romney)?

As far as just being a religious minority, specifically LDS like Romney, it isn't so hard.

The difficulty to get people to vote for you because you're ( any of the classifications you asked about), then a magnificent leader will overcome those difficulties.

 

[tellner]

There's been a lot of lively debate on the subject all over the political world.

Black people tend to say skin color has more of an effect. Women tend to say that it's gender. Religious minorities? It probably depends on the religion.

What's interesting is that Black women tend to say that ethnicity has more effect on their lives than gender. Asian women often say the reverse. Dunno about other groups.

Mormons have encountered serious discrimmination in the past. There hasn't been nearly as much in recent decades, especially since the LDS Church effectively has its own Autonomous Zone in the form of Utah. Fifty years ago there were serious questions as to whether a practicing Catholic could truly take the Oath of Office. Nobody thinks that now. But Muslims are all suspects and considered potential terrorists by the majority of their Christian neighbors in the United States.

Without a doubt the Aboriginal peoples have it the worst of all. By any and all measures they've been screwed, repeatedly subjected to genocide, had their children kidnapped and been cheated out of just about all the revenues and treaty benefits to which they were entitled under the law. Their religions are the only ones which have been specifically banned by Congress. The death of Native languages, names and customs was part of a systematic and excplicit policy on the part of the Christian churches and State and Federal governments. Pick any measure from life expectancy to infant mortality, nutrition, poverty, alcoholism, clean water, home electrification or suicide. You'll find them at the bottom.

As at least one author has said "We didn't write the book on ethnic cleansing. But we contributed a few of the more colorful chapters."

It has become practically a ritual in recent decades for the Secretary of the Interior and top aides to be held in contempt for failing to produce any sort of record or accounting for water rights, mineral royalties, the Indian Health Care Service or about a dozen other basic things. All they can say is that almost none of the revenues due to the tribes and individuals was ever disbursed and that almost all of their water was taken without compensation or consent.

There's some debate about whether it's a bigger handicap to be Black or female. There's no question that Native takes the prize.

 

[MBuzzy]

My biggest worry about this campaign is that people will base their votes on race or gender RATHER than the issues, simply to break the white male presidency ceiling.

 

[tellner]

My biggest worry about this campaign is that people will base their votes on race or gender RATHER than the issues, simply to break the white male presidency ceiling.

While that wouldn't be a bad thing in and of itself it's certainly not why I'll be casting my vote.

Ever since Nixon's Southern Strategy the basic Republican precept in election has been to push "Red and Black". Vote for the guy who will save us from the Commies lurking under the bed and the Scary Negro. It's been coupled with a strong dose of "Traditional Family" which is a barely disguised code for keeping women in their properly subservient role with men in charge and femininity devalued in the public sphere. It's worked. The rich love it, the Religious Right uses it and the fearful among the White population swallows the hook and lure right down to the cloacal vent.

The Democrats have run spiritless campaigns fecklessly hoping that the Republicans will make a mistake. If only a good ol' boy like former President Clinton will come along and magically whisk them into power everything will be fine. Then they can copy Republican policies and get big donations. They pawned their spines over thirty years ago and lost the claim ticket.

The real problem is that we have not as a nation been deciding elections on issues since at least the early 1960s. And before that it was a seldom thing. Obama wasn't my first or even my second choice although he was my first realistic choice. One and Two were Kucinich and Edwards, both of whom were marginalized and shut down largely because they were yelling about the issues like Cassandra. And like Cassandra nobody would listen.

The tempest in a teapot over the Reverend Wright convinced me that the Senator from Illinois was the guy to vote for. He could have done a lot of typical things. He could have abased himself and pled for Clinton's forgiveness for the crime of being in a church with a Black pastor who has attitudes and resentments that are unpleasant but understandable for a man of his color and age. He could have bristled. Instead he finessed it with the best and most nuanced talk on race we have seen out of a major player since Dr. King.

The other two candidates have run typical modern campaigns. That is to say that they've been focused hard on the hindbrain and attempted to bypass the higher centers altogether. A lot of people are still buying it. But this is the first time in a while that I've seen a candidate who has a chance and is willing to take the risk of speaking to peoples' conscious minds instead of pushing the primal fear button every thirty seconds.

Another person might have done it. We had a chance some time back until Gary Hart came within six inches of the Presidency. Scoop Jackson died inconveniently. Obama isn't my candidate of choice because he's Black. He's biracial, considered Black and lived in a very mixed world before entering the White corridors of power. This has forced him to look at simple preconcieved categories and reject them as they try to apply themselves to him. It has helped make him a worthy candidate in an age when simplistic tribal politics will not address the very grave issues which confront us.

 

[CoryKS]

Clinton and Obama have both been working very hard to show that the other is too incompetent and unethical to be President. And to a large degree, they have both succeeded. With regard to this election, I would say that the most difficult position would be anyone who tries to stand between Clinton and a position of power.