About
Jon and Arnie discuss the many segregationist and white supremacist dimensions of the Trump administration’s war on multiracial democracy. To map the assault on equality and democracy, we engage a recent report from the African American Policy Forum titled: “Antiblackness is the Point: Racism, Misogyny, and Donald Trump’s Assault on Equal Opportunity.” The AAPF report connects today’s racial fascism to 19th “Redeemers” who employed “a combination of racist rhetoric, policy and historical narratives meant to rationalize” white male domination and undo the gains of post-Civil War Reconstruction. We also touch upon Toni Morrision’s 1995 essay “Racism and Fascism,” which offers a useful framework for understanding the tactics the Trump regime is employing to dehumanize and brutalize so many communities in the United States. The conversation leads to a pressing question: Why do so many of today’s democracy defenders fail to name Trump’s overt racism when challenging Trump’s policies? If we don’t name racism, how can we hope to combat it?