Trump’s racist posts highlight how extremism has reshaped the GOP, lowering moral standards and normalizing rhetoric once unthinkable in American political life.
Something has gone terribly wrong in American society over the past 20 years. Covert racism has taken over the Republican Party, and while its leadership is denouncing President Trump’s racist post depicting Barack and Michelle Obama as gorillas, the reality is that they have gleefully supported the political entitlement that normalized such behavior.
Republicans can’t cry wolf now. Since Trump took over the GOP, they have looked the other way to appease his MAGA base and secure their own political aspirations.
MIT SMR México se financia mediante anuncios y sociosWith his latest action, Trump, his administration, and his supporters have set a new low for the moral standard and character of the President of the United States.
It wasn’t enough to have elected an individual who was impeached twice, who was criminally convicted, who has been accused of sexual misconduct, and who has been shameless in promulgating white supremacy under the disguise of nationalism.
When Barack Obama was running for president in 2008, even one of these actions would have immediately killed the political career of any candidate. But since Trump came onto the national political scene twelve years ago, extremism has taken hold of our national political rhetoric, and that includes normalizing racism.
Fast forward to today. This extremism is now the justification for eliminating moral standards from our president. I believe this is the result of living in an era where political opinions are guided by validation of our own political beliefs and candidates that regurgitate talking points within our echo chambers. That goes for both Republicans and Democrats.
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In the case of MAGA and Trump, there has always been an underlying racist tone that has been willingly overlooked by Republicans under the justification of power and advancing their political agenda.
The first open display of Trump’s white supremacist tolerance came in the aftermath of the 2017 Charlottesville rally, where his political sympathizers marched with tiki torches in what would echo a Nazi rally march from 1940’s Germany.
“There were good people on both sides”, he decried in the deadly aftermath, and he never apologized for his sympathizers’ behavior and actions.
The second notable mention of white supremacy forgiveness was the Trump-sponsored insurrection on the U.S. Capitol in January 2021.
Openly racist and right-wing organizations like the Proud Boys were the main organizers of the insurrection, and Trump urged them on with provocative social media posts. The Proud Boys and others were taking direction from their leader, and Trump never took responsibility for his actions.
For many white supremacists, the insurrection is a date to be cherished. It’s a date that symbolizes them being recognized as political players, and they feel justified because most of them have been pardoned by Trump.
In fact, ICE is using language similar to that of white nationalist organizations for their recruitment ads, and recent reports indicate that they have hired individuals who have affiliations to some of these organizations.
The ads are difficult to find online, but they run on YouTube, and let me tell you, they are chilling.
CBS News reported on this troubling trend, but in true gaslighting fashion, the Trump administration claims that it is false.
Despite the evidence being irrefutable, they still claim it’s a result of “liberal media.” You be the judge.
A friend recently told me something that, while it was intended as a joke, it doesn’t seem so funny now. He said, “I remember when white supremacists were white.”
He was referring to Enrique Tarrio (a Latino) who was the leader of the Proud Boys. Yes, a Latino was the leader of a white supremacists organization, and he led the charge during the insurrection.
But as footage of ICE raids has shown us, many of the ICE agents are also Latinos. Not because you can see their faces, but because you can detect their accent.
In one viral video, LAPD officers are matching the aggressiveness of the ICE agents in asking them to leave a property because they didn’t have a warrant. The masked (female) ICE agent tells the family whose property they were trespassing on to “speak English.”
The family’s response to the goon’s statement is hilarious. “Seems like you can barely speak it yourself,” they replied. I couldn’t agree more.
I’m a proud Mexican immigrant. Those who know me will tell you that I identify as Mexican, first and foremost, because that’s who I am; it’s where I was born. But when I moved to the U.S., despite there being a large Latino and Mexican population, one of my first social observations was the clear divide between those who pledge allegiance to the United States and those who will never disassociate themselves from their cultural roots.
A common example of this is the Latino who barely speaks broken English and gets mad if you speak to them in Spanish. I mean, these people get mad. But my typical response to them is to say, “con el nopal en la frente,” or “with that cactus on your forehead.” I have to admit that I enjoy watching them boil.
When I saw Trump’s racist post, I took a deep breath and reflected on that behavior within the context of my own family. Growing up in Mexico, I realized something quickly; that Mexican society is not openly racist, but it hides its racism within the context of classism.
You can be a person of dark color, but if you have money, then there are no limits to your lifestyle, politics, or acquisition of power. But what does exist is the talk behind a person’s back, and it is subtle.
Think of when a family member shows pictures of their baby at a gathering. I guarantee you there’s someone who points out if they are “güerito” or “blanquito”. Maybe not openly, but they’ll say it.
This matters in today’s political discourse because, as Trump demonstrated, it is the underlying message and intent that does the most damage.
Trump’s racist posts are unforgivable. Regardless of whether you like or dislike the Obamas, it’s about respect for the office of the president. It’s about respect for yourself and for those who held the office before you.
Sadly, Trump will have no real personal consequences for this defamation of character, but I sincerely hope that those Black, Latino, and independent voters who leaned towards Trump because of the economy see Trump for who he really is.
He has never cared about them and never will. He is a coward, a bully, a racist, and a person who will never put anyone’s interest above his own.
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