OP-ED
Why Anti-Black Racism is The Worst Type of Identity Politics in America
Some groups can’t turn the page on identity politics
After losing the last presidential election, some Democrats are grasping at straws to explain what went wrong. Take Senator-elect Elissa Slotkin, for instance, who bluntly claimed identity politics should “go the way of the dodo.” Her reference to the bluish-grayish bird driven into extinction by hunters in the late 17th century suggests the party should permanently remove any reference to identity from its platform. This would mean no more championing criminal justice reform, voting rights legislation, women’s rights, or any policy designed to help a particular group. Yet, this strategy would overlook injustices Black people experience and threaten the integrity of the party’s multiracial coalition. Despite Slotkin and others presenting this strategy as a benign effort to expand support, it’s clear that silencing conversations about identity would harm the black community. As well as other marginalized groups.
This pearl-clutching discourse over “identity politics” demonstrates that in American society, the appeal to White voters is often made at the expense of Black voters. Of course, the irony isn’t lost on the black community that anti-black racism is the most harmful type…
