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RACISM IN POLITICS

Will Black Americans Ever Be Free From The "Go Back to Africa" Trope?

If Nikki Haley's suggestion that Senator Warnock be deported is any indication, "no."

Dr. Allison Wiltz

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Profile of Black man in orange shirt | Photo by cottonbro studio via Pexels

Black Americans are second-class citizens in a nation their ancestors built and are reminded of that fact every time a White person casts doubt upon their citizenship or right to live here freely. "Go back to Africa," racists demand, feigning ignorance about birthright citizenship, guaranteed by the 14th Amendment. Yet, the easiest and most common way to become an American is to be born here. So does having Black or Brown skin make someone less American? No, but the implication that Black people are inferior and don't belong here seems omnipresent in America's political fog.

When South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley held a campaign rally in support of Herschel Walker's Congressional race in Georgia, she suggested legal immigrants "love America" and follow the laws, but "we" should deport Senator Raphael Warnock." Haley's thirst to deport Warnock, an American citizen, is rooted in a racist idea that Black people can't be full-blown citizens and can have their citizenship revoked. However, despite the popularity of the "go back to Africa" trope, White people do not have any legal basis to take away someone's…

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Dr. Allison Wiltz
Dr. Allison Wiltz

Written by Dr. Allison Wiltz

Black womanist scholar with a PhD from New Orleans, LA with bylines in Oprah Daily, Momentum, ZORA, Cultured. #WEOC Founder

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