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Saturday, January 19, 2008
An Open Letter to Identity Politics
I am of course sad to see the result in today's Democratic caucuses in Nevada. What makes me angry, however, are the media's follow-up stories on the "inevitable" and "expected" tension between the black and latino communities.
Please forgive me the blast of passion but: Please, everyone, can we get over the identity politics of the past!? I mean, if I have to read another story about a woman voter supporting Hillary because it would be "great to see a woman in office", a black voter supporting Obama because "it's finally time to see a black man in office" or a latino voter who questions Obama's candidacy because latinos are resistant of and competitive to black voters, I am going to Scream.
Don't we live in the most inclusive, diverse country in the world (barring the last 8 years of the opposite)? Haven't we come a long way since the culture wars of the 60s and beyond?
Continuing to buy in to the whole identity politics B.S. allows partisan hacks like Hillary and Bill to exploit people, pull their strings and fit actual people into an unthinking, reactive mass of "categories" that need to be played against each other.
As Andrew Sullivan points out, why, do you ask, have the Clintons been harping on the race issue over the last week and blaming Obama for Hillary putting her foot in her own mouth? Because they likely calculated that keeping race in the forefront will remind latino voters to consider whether they want to vote for a black guy!
Don't allow them to get away with this! Vote for the person who you think is most qualified. Vote for the person you think has the best policy positions. Vote for the person who inspires you!
Don't buy into the same political machine that would have you vote based on your race, your gender or your sexual orientation. Reject the B.S, think for yourself!
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