When Racism TRUMPS Common Sense

As Presidential candidate Donald Trump continues his campaign we have seen outrageous and brutal acts of violence towards those who have chosen to exercise their right to protest against him. Over the last several weeks we have seen protesters punched, kicked, pushed, and verbally assaulted by Donald Trump supporters as he stands arrogantly at the podium in various cities, inciting them to commit violent acts by screaming “Get THEM out of here”.

We have seen white-Americans become uncontrollably violent at the mere sight of minority protesters, going to such extremes that they willfully commit assault while being recorded by cell phones or news outlets.

The images we have seen come out of these rallies are eerily similar to photographs of the violence perpetrated against black-Americans during the Civil Rights Movement. Sadly, these Donald Trump supporters have allowed their racism and desire to retain their white privilege to trump their common sense, and it is downright frightening.

Donald Trump has built his campaign on fear. He is ramping up fear in his supporters by presenting every situation as an “us” versus “them” scenario. He is labelling his protesters, a majority of whom are black-Americans, as “troublemakers” and “thugs” and has said “they (referring to protesters) contribute nothing”, all of which encourages the continuation of the unfounded racial stereotype that black-Americans are dangerous.

Donald Trump’s campaign tagline of “Make America Great Again” is no more than a euphemism for “Make America White Again” and “Keep Minorities Oppressed”.

By falsely portraying his supporters as being under attack by minorities, Donald Trump has emboldened them to act out in violent ways against those who dare to speak against him. These Trump supporters have come to wrongly believe that they are simply “Making America Great Again” when they punch, kick, push and berate protesters.

These protesters are willing to do anything to retain their white privilege, even if it means committing crimes while exposing themselves as racists.

Furthermore, the racial undertone of “Make America Great Again” brings about memories of the Jim Crow era where laws were used to keep conditions, particularly access to adequate education and housing, consistently inferior and underfunded, when compared to conditions for white-Americans.

The idea that black-Americans and other minority groups in America could finally gain equity in jobs, housing, and access to healthcare, has caused Donald Trump and his supporters to panic and leave their common sense behind.

Trump and his supporters are in a panic because their privilege is in jeopardy, and they do not know how to live without it. “When you’re accustomed to privilege, equality feels like oppression” (Unknown Author).