While Hillary Clinton is definitely a preferable alternative
to Donald Trump, she is far from being a perfect politician. In my mind, one of
the main places she falls down on along the campaign trail is on topics of
race, in particular police brutality towards African Americans.
Leading up to Super Tuesday, where several southern states
with high African American populations were voting, Secretary Clinton delivered
a touching speech, recognising the strength and endurance of the mothers and
loved ones of people who had died as a direct result of racist police
brutality. It was clear that she was standing in solidarity with and in support
of these people and she’s publically condemned the institutional racism of
police departments across America, calling for an end to racial profiling and
retraining police officers. However, as soon as those southern black voters
popped their votes in the ballot box Hillary went on to abandon any more chat
about the way blacks are treated (ticked off the list!) in favour of rallying
behind miner’s unions in some other far flung corner of the country. A lower
socio-economic class of black voters are being fooled into pledging their
support for Hillary by her emotional manipulation of sensitive current events,
when in fact Bernie Sanders’s policies centred around welfare, all encompassing
state provided healthcare, living wages and equality regardless of ethnicity or
social standing are far closer to policies which will actually help improve their
lives.
While she acknowledges institutional and systemic racisms in
America, she hasn’t apologised for the part she has played in the racial
landscape America faces today. As first lady in the 90’s, she campaigned for
legislation which disproportioately subjected young black men to police
attention and incarceration, and referred to young black men as gangs of “super
predators”. It seems all she does it say what she knows will get her votes. In
the mid 90’s it was persecuting blacks, but now she seems to have caught onto
#blacklivesmatter. She even managed to whip/nae nae her way through an Ellen
segment.
This is a really great post Noah, I think you raise some super important points about Hillary Clinton. It angers/confuses/stresses me out that people are still voting for her when there are so many flaws. I totally agree that she would be an improvement from Trump - not hard to do - but she's no Bernie Sanders. There are far too many examples of things she has said that are overtly racist its frightening. WHAT'S HAPPENING AMERICA #feelthebern
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