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America: Rapidly sliding into the depths of bigotry, racism, and xenophobia
We need to work very hard to remove this bigotry, racism, and xenophobia from our country before this condition becomes irreversible.
Michael Payne / NationofChange / Op-Ed - March 26, 2019
Image Credit: Anthony Crider/Wikimedia Commons
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When in history have we ever seen such a degree of bigotry, racism, and xenophobia that is present in America today? And as bad as it is, there is no question but that it is growing ever worse. It’s like a plague spreading across America and if it continues on its present course, with nothing being done about it, it will become irreversible.
Whatever happened to that nation that once was referred to as a melting pot, i.e., “a fusion of nationalities, cultures, and ethnicity?” Early in America’s history a huge influx of immigrants came to this country from many different countries and cultures. Those immigrants were accepted into this country and tolerated because they were needed to do the difficult manual labor that built the foundations of America such as the railroads, power lines , and other infrastructure.
Recall the words that are inscribed on a plaque on the grounds of the Statue of Liberty:
“Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”
Over the years these immigrants from other countries and their children came to this country and many of them easily assimilated into the American culture. That was a good thing but in truth most of them were never accepted as equals to the original immigrants, largely from England, especially if the color of their skin wasn’t white and/ or they weren’t of the Christian faith.
The general rule for immigrant assimilation was that they could enter into the American family if they: accepted English as the national language and, if necessary, took steps to learn it as soon as possible. Next they were expected to adopt the “Protestant work ethic, and third they were also expected to become a part of America’s culture and not cling to their own. As we know some did and some just refused to do so, and that made them a kind of second class American at best in the eyes of “true” Americans.
So if we look at the America of today we see a nation and people that have pretty much blended into one culture, with people who seem to share the same values and who generally follow the same principles of ethics and morality. And yet this is not what entirely the case for just below the surface there is a simmering discontent and bitterness by many Americans.
First there are those Americans who have been in this country all their lives but still feel like they are second class citizens because of the hatred they feel coming from some of their fellow Americans. Then we have those in this country, many of them white supremacists who hate other Americans because they are afraid that, in the future, they will become the minority in America. .
It could not be more evident that something is really wrong, that this country, over the decades, has become more divided than ever, that there is more suspicion and fear of others. That we live in a country in which we are not all pulling together for the same objectives. There is more hatred of others for various reasons that I have ever seen during my lifetime. These various elements of our society, that are not white Caucasians are in distinct danger of becoming an endangered species. They are targets for the haters.
So there are those who have no use for others not like themselves, especially illegal immigrants; but they still seem to like or tolerate the many things that these outcasts do for them, such as:
harvesting the fruits and vegetables and other agricultural products they like in states like California, Florida, Colorado, and others.
when they work for very low wages in businesses, including Trump’s, across America.
when they wash their cars, work as busboys and girls in restaurants, and do their landscaping.
I’ve worked as a volunteer for many years at a hospital. I know for a fact that there are many doctors and technicians working in hospitals across America that are Muslims who are quite competent at what they do and are very friendly toward everyone. I’m sure Trump and his supporters want nothing to do with them.
Gay people have their own sexual orientation but do not harm anyone and many of them make contributions to our society. But the the gay haters in our country will still condemn them no matter what they do. Trump and his Republican bootlickers try to do things to harm them in various ways.
Here’s a typical headline from Truthout.org, a typical one that we see so often relative to how Trump and Republicans discriminate against the gay community: It reports that the ”Trump Administration, “Wants to Deny Health Care to LGBTQ People.” And the next logical question is why?
Trump is like a drum major leading his lemmings, that 40% of Americans who approve of anything and everything he says and does, down the path of hatred toward Muslims, Hispanics, African Americans and minorities in general. He tried to ban all entry of Muslims into this country but was stopped by a judge. He is calling illegal immigrants who are seeking asylum invaders, murderers, rapists and the like. He is fanning the flames of hate and associated violence.
Let me say one more thing about those Trump supporters. Based on what this article says about bigotry and the like, this special breed of Americans who fully accept everything he says, should hang their heads in shame.
I also ran across this report on the Huffington Post website. “Faith Vander Voort, the newly promoted top spokeswoman at the Interior Department, voiced support for more surveillance of Muslim communities and argued that attacks by radical self-proclaimed Muslim groups pose a far bigger threat to society than climate change during a 2017 interview full of Islamophobic and anti-immigrant rhetoric.”
What conclusions can we draw from all this? It’s simply that white supremacy is alive and well in America, it’s growing, and we have a president who is acting as its titular head. Two things we must do. Remove this president from office through the Mueller report or soundly defeat him in the 2020 elections.
We need to put a new president into office, one who follows the principles of ethics and morality; a president who will lead this country its people and, this Congress, in new directions.
And one of those directions will be to continually emphasize that we are one nation and people, that we must all pull together or we will pull this country apart. We need to work very hard to remove this bigotry, racism, and xenophobia from our country before this condition becomes irreversible.
Michael Payne
Michael Payne
Michael Payne is an independent progressive activist. His writings deal with social, economic, political and foreign policy issues; and especially with the great dangers involved with the proliferation of perpetual war, the associated defense industry, and the massive control that Corporate America holds over this government and our election process; all which are leading this nation down the road to eventual financial ruin if the conditions are not reversed. He is a graduate of Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois and a U.S. Army veteran.
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