By Lafe Tolliver, Esq
Guest Column
In light of recent far right rumblings that the US of A could be careening towards a second “Civil War” due to the country’s polarization as the GOP continuing to spew forth the BIG LIE about the 2020 election being hijacked, the below self-help quiz is for you to become more expansive in how you are viewing this troubling development.
The artificial divide between red states and blue states and with the Trump propaganda machine in full war mode attempting to minimize the January 6 insurrection at the Capitol, the questions remain: Is a major part of the unspoken animus of the GOP directed towards minority voters who, as we know, traditionally trend towards the Democratic Party.
The states that caused this outrage with Trump, were sections of the states which are home to predominately minority populations. Those states, to wit: Pennsylvania, Georgia,
Michigan, Ohio and Arizona (some political pundits also include parts of Texas and Wisconsin) had large swatches of voters in the burbs and central city that went for Biden.
Trump’s shock and his mis-placed sense of losing the election were due to some early vote counts that had him in the lead, but he did not know that other ballots, were yet to be counted and those “late” counted ballots (all legitimate) sunk his political ship.
Of course, not knowing how the political system works and how some states calculate both early voting and they also having to wait for the “late” votes to be tabulated, could lead an ill-informed president to think that he has been rooked.
Once Herr Trump formulated the idea that he was robbed (and robbed without a shred of proof), he went on a tear, devising a lie that would save him face from being a loser, a label that he seemingly fears more than anything else in life.
But Trump was and is a loser and his base of voters who identify with him as victims of a liberal press bias, the “deep state” and unknown conspirators operating in foreign countries, those were enough, with all his paranoias, to tilt him into bonkers land.
From Trump’s reckoning, his MAGA rallies and all the accolades his fawning sycophants laid on him, was enough to convince him that he surely won the White House for a second term.
Let it be known that Trump’s secret rage is fomented against Black and Brown people and the anti-minority GOP meekly succumbed to his bellicose rantings despite solid evidence that showed that the election was on the level.
This national political angst, ginned up by the GOP, was always present in these united states. When past Democratic President Lyndon Baines Johnson signed the 1965 Civil Rights Voting Act, he prophetically stated, that, “We just lost the South.”
From the days of slave rebellions to the current date, America has not made peace with
the imported Africans that they called slaves but who are now American citizens.
Now, with the not so quiet clamoring of 40 percent of the GOP indicating that violence may be the only way to reclaim “their government” …a government that they see as being held hostage to special interests, minorities, and a socialist democratic agenda.
So, here are the questions for you to answer to determine your depth of concern about
whether or not recent events will galvanize into a tearing of the fabric cloth of this experiment called, democracy; and whether more people will become either fearful or
dis-illusioned about America continuing as a world beacon for liberty and freedom:
(1) If the political discussions around the 2022 and the 2024 elections becomes more heated and strident, will you engage yourself less or more in the political process?
(2) Has your concern about the remarks made by certain Congresspeople regarding people of color caused you to write to your Congress person to warn them about your concerns with such talk?
(3) Because of the seemingly daily heated discussions about January 6 and who funded and who caused it, do you watch more or less television programming about politics?
(4) Do you believe that there are unseen forces that are in control of the political dynamics of this country that have their own agenda?
(5) Are you registered to vote and will you vote in both 2022 and 2024?
(6) Knowing Trump’s negative commentary about people of color, what is your impression of black and brown people who still follow him and still wish to be seen in his company?
(7) Are you for the Congressional January 6 Select Committee finding out who financed the riot at the Capitol Building and what “higher up” names were supporting the overturn of the 2020 election?
(8) If it is discovered that Herr Trump and others were engaged, directly or indirectly in fomenting the riot, should they be subject to criminal charges by the federal government?
(9) Do you have a concern that white militia groups are heavily armed so that if they are summoned to take to the streets, that you could be a possible target of their wrath?
(10) If the GOP takes back the House in 2022, are you concerned about further evaporation of civil rights in this country due to Republican legislation that hamstrings voting participation?
(11) Are you concerned that people of color are being stylized as the “invisible” boogeyman that the GOP has off-handedly remarked as being the political irritant which is preventing America from being great again?
(12) If Herr Trump runs again in 2024 and wins, do you fear for your well-being and safety in America or are you relying upon the goodwill of the majority of white Americans to protect you?
Contact Lafe Tolliver at tolliver@juno.com