After 400 Years It’s Still About Racism and Maintaining White Power

The election of Donald Trump as President of the United States of America on November 3, 2016, and the attack on the Capitol on January 6, 2021, are both about maintaining white power and privilege in America

Trump is and always has been a racist, he exploited racism in the country and rode it into the White House. Then he fanned the flames of racism, fear, and hate with lies until he radicalized his supporters into a violent mob willing to obey his orders.

Black Lives Matter (BLM)  warned the country for years about racist in the police, military, congress, courts, churches, media, and every institution in the country.  Good people silently watched as Black people were killed by racist cops and jailed by racist laws for being Black, Brown, poor, homeless, addicted, or mentally ill.

As president, Trump demonized immigrants, Mexicans, Muslims, Blacks, Latinos, Democrats, and everyone who stood in his way. He lied, cheated, bullied, threatened, and Republicans enabled and supported his corrupt criminal behavior for more federal and Supreme Court judges and huge tax cuts for the wealthy. 

In early 2020, a deadly coronavirus pandemic plagued the country causing more misery and death.  As usual, Trump lied and said it was no more dangerous than the seasonal flu and soon would go away.  His incompetence and homicidal neglect contributed to hundreds of thousands of unnecessary COVID deaths.

Smelling the stink of fascism, Black, brown, progressives, and young people, turned out in record numbers to vote Trump out of office for his incompetence, cruelty, crimes, racism, and fascist tendencies. 

On November 3, 2020, Biden won the election by over seven million popular votes and received 306 electoral votes to Trump’s 232 electoral votes. Since then Trump has rallied his supporters and told them the “Big Lie” that he won. 

When Trump says that he won what he means is that he won the white vote. What is unsaid but implied is that the Black vote is not legal because white people are more important than Black people in Trump’s world. Racism is what is behind his “Big Lie” that he won. He only calls votes in urban areas that are predominantly Black fraudulent. He never questions votes in rural white areas where Republicans won, nor does he mention that Republicans won on the down-ballot where he lost. 

Trump is not alone in spreading the “Big Lie” that he won, Many if not the majority of Republicans in the Senate and House repeat the lie. For two months after the election, Trump and the right-wing media have fed his supporters a steady diet of lies, conspiracies, racism, fear, and hate. As the lies and rage grow, that the election was stolen, it turns into mob violence and domestic terrorism ready to destroy the government and democracy for Trump. 

 Trump’s red-capped army are not poor people wanting economic justice, but middle and upper-class self-entitled white supremacists who have been radicalized by Trump. They see themselves as discriminated against and oppressed by Democrats who stole the election with the help of brown and black people. They see their God-given white power and privilege being taken away by the browning of America which they blame on immigration. This is why they want a wall to keep brown people out. 

On January 6, 2021, this toxic mix of lies, fear, hate, racism, and rage boiled over as Trump’s white supremacist thugs stormed the Capitol in an insurrection to stop Vice President Mike Pence from counting the electoral college votes that officially declares Joe Biden the winner. 

The capital police were told by the FBI that this MAGA group was dangerous and that their target was Congress.  But the sergeant of arms did not want the national guard at the Capitol, as they had for the BLM social justice protests. The chief of the capital police said they had it under control but they didn’t. 

 Did racial bias blind security decisions to the dangers of violent white supremacists or were they deliberately complicit in security decisions?  

 As these domestic terrorists fought with the capital police while ransacking the Capitol they shouted “Hang Pence,” “Where the f*** is Nancy,” “Take Our Country Back,” “We listen to Trump,” “We Are at War.” In their delusional conspiracy diseased brain, the more violent individuals aimed to hang Pence and murder Pelosi so Trump could become president for life – like his idols Kim Jong-un and Vladimir Putin. 

The insurrection left five people dead, one police officer died protecting the Capitol, and several other police were severely beaten by the mob.  One white officer shouted at the mob, “Stop beating me like I’m Black.” Trump’s thugs copied and stole documents from the Senate, stole computers and equipment, smeared their feces in the Capitol, urinated in hallways and offices, trashed offices, and destroyed media equipment.  

Even after the attack on the Capitol, 147 House Republicans and 8 Senate Republicans still objected to Arizona’s and Pennsylvania’s electoral college results. The Senators who objected are Ted Cruz (TX), Josh Hawley (MO), Cindy Hyde-Smith (MS), Cynthia Lummis (WY), John Kennedy (LA), Roger Marshall (KS), Rick Scott (FL), and Tommy Tuberville (AL).

Trump’s failed coup was televised for the whole world to see his seditious insurrection at the U.S. Capitol to overthrow the election by violent white supremacists.  Trump calls these domestic terrorists “very special people” and tells them “I love you.” 

So far over 134 people have been arrested, and some are asking Trump for a pardon explaining that they were following his orders. 

Some of the more prominent extremist hate groups at the Capitol were the Proud Boys, Qanon, boogaloo, white supremacists, anti-government groups, neo-Nazis, and militia groups.  Trump has united all these different factions under his Trump banner. 

More shocking (to some) Captain Emily Rainey, a Fort Bragg PsyOps officer, led 100 members of Moore County Citizens for Freedom to Washington, DC to stand against election fraud. Police from Texas, Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, and Washington State were photographed in the siege on the Capitol.

Six Republican lawmakers were among the rioters as police photos show.  The seditious Republicans are West Virginia House Delegate Derrick Evans, Tennessee State Lawmaker Terri Lynn Weaver, Virginia State Senator Amanda Chase, Missouri State Representative Justin Hill, Pennsylvania State Senator Doug Mastriano, and Michigan State Representative Matt Maddock.

Several investigations are underway to learn if some Republicans helped Trump’s thugs know how to find senior Democrat’s offices. The day before the attack, people wearing MAGA hats were in off-limits areas where representatives work, and security said that a Congressional member invited them.

Among the Capitol rioters arrested were highly trained and armed ex-military men and police officers.

Another investigation is underway to determine if any capitol police helped with planning the attack on the Capitol. Black police officers have warned for years that there are racist officers in the capitol police ranks. 

When BLM had a social justice protest at the Capitol there were thousands of national guards and law enforcement to protect the Capitol from the BLM protesters.  In comparison, when Trump’s seditious mob violently sieged the Capitol the capital police were easily overwhelmed.

On January 13, 2021, the House of Representatives voted to impeach President Trump for inciting an insurrection against the federal government at the U.S. Capitol.  Nancy Pelosi will send the impeachment over to the Senate for a trial and the Senate will vote to acquit or convict.

The Senate will need all the Democrats and 17 Republicans to vote yes in order to convict Trump.  Everything depends on Senator Mitch McConnell’s vote, if he votes yes other Republicans may follow.  McConnell has said he is willing to listen to the evidence and that he believes Trump has committed impeachable offenses.  

A few Republicans are telling why the majority of Republicans still support Trump.  They say that only 20 or 30 Republicans actually support Trump. The others are paralyzed by fear that if they vote to impeach Trump they will be killed or their family will be harmed by his fascist thugs. Only telling the truth will set Republicans free from Trump’s tyranny.  

Republicans have this one opportunity to get Trump out of the Republican Party but do they have the political will and courage to convict him?  If the Senate acquitsTrump, he can run for the office again in 2024.  If he runs and wins in 2024 the lies, crimes, cruelty, and violence will only increase. However, If Trump is convicted the Senate could by a majority vote disqualify him from running for President of the United States of America again.

Written by Gloria Tatum