The bitterest Presidential Primary I can recall in my 25 years of interest in politics is finally over. It hasn’t all been good, clean fun. It never is. So many things conspired to make this election particularly rancorous. And despite my optimism, I sadly admit that the societal negatives highlighted nearly overwhelm the positives.
Perhaps the biggest positive of all is that two minorities dominated the Democratic field. I realize that as a minority my view may be slanted. But while the “majority rules” crowd may disagree, the Law of Averages says it’s time to give someone else a turn at the wheel. One of those someones I find personally distasteful; others will find my choice unsavory. So it gos. Yet, both Obama and Clinton are capable of being a better President than the current DOTUS (Decider of the US). First time voter enrollment is another positive.
But with the good must come the bad. This year, the statistics, the exit polls, and the people have spoken. Despite all the positive firsts this election brings, one sardonic question looms in my mind. Which will undo the Democratic party sooner, prejudice or misogyny? Not that I’ve sworn allegiance to this party. As an Independent, I’m free to surf the waves of good ideas regardless of which side of the isle they come from. And the Independent side of me hopes the lopsided primaries in Southern states have convinced Black folk the Democratic Party isn’t like a real home, where they have to accept you whether they want to or not.
Let me shine some light into a dark corner of Black politics. As 12% of the population, we’re not likely to topple the political infrastructure anytime soon. But as scary as life without Great White Father may be, the results of this year’s primaries give new meaning to White Flight. If it were possible, Kentucky’s blue grass would have grown wings. Now is a good time for Blacks to rethink de facto loyalty to the Democratic party.
And what about the Clinton faithful. I used the word misogyny earlier, but distinguishing dislike of Senator Clinton from genuine hatred of women may not be easy as it looks. Though I’m not naive enough to deny that hatred exists, I’m also not willing to engage in a sexism vs. racism pity party.
So the party of inclusion has been dashed against the rocks and Unity sounds like a good port to put into for repair. Winning the White House is the most important goal this year. But what began as a song of hope for Democrats is quickly becoming a requiem. Win or lose, after the dust settles in November, Blacks in the party need to decide if it’s working for them. And if the party as a whole doesn’t understand that “untie” is an anagram for unite, it may soon fall victim to the biggest illness of all: hypocrisy.