I’ve argued countless times that the idea that Black people are loyal to the Democratic party is a fallacy. First of all, if it were true that we were stuck on a “Democratic plantation,” (because I guess we’re pretending that phrase isn’t racist AF in and of itself) then Black people would show up in all local and national elections to vote blue—but we don’t. What our fluctuating voter turnout record shows is that we either vote Democrat or we don’t vote at all. That doesn’t indicate a loyalty to Democrats as much as it indicates that we just don’t vibe with the Republican party. Maybe that’s because modern Republicans are the ones outwardly denying the existence of systemic racism and opposing the fight against said systemic racism.
A prime example of this comes out of Pennsylvania where a Republican committee has officially censured a district attorney for committing the egregious, unforgivable offense of...publicly supporting Black Lives Matter.
Newsweek reports that the Franklin County Republican Committee recently denounced District Attorney Matthew Fogal because, in June, Fogal wrote a letter in support of Franklin County demonstrators participating in the wave of nationwide protests that exploded in the wake of the killing of George Floyd.
“Black Lives Matter. Period. Full stop,” Fogal wrote, according to Newsweek. “I confess, when I first heard that phrase, my immediate reaction was that ‘All Lives Matter.’ I was wrong, and part of the problem. For white Americans, please understand that what you are being asked to meaningfully consider is the unique experience of Black Lives, our fellow Americans.”
“I encourage you to continue in this positive spirit of change and equality, and not to abandon this momentum. Demand that our national and local leaders authentically confront institutionalized racism,” he continued.
According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the letter was published last week by a conservative blogger prompting a response from the GOP committee.
“It is clear to us that your positions have removed you from any association with Franklin County Republicans,” chapter chairman Allen Coffman wrote in a response letter. “Therefore, the Franklin County Republican Party is withdrawing support for you and any future office you may seek.”
Coffman went on to characterize the BLM movement as “radical and violent” and also condemned Fogal for opposing President Trump.
“Your call for county Republicans to turn against our President is equally misguided,” Coffman wrote. “Our opponents in November, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, stand shoulder to shoulder with the lawless revolutionaries who are burning, looting, and murdering across our nation.”
From Newsweek:
Coffman conflated the movement with the instances of crime committed by a small number of individuals in the wake of Floyd’s death, calling it “a self-admitted Marxist revolutionary group dedicated to the dissolution of America, its heritage and its culture, including the nuclear family.”
Coffman argued that systemic racism is a “falsehood” and that “there is no more inclusive statement than ‘all lives matter’.”
Statistics have shown that Black Americans are disproportionately affected by the country’s economy, health care system and criminal justice system.
So basically, Coffman responded to the mere expression of Black Lives Matter support by conjuring up all the dog whistle language he could think up; calling BLM protesters murderers while offering nothing to back that claim; ignoring the fact that peaceful protests have been more common than violent protests while describing the entire movement as if it were a product of domestic terrorism; denying the very existence of racism and white nationalism in America (the actual product of domestic terrorism); and capping it all off with big “All lives matter” energy.
But please, tell me more about how Black people don’t vote Republican only because we’re loyal to the Democratic Party.
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