I find it difficult to focus today. And before I go on and on about how important this election is to me, to people of color, to the LGBTQIA+ folx, etc., I'll stop myself. The readings for today ask for a more critical rhetoric and, from it, we get scholars like hooks and Asante. hooks especially effortlessly ties racism and sexism. At points, I had to stop and really consider her words. For instance, and she's quite persuasive here, that black males, though oppressed, follow the greasy shadow of their oppressors by emulating the exact same patriarchal moves that white men have made on minorities for centuries. It is without criticism and critical thinking that hooks would never form such thought provoking claims.
At an instance I'm filled with passion. For our field. For academia. But then I realize how many fucking people voted for Trump. AGAIN! Even after Covid, which has killed over 200,000 Americans wasn't enough. In fact, this dad is still voting for Trump despite losing his son to Covid. What's interesting here, if we rhetorically analyze this statement a bit, which is "My son died from Covid-19 and I'm still voting for Trump." The word still rings a bit odd here. This person appears to admit, in some way, that not only is Covid-19 to blame for his son's death but, in some way, Trump is to blame too. Despite that, they claim to still pledge allegiance to Trump.
I don't get it. I mean, I do, but I'll try to incorporate a bit of the readings here, no matter how vague.
The readings today have me wondering where we've failed our citizens so hard that they'd still vote for the one that's actively working against their best wishes. All of the promises he made to them, have gone unanswered. The wall? Didn't get finished. Job growth? The worst it's been in years. Unemployment? The same.
The answer here is racism. It's always will be racism. I'm just incredibly disappointed, again, in this country. I'm not sure what the answer is here but a lot of folks are missing critical thinking in their lives and it shows. How you can't see an orange turd for what it is is beyond me.
Sorry it's so short this week. I tried. Perhaps you might use this space to vent, offer advice, and/or support for each other.
Hi Keith,
ReplyDeleteJust wanted to start off by saying I hear you. We all hear you.
While I was downstairs this morning, my mom was watching Fox News. Someone bravely articulated that Trump didn't follow through with building his wall. A man yelled in reply, "yes he did! He did build the wall." Instead of a)acknowledging the truth or b)letting anyone else let a word in edgewise, he continued to yell and chant that Trump had in fact built a wall. I wish that I too could simply declare things into being. Alas. Insert comment on post-truth and the denigration of our society here.
I also heard a bit of Marco Rubio's speech to Cuban-Americans in Miami. He said something very close to the effect of "all democrats may not be socialist but all socialists are democrats." This lazy identification through separation, through faction somehow worked with Cuban-Americans so afraid of a communist regime that they would walk so eagerly into the arms of a different tyrant.
Anyway, that's all the wallowing I got time for tonight folks (who am I kidding?). Godspeed.
Hi Keith,
ReplyDeleteYou're not alone in your feelings. This is hard. It's scary to be going through all of this right now, and utterly shocking that somehow Trump's rhetoric still won people over enough to vote for him again.
I think this is why it is important that we study what we do. Clearly, rhetoric is an underestimated art and can be used to create great suffering.
Hey Keith,
ReplyDeleteMy friend, I feel for you. This whole thing is basically eating me alive, and it seems like, as you point out via your hyperlinked example, that nothing can change the minds of people. This is what scares me the most.
There is always a reason, and I can't say I disagree with your assessment here, and much like you I am desperate to figure out what we can do to make this better. Education seems to be the only thing I can think of, but that system shares a number of similar issues. It feels heavy, and it hurts.
Hi Keith,
ReplyDeleteI feel you. This election was absolutely terrible. It seems as if Trump supporters have a hard time seeing and accepting the truth. This seems to stem from Trump himself, who still hasn't accepted his loss. He is convinced he won, just as all Trump supporters are somehow convinced they are right to have their racist, sexist, homophobic (the list goes on) views. Trump seems to have created a new reality over the past few years that no one but his supporters are living in.
I hope your spirits have picked up a little since Biden's victory. I wish mine have more, but it's still so disheartening to see how many people voted for such a monster.