The Whitewashing of America
The purge of language about diversity, equity and inclusion is a key part of a systematic “whitewashing” of America taking place as the country starts to mark the 250th anniversary of independence.
In a stunning Orwellian exercise of power under the guise of eliminating race in decision-making, the Trump Administration is pursuing a race-based crusade against minorities, as well as those it sees as the opposition. While African Americans, Palestinians and immigrants, trans Americans top the list, the media, foreign students and dissenting citizens are also targets of the administration.
This is not the recent result of three months’ work but the consolidation and enhancement of first term rhetoric and policies. For example, The New York Times’ 1619 Project, which became a cultural lightening rod for its fact-based thesis that slavery played a central role in America’s founding, was greeted with a comprehensive effort to erase history rather than come to terms with it.
The removal of the images and contributions of Black soldiers and leaders, and the deletion of a pages about Native American, Ira Hayes, and his role in the flag raising on Iwo Jima, are further examples of the ethnic cleansing that has been taking place. This is racism, all the more pernicious for being cloaked in the language of anti-discrimination.
The actions of the Trump administration are a turn-back-the-clock move to a white America. When Maya Angelou is removed from the Navy Academy library, but Mein Kampf remains on the shelves, when senior Black military officers are systematically fired, and the Museum of African American history is specifically targeted, what other conclusion can be drawn?
Polls show a mixed bag of responses to what is going on in Washington largely along partisan lines. While many continue to laud President Trump, a growing number are clearly not on board with what is happening. But fear of being targeted by the Trump regime is a powerful force to silence individuals, companies and institutions.
For those who stand up for free speech or the right to protest, the Administration has demonstrated that in addition to name calling and threats on social media, it is willing to use the full force of the State, including economic pressure, jail or deportation for those who don’t toe the line.
The seriousness of what is happening is not lost on the left, independents and independent conservatives. The Cassandra-like warnings before the election, coming from all sides, have proven demonstrably prescient. The country is not inching toward an autocracy, rather it is now a mainstream perception that by most objective measures we are already there.
The playbook in which minority groups are targeted and demonized, and the opposition and media are enemies of the people, is not new. We should not be surprised that ideologues find excuses for fascist salutes, lies and dog whistles. We should not be surprised at the hypocrisy of the idea that the Biden Administration overstepped presidential authority is being used as justification for the current administration’s own actions. If one was wrong, why not the other?
Students of disinformation see through the race-based attacks on minorities and institutions as a calculated camouflage. Having targeted and demonized “wokeness,” immigrants and trans Americans, the administration is tapping into its self-generated outrage in ways that misdirects the focus from its broader attacks of the rule of law, the checks and balances of the legislative, executive and judicial branches of government, voting rights and America’s basic humanity,
It’s impossible to know what the white, often slaveholding founders who fought for independence from the tyranny of mad King George III two and a half centuries ago, would think today about the perilous state of their experiment in democracy. Since most were forward-looking, embraced immigration, trade, and a less than perfect idea of equality, it’s hard to imagine they would welcome a return to one-man rule.
