American capitalism exploits, whether it’s power over a group of people or an advantage over a competitor, the bottom line is gaining value (power or wealth). We like to say we need competition in order for capitalism to work and for progress to occur, but deep down the goal of every capitalist is monopoly. We see it in businesses, and we see it in our social hierarchy and we see it in politicians. What’s his name, the current President, for example, in his quest for political monopoly sensed that America’s racial history could be used to an advantage and in his psychopath’s mind, rules and civility don’t apply.
It’s a fact that what’s his name has had racist views all his adult life. And in his quest for power he hasn’t hesitated to use them to divide America. Historically, white America, a very very law abiding country, used laws to legalize slavery, Jim Crow, segregation, and even ignore lynchings to give the majority white population preference and advantage in every aspect of American life. White preference was law for 350 years dominating education, housing, property ownership, policing, wealth…almost everything. It was all legal and Supreme Court approved. It was the law of the land.
Then, when a Supreme Court, not the current one of course, declared the inequities illegal those same Americans ironically posited that any preference given disadvantaged African-Americans is illegal because after all we are all equal under the law and any racial preference is racism. It’s a little like running a 350 year marathon with one group carrying 25 lb weights on their back. At the end when that group is way behind in every measurable aspect of life, those in the lead make believe that it was a fair race.
Our President and the very very legalistic no-longer-Supreme……. Court declared that suddenly like magic, all is good, no need to equalize the race(ers)–no affirmative action, erase the history of slavery and segregation because it might make white people feel bad about what they did in the past. All traces gone. Think of it as a melding of American racism to capitalism. Monopoly is good but only if it’s all white.
In a similar vein for the last 100 years or so America allowed and in many areas encouraged immigrants to enter the country legally and illegally. Jobs were provided; children born of these immigrants became citizens; education was provided and almost all became welcome members of their communities. Businesses benefited. These so-called illegals did the hard work of harvesting crops, working in the construction industry and doing some of the dirty work of American businesses. Laws were ignored because, you know, money. It was all legal…..ish.
Then quite suddenly America decided the purity of it’s European ancestry was threatened by all of these off-white illegals and a President was elected whose life-long hatred of non-white people extended his hatred to immigrants. His hate filled description of them as criminals, murderers and as people who eat the pets of real Americans was one key to his election. He promised to remove the several million “illegals” from our shores. In his hatred he refused to recognize asylum seekers, due process, families that have lived here for generations, rights for children brought here as infants and small children, or even the rights of citizenship for those born here.
He maintains we must follow the law as he interprets it. These immigrants came in illegally and despite our (wink wink) use of their labor and the generations of living here they must go. He maintains they broke our laws (albeit with the tacit approval of our government) and must be punished by being forced to leave. All because you know we are so very concerned about legality.
Medicynic Note: In America it’s heads I win tails you lose. No matter how the law was interpreted or implemented in the past whether manipulated to deny rights to minority populations or to facilitate the hiring and use of “illegal” immigrants for generations, all it takes is a flip of the Supreme Court or the mood of a madman and white socio-economic supremacy is assured. And of course we cannot offer any compensatory means to access legalized status on one hand or education, wealth, property and power on the other.
It’s the American way.
Came across this: https://chicagounbound.uchicago.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=6085&context=uclrev
Medicynic 