During this hellish never-ending abyss of what-the-f**k-ery that is this election season, my social media accounts have been flooded with posts decrying Donald Trump and his racist fascist rhetoric. Which, don’t get me wrong, is not a bad thing. Denouncing fascism, Islamophobia, racism, misogyny, etc. is a good thing in my book. Unfortunately I have not seen that same indignation aimed at the systems and policies that mirror some of Trump’s rhetoric and affect millions of people, specifically immigration.
When the news was flooded with Trump’s plan to build a wall across the United States-Mexico border, the Obama administration began a large wave of deportation concentrating on Central American families.
Most of these immigrants are from El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras, all countries plagued by violence. According to the Los Angeles Times, by March 2015 the Obama administration deported over 7,000 children without going to court, a number that has certainly only grown since then. These children, deprived of the opportunity to make a case for asylum in a court, are sent back to extremely violent and dangerous situations. A 2014 decision by Obama to expedite immigration cases has denied people the opportunity to seek asylum and receive refugee status, as many do not receive proper representation in court.
Overall, the Obama administration has deported over three million people, more than the George W. Bush administration.
The same outrage leveled at Trump should also be aimed at current systems and policies that mimic some of the sentiments in Trump’s rhetoric. This is not to overlook the brave and important work that so many immigration activists are currently undertaking. Rather, I ask that those who (rightfully) criticize Trump use that same critical eye at less-headline-grabbing, but still incredibly impactful, policies.
Donald Trump as he currently exists in the political sphere did not emerge from a vacuum. Trump is not an anomaly; He is the logical extension of our white supremacist misogynistic racist political environment. His hair is ridiculous and very, very meme-able, his twitter is a mess and he uses inflammatory language on purpose. Yet Hillary Clinton said that unaccompanied minors fleeing violence “should be sent back.” Ted Cruz, the winner of the Iowa Caucus, voted against a Senate Judiciary Committee amendment on a nuclear terrorism bill that would state the U.S. “must not bar individuals from entering into the United States based on their religion.” Bernie Sanders supports the continuation of Obama’s drone program, which has killed hundreds of civilians. I would continue with the rest of the Republican nominees, but The News-Letter only has so many pages.
Of course there are many activists and people who call out these injustices as well as Trump’s bigotry, but these words are not directed at them. Rather, I implore those of you who refer to yourselves as liberal or moderate in beliefs to direct the same justified ire at Trump to the policies of those you support, specifically the white liberals who condemn Trump yet turn an uncritical eye to the candidates and politicians they support. It’s possible to both support a candidate and criticize them in the hopes that they can do better; Uncritical support demonstrates a lack of willingness to engage with issues.
It is easy for many to criticize Trump given the way he confidently declares his racism, etc.
There is no subtext. It is easy for white liberals (myself included for the purposes of this piece, though I am not a liberal in the classical sense) to point a finger at Trump and condemn his bigotry and pat ourselves on the back: “Look at me, I am a good white person, a good liberal, an open-minded progressive ready to take on the evils of the world, one Donald Trump at a time!” It is far harder to point a critical finger at both ourselves and the politicians we support, to take on the deeply ingrained racism in our own university and city, to problematize our position as settlers on occupied land, our support of candidates who use words like “safety” and “anti-terrorism” to promote policies in the Middle East that end in civilian deaths and our own complicity in that violence and on and on. It is far harder and yet it is far more necessary.
I hope (somewhat sarcastically) that no one reads this piece as an endorsement of Trump or a call to stop criticizing him. I do not wish to see a Trump administration nor do I believe that people should stop condemning him. I am, however, calling on people to extend their condemnation beyond what is unchallenging and easy to condemn. Turn a deeply critical eye to your own position in society and your candidate’s policy proposals. Engage in the politics of your persuasion beyond a superficial level. And it should go without saying that for the love of all that is good and holy in this universe do not vote for Trump.
Emeline Armitage is a sophomore International Studies major from Cleveland.
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