It was both. It was misogynoir — hatred of, aversion to, or prejudice against Black women. And the world witnessed it perpetrated on a national scale.
Upon learning that Vice President Kamala Harris would be the Democratic nominee for president, my gut reaction was: White America won’t elect a Black woman president because its racism and misogyny are alive and well and thriving in this country and donning MAGA hats. But the outpouring of support Vice President Harris and Governor Walz received throughout their campaign—even from “White Dudes for Harris”—gave me hope that America had learned from the rampant death, violence, and malfeasance the previous Republican president wrought during his term and had enough, set aside its racism, and was ready to move on and follow its better angels.
But that was not the case at all.
More of you than I suspected were still seething over Barack Obama’s two terms and did not regard this election as a choice for who would better serve the country but instead viewed it as a referendum on whether a Black woman or a white man should hold the highest office in the land.
For me, these past few days have been a blur. I suppressed my rage over the outcome and despair over the people who made the outcome possible. But I tell you this: I’ve gained a clearer perspective on the state of our union and several other things than I have in a long time.
Confession: I have been in denial about America.
This country is indelibly racist. Face it. It wasn’t about Harris’s laugh, her supposed “lack” of accomplishments, or her economic plan (which your guy only had a concept of). It was all about the color of her skin.
You saw a qualified Black woman who had served as District Attorney of San Francisco and Attorney General of California, winning cases on behalf of everyday Americans, a United States Senator, and the sitting Vice President versus a white man known as a reality TV personality, a Lothario, racist, a misogynist, a convicted felon, a science denier whose inaction in handling Covid-19 cost this country 400,000 American lives, a climate denier, conspiracy monger, and twice impeached president who courts the favors of dictators, authoritarians, white supremacists and Nazis—Nazis; who has “single-handedly” delivered the overturning of Roe v. Wade and told the American people he will eradicate our healthcare, and still you said: I pick the white guy, again. With rapturous glee.
What’s sad are the lengths some of you have gone to hide what is evident to non-white Americans, white Americans who “get it,” and the rest of the world: A substantial number of white Americans value white supremacy more than justice and equity. Many of you would rather burn the country down so that you can reign supreme over a smoldering pile of ashes that spans from sea to shining sea than have a Black woman lead the nation on to better and brighter days for everyone. That is unacceptable.
People have ample reason to fear for their lives.
The hypocrisy of double standards astounds. Think about it: if a Democratic politician pantomimed fellated a microphone in public, Republicans would shriek about family values and want that candidate’s head on a pike. But for some reason, it’s perfectly fine for this guy to do.
Probably the most infuriating thing to me on a personal level is how some of you I have known for more than thirty years have steadfastly supported Black, LGBTQ, and disabled people by doing the things that bear the earmarks of authentic relationships. And now, you would rather reap the superficial good vibes and Facebook likes in the name of “keeping the peace” while voting for the man who seeks to destroy our heritage, our history, and our families? Your calls for people to “just move on” and your annoyance that people would dare mention their fears of what new horrors the president-elect will unleash on us or our loved ones in January 2025 are detached from reality. People have ample reason to fear for their lives.
Beloveds, that’s not keeping the peace; that’s some flat-out narcissistic bigotry working overtime to maintain complicity. And it’s a disgrace.
There’s no need for me to rehash my thoughts on evangelical Christians and the selling out of their Savior in arguably the biggest attempted power grab since Jesus’s crucifixion in this article. But two related words come to mind: whitewashed tombs.
And probably the most infuriating thing to me personally is how some of you have the nerve to attempt to have your cake and eat it, too. You claim to have Black, LGBTQ, disabled, and various marginalized friends. But yet you voted for a regime that dehumanizes said groups of people. Friends don’t sell out friends, full stop. And certainly not to be in the In Crowd. You don’t have Black, LGBTQ, disabled, or marginalized friends; we’re simply people you know.
So, don’t worry about marginalized people, Black people, in particular. We’ll be all right. We are resilient and resourceful. And we’re far more discerning than you realize. As a people, we’ve been here 405 years and survived worse than this. And by the grace of God, we will survive this, too. But don’t expect the shine or that shoulder to cry on when the chickens come home to roost. And roost they will.
May God have mercy on America because we’re going to need it.
Love one another.
Image by Shepard Fairey
