Bullying women of color may backfire on Trump in 2020
Obviously, President Trump believes bigotry is the best weapon to wield against Democrats to win four more years in the White House.
And, like most bigots, he’s bullying people who he believes don’t have the same power to fight back.
Instead of battling the Democrats who are campaigning to replace him, Trump is fighting four Democratic freshmen congresswomen.
The women — Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, Alexandria Ocasio-cortez of New York, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan and Ilhan Omar of Minnesota — are all women of color. Which makes them choice cuts of red meat to satisfy appetites built by racial grievances.
And Ilhan Omar seems to be his special project.
During his rally in Greenville, N.C. after spewing idiocy about Omar’s colleagues (“Ayanna Pressley…is she related to Elvis?”) he falsely accused Omar, who came to the U.S. as a refugee and earned her citizenship here, of, among other things, being a supporter of Alqaeda.
After which the crowd began to chant, “Send her back!”
“[Trump’s actions] are a blatant form of racism and white nationalism, and a blatant disrespect of women of color,” said state Rep. London Lamar, a Memphis Democrat and, at 27, one of Tennessee’s youngest state lawmakers.
“This Trump-like culture has even trickled down to the state level, where if you don’t agree with the Republican majority, you’re a problem…”
State Sen. Raumesh Akbari, D-memphis, is no stranger to the nativism that Trump amplifies.
“I get a lot of ugly messages because of my last name,” said Akbari, whose father is Iranian. “It’s sad that in 2019, we have to deal with this.”
Yet in deploying hate to hang on to his job, Trump has activated another weapon that could work to help him lose it.
That weapon is the growing political power of African-american women.
Women who aren’t taking too kindly to “The Squad” (all of whom, except for Omar, were born in the U.S.) being told to leave the country for daring to criticize it.
Women who will, more than ever, be wielding their power in the voting booth come 2020.
We in Shelby County witnessed that power last year, when African-american women became the crest of the blue wave that swept the area. Black women were elected to four of the county administrative positions, and two were elected as circuit judges – meaning African-american women now make up four of the nine judges.
With the elections of Joyce Dorse Coleman and Michelle Robinsonmckissack, black women now make up six of the nine Shelby County School Board seats. Tami Sawyer, who is now running for Memphis mayor and who was a guiding force in getting Confederate monuments removed from Memphis’ parks, was elected to the Shelby County Commission.
Akbari was elevated to the state Senate. Political newcomer Katrina Robinson ousted Reginald Tate for a Senate seat, while Lamar was elected to the House of Representatives.
But don’t think this is just a local thing happening in a largely blue part of a red state.
African-american women have emerged as a key voting block around the nation. Turnout among black women during the 2018 midterms was 55 percent – which, according to the U.S. Census, was six percentage points above the national turnout.
In 2017, black women voters propelled Doug Jones to become the first Democratic senator from Alabama in a quarter century, while Stacey Abrams almost won the governorship of Georgia on the strength of black women voters.
And while they voted at higher rates in the 2008 and 2012 elections, according to CNN exit polls, more than 90 percent of African-american women voters who showed up cast their votes for Hillary Clinton in 2016.
So, Trump’s attacks on The Squad might cause more black women to fire back by voting against him – and bringing 10 friends with them to vote against him.
Nonetheless, it’s disheartening that a president believes amusing a mob at the expense of women of color is the way to win a second term.
It’s even more disheartening that the people who shouted, “Send her back,” at his Greenville rally believe four freshmen representatives are a greater threat to this nation than a man who uses lies and hate to suffice for policy.
But the good thing here is Africanamerican women like Lamar – who unlike Trump, at least apologized for an “overgeneralization” of white people in a 2018 video in which she said Tennessee was racist – and Akbari don’t intend to be overwhelmed by these events.
“I appreciate their bravery and their courage,” Lamar said of The Squad. “It gives me confidence, as a young legislator, to continue fighting…
“You’re going to see black women everywhere leading the charge…black women are more confident than ever and more educated than ever, and we’re going to create this agenda as to what American is going to look like. “We aren’t going anywhere.” Said Akbari: “What he’s [Trump] doing right now is disrespectful and ignorant and wrong. But it just makes me more motivated and determined to get this man out of office…
“We’re going to get more black women to vote in even more record numbers.”
Basically, African-american women aren’t going to let Trump’s bigotry win. At least not without a fight.
Tonyaa Weathersbee can be reached at tonyaa.weathersbee@commercial appeal.com or on Twitter: @tonyaajw.