By Mohammad Ibrahim Karimi

Institutionalized racism serving Trumpism

January 26, 2018 - 12:40

TEHRAN - The United States ambassador to the United Nations, "Nikki Haley", hasn't still apologized for the racist statements of Donald Trump and his hideous remarks on African countries. Recently, representatives of 54 African countries at the United Nations, once again called on American authorities to apologize to the African people for these statements made by Trump.

 However, the President of the United States and, subsequently, other members of his administration have declared that they don't intend to do so! Indeed, how can one justify Trump's racist statements about African countries? Can it be asserted that these remarks were spontaneously pronounced and should be simply taken as "oral mistake" by the controversial U.S. President? Obviously, the answer to this question is negative!

Recent remarks by Trump can be analyzed both socially and politically. From the social perspective, his statements are indicative of "institutionalized racism" in the United States of America. In other words, those politicians coming to power in the United States take their role in a "mutual causation and disability relationship" regarding the American institutionalized racism: they are, on the one hand, the output of the same racism that lies in their cultural relations. And on the other hand, they are the ones who create and strengthen this culture.

 It should not be forgotten that American politicians have played a significant role in promoting racism in the United States social atmosphere. In July of 2015, we have witnessed a white person shooting at the Black Church prayer ceremony in Charleston, USA. Several black Americans were killed and injured in the incident.

 At that time, "Barack Obama" as the President of the United States said: "Racism, we are not cured of it, and it's not just a matter of it not being polite to say nigger in public. That's not the measure of whether racism still exists or not. It's not just a matter of overt discrimination. Societies don't, overnight, completely erase everything that happened 200 to 300 years prior… What is also true is that the legacy of slavery, Jim Crow, discrimination in almost every institution of our lives — you know, that casts a long shadow. And that's still part of our DNA that's passed on. We're not cured of it.

A simple decoding of the remarks of the former U.S. President shows that "institutionalized racism" is transmitted in the form of a "social and behavioral pattern" from generation to generation in the United States. In 2008, during the presidential competitions, many African-American and Asian-American citizens fully supported Barack Obama which was a key factor in his victory over Hillary Clinton.

 Analysts of U.S. affairs agree that if it wasn't for the special support of the racial minorities, Hillary Clinton, and not Barack Obama would have been the Democratic Party's candidate in the presidential competitions against "John McCain" (the Republican's candidate). In any case, the victims of racism in America backed up Obama as a black president hoping that racism would fade in the United States, and equality and peaceful coexistence between colored and white people would replace racist conflicts in the country. However, by the end of his presence at the White House, violence hasn't decreased in the U.S., but it was rather intensified. Donald Trump's victory in the U.S. presidential election of 2016 was indicative of the same issue.

Therefore, recent statements by Trump about Africans can be also analyzed from a political perspective. The fact is that the current President of the United States could come to power in Washington during the 2016 presidential election using the votes of white and racist Americans. He entered the presidential election competitions with a nationalist and racist approach. He was able to overcome Hillary Clinton (Democrats' candidate) in key states such as Florida, and enter the White House, using a racially-motivated social force.

 Trump also sees racists and whites as his political infantry in the U.S. political scene. The president of the United States knows well enough that if he loses this social and political power, few will endure his presence at the top of the political and social equations of the United States. As a result, during the 2017 unrests in America (Ferguson), we witnessed his support for the racists and his condemnation of ethnic minorities.

 The President of the United States of America, every year, somehow expresses his support for the nationalist groups, intending to keep them motivated for supporting him within the United States. Therefore, Donald Trump's remarks are perfectly purposeful and pre-designed. It should be noted that in recent polls in the United States, Trump's popularity has decreased to about %35. This lack of popularity indicates that he doesn't have enough votes to enter the White House (in the presidential elections of 2020).

 Besides, Trump is worried about the Congress mid-term elections this year and the possibility of Democrats winning the Congress. In this case, Trump's power is going to be even be more limited at the White House, and he won't be able to implement many of his plans and goals regarding the U.S. internal and foreign policy. 

Consequently, Trump tries to persuade his political and social supporters to attend the two crucial elections, the Congress mid-term elections in 2018 and the presidential elections of 2020. Hence, we should expect to hear more of the United States controversial President's racist statements in the future.
 

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