Trump's Insidious Appeal

Donald Trump - Portrait; from DonkeyHotey on Flickr

The notion that whites no longer enjoy predominance in American society is accepted by a considerable amount of the population. From a simple demographic perspective, the percentage of white Americans has been shrinking for a number of years. As minority populations rise and move to all corners of the country, many white Americans feel a very keen sense of decline and threat. And in a country with a racial history as hostile and complicated as ours, those emotions often manifest themselves in hateful and discriminatory rhetoric as well as violence. The candidacy of Donald Trump has certainly tapped into that psyche as it targets uneducated, poor whites as its key voting bloc.

The New York Times encapsulated the idea of Donald Trump as a champion for underprivileged whites in an excellent feature published this morning. It extensively details the psychology behind the Trump voter through insightful interviews and analysis. And for those who claim (including myself) they "don't know anyone supporting Trump," this piece offers great insight into the mind of the Trump voter. The section on college students in support of Trump struck me as particularly perceptive. It discusses how these campuses -- considered bastions of liberalism -- are, in the minds of many students, suffocating free speech. These students, much like poor white workers, feel as if their America is on the decline.

Trump harnesses these ideas and intuitively embraces them. But he will ultimately let these voters down either in defeat or through governance. He has exhibited an erratic and mercurial temperament; spouted deeply troubling sentiments almost daily; and harbors a deep resentment toward all who disagree with him. But, it is important to understand why people are voting for him, and not to dismiss him as a minor candidate with no chance of winning. Trump voters are real people and should not be discounted as racist or uneducated either. But the answer to their grievances surely isn't Donald J. Trump. Yet, the party of Eisenhower and Reagan is set to nominate him next week here in Cleveland.

Link to article: http://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/14/us/politics/donald-trump-white-identity.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=first-column-region&region=top-news&WT.nav=top-news