Make America Racist Again

(Based on Opinion Article by Arick Wierson and Bradly Honon, “GOP Culture wars force its decades-long marriage to Big Business to end in divorce”, NBC News , Politics and Policy, May 12, 2022)

“It was the Republican Party, the party of Lincoln-that even passed laws that granted protections for Black Americans and advanced social justice issues in landmark legislation such at the Civil Rights Act of 1866.  But by the New Deal Era of the 1930s, the two parties essentially flipped positions, solidifying the alignment that we have had since.” (Arick Wierson and Bradly Honon)

MAGA- Make America Great Again has now turned into MARA – Make America Racist Again!

Reflecting on the events of the past 60 years, it is reasonable to say that the United States of America has lurched backwards into mining its past racial discrimination.  No longer can we say that the rights of the poor, the disenfranchised and the LGBTQ persons in this country are being defended or even acknowledged.  The rights of the unborn have suddenly taken over the rights of the born.  It is a strange inversion when those politicians who advocate for the removal of a woman’s right to an abortion at the same time and with great zeal vote for the disenfranchisement of the voting rights of persons of color, suppress the medical care of persons of transgender race and endorse white entitlement over the black and Hispanic experience in America.  In the name of a God of the religious right, these same political leaders seek power and control over the lives and the consciences of individual human beings.  For those persons old enough to remember, this is exactly what Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeni did to Iran in the period 1979-1989.  Does anyone remember the loss of rights in Iran?  Is this the kind of America we want to live in, when one religious view of life dictates how the whole country believes?

The genius of the separation of church and state, which until the last twenty years was considered a bedrock foundational principle of this nation.  This is what traditionally has kept religion of any form out of the political arena.  We have argued vigorously against placing the Ten Commandments on the public square.  We have said a County Council meeting does not need to have a Wiccan prayer before beginning the meeting.  We have argued against Sharia Islamic law as the basis for judicial proceedings.  Do we want to govern ourselves like Saudi Arabia and Iran?  Are we so stupid to believe that the Christian religion has superior wisdom to handle the politics of governmental intrusion into the body of the church?  The evangelical Christians who argue for laws governing a women’s reproductive rights “in the name of God,” are the very same persons who would be horrified if Islam were the dominant religion in the country and Islamic prayers were said before high school ballgames in our communities.

We cannot have it both ways.  In a diverse nation of many religions, creeds and beliefs, the rights of the many cannot exceed the rights of the few.  If the right of one person’s conscience to believe or disbelieve in God as he or she chooses is not protected by the Constitution, the governing bodies, the Executive branch and the Supreme Court, then the rights of the great majority, male and female, are not protected either.  In the great Southern Baptist Church statements of faith in times past, the beliefs of the individual conscience always had authority over the dictates of the body of the church.  The pastors and leaders of the churches across the whole South would have vigorously opposed the intervention of the body of the church on individual questions of conscience.  Yet now, these same churches endorse the attempt to control a woman’s reproductive rights in the name of their religion, seeking to somehow save the unborn children’s lives by religious/political mandate instead of appealing to the human conscience to make a better choice for life.  What has happened to our good religious folk?  Have we/they forgotten the very foundational principles we say we believe?

The church in its many forms of diversity has been seduced by the siren seducing spirit of the desire for political power, feeling ourselves to be an oppressed minority by the move of our country toward a more secular approach to living.  Persons in the evangelical churches are threatened by change, by seeing persons of color on the former white only governing bodies of their communities.  In the formerly dominant white Protestant culture of the old South, persons of color “knew their place” and did not seek to exercise nor share power in the communities.  In 1964 this all changed with the interpretation of the Equal Protection Clause of the 14^th Amendment, Chief Justice Earl Warren, speaking for the US Supreme court argued that the right to vote is a fundamental right, strictly protected by the Constitution.  “Legislators represent people, not trees or acres.” “Legislators are elected by voters, not farms or cities or economic interests.”

The Republican Party at this current time is trying to engineer both redistricting of voting districts to favor incumbent Republicans to maintain legislative power.  They are working with great zeal in Texas and other places in the country to limit, not expand access to voting, reducing voting hours and voting by mail, and at the same time limiting a woman’s reproductive rights across the nation.  The party which initially represented Lincoln now represents a racist version of the nation.  “Let’s keep the Republican folks in power and punish any corporation which makes a political statement with which we do not agree.”  For example, Governor Ron Desantis revoking Disney’s special tax district to punish Disney for speaking out in favor of the rights of LGBTQ persons.  Even some Republicans are saying this is politics going too far: “I don’t believe the government should be punitive against private businesses because we disagree with them.” (Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson). 

The Republican Party in its lust for power will finally destroy themselves.  The party of Lincoln, as the party of Trump has lost all bearing and common sense to govern.  They are become “the party of delusion.”  Who in their right mind actually believes the election was stolen from then President Trump?  But many Republicans say they do, including many evangelical Christians.  So, who now is believing a lie?  The Holy Scriptures says, “Grace and truth comes through Jesus Christ!”  The idea of a stolen election promoted by Trump’s ego is a damned lie!  Yet Christians believe the lie.  And some, may God help us, participated in the January 6 attempt to overthrow the U.S. government!

The Republican Party has become “the party of exclusion.”  In the governing bodies of the Republican South, how many persons of color are there?  There are a token few.  The “big tent” is not so big anymore.  It is interesting to note that by saving the babies that may be aborted, the Republicans are inadvertently changing their representative base.  Since about 76% of all abortions are performed by women of color, who is going to take care of all these new babies?  Well, obviously the taxes of all of us supporting Medicaid will care for these children.  In 20 years, these same babies will vote these Republicans out of office!  I am personally opposed to abortion as a means of birth control.  However, I can appreciate as a physician that these choices are often difficult.  A baby less than 22 weeks cannot survive outside the womb even with the best technology and many born before 24 weeks, who survive have a lifetime of disabilities.  Is this compassionate care?

The Republican Party is “the party of losing.”  Despite all their desperate attempts to cling to power, and to try and make America into the image of the 1950s with “Leave it to the Beaver,” with June and Ward Cleaver and brother Wally, that time exists no longer.    As long as the Republican Party led by Trump and his allies continues to try to do something that represents the past, they will never succeed. They will not succeed in making America white again!  Currently 60.1% of Americans are white (not Hispanic).  Hispanics represent 18.5% of our population, with Black or African Americans 13.4%.  Two or more races persons are 2.8% (from 2020 census data).  In the decade from 2010 to 2020 the white population declined.  In 1980 the white population was 80%.  Currently, more than half of the nations population under age 16 identify as a racial or ethnic minority.  From this figure alone, the future has already changed.  It is easy to understand why the Republican party fights so vigorously against Hispanic and other ethnic immigration.

Having a diverse nation, with many races, religions, and ideas about life makes for a vigorous, vital and growing nation.  To remain a great nation, particularly as we balance off the influence of China, we will need the best minds and the best hearts of everyone.  Trying to fossilize population changes to a past design is not the way of the future.  The Republican strategy, led by Donald Trump and others like him is a failure.  Any short-term successes will be quickly overtaken by long term changes in the demographics of this nation.  To embrace the future, we need to embrace each other!  What difference does it make as to our skin color, our creeds, our politics?  We can disagree, but we are all Americans!  Have we forgotten what has made us great?

The politics of racism, of delusion and of failure will not make America great again!  It will do just the opposite.  I argue as a Christian, yearning in love for the grace of Christ to overtake us with kindness, goodness, and joy!  As Christian believers in the one Savior and God who became a human being, Jesus Christ, there are more things which unite us than separate us.  Whatever race, color, or creed you may be or choose to become, I am your brother, make in God’s image just as you are made.  Why can we not embrace one another?

I grew up in an era in which it was popular to demonize Russians and Chinese as Communists.  And there are many Russians and Chinese who are oppressing many persons, as we all are aware.  Yet there are many Russians and Chinese who are my Christian brothers and sisters.  So let us pray for them, that they may be free of oppression to worship God as they choose.  So then let us also pray for ourselves, that we, in our zeal to do good, do not also become oppressors just like those we despise.  Let us not become like those who oppress the poor, disenfranchise the powerless, and demand they bow at the feet of our religious faith so they become just like us.  This is not the way of the Lord Jesus!  I am not aware He every forced anyone to believe in his name!  He offered the invitation to come to Him for salvation, but he never coerced anyone to believe.  Jesus simply said, “Come follow me and I will make you fishers of men.”   Jesus loves every man, every woman, and every child, including the unborn children of us all.  We can oppose abortion without resorting to laws of coercion, and without demonizing those with whom we disagree.

There is a better way!  The Lord Jesus Christ has shown us the way!  If we follow Him on the way to Jerusalem and the cross of Calvary, we will understand what Jesus desires us to do!  Praying in the blessed name of Jesus Christ our Savior and our Redeemer, to whom be all glory, praise, honor and blessing, both now and forever!  Amen!

“Lord Jesus Christ, hear our prayers!” Amen!

Bill Wilson, servant of God by God’s gracious mercies.  “Amen!”