The American President: Donald Trump & The Societal Exposé, Part 1

Observing the meteoric rise of businessman Donald Trump during his campaign for the Republican nomination for President of the United States, several pundits, political analysts and social media experts have run to the same defense: "There's no way that Trump can win the general election.  The American voter is much smarter than that and this would be an insult to their intelligence."  However, let's keep it 100: is the rise of Trump and the real possibility that he could be the 45th President an insult to the American voter and the democratic political process that we darn near deify, or is it an indictment of America?  At so many patriotic events, we are encouraged to sing Katharine Lee Bates and Samuel A. Ward's "America the Beautiful" as a sign of our solidarity with what is often billed as "the greatest" or "the most powerful" nation in the world.  Given the historically divisive social climate in our country, how "beautiful" is or has America ever been and to what "greatness" is Trump truly returning us?  He represents everything that many Americans--regardless of race, class, gender, sexual orientation, generational gap, religion, etc.--believe and exhibit, whether they realize it or not.  In a four-part series over the next several weeks, I intend to highlight many of the harsh and sobering realities about America and manifest just how "American" Donald Trump is...

PART 1: AMERICA THE DIVIDED

By now, you're already familiar with the ridiculous amounts of short-sighted, stereotypical and divisive rhetoric that Donald Trump has spouted.  While he may never admit to being an actual racist, Trump has not been gun shy when it comes to popping off recklessly about different cultures.  Trump on Mexicans: "When Mexico sends its people, they're not sending their best...They're bringing drugs.  They're bringing crime.  They're rapists.  And some, I assume, are good people."  Trump on Blacks and Mexicans: "Sadly, an overwhelming amount of violent crime in our major cities is committed by blacks and hispanics-a tough subject-must be discussed."  (Same dude who once said, "I've always had a good relationship with the Blacks.")  Trump on the "Muslim problem": "Donald J. Trump is calling for a complete and total shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country's representatives can figure out what the hell is going on!"  He also said that he "would certainly implement" a database to track Muslim-Americans and did not oppose surveillance and warrantless searches of American mosques.  In all fairness (that can actually exist in this instance), Trump will always say something to the effect of "I know plenty of [fill in the blank] and they're wonderful people" to somehow soften his blows.  However, he rarely leads with that disclaimer and it's usually after he's slammed a group of people.  Even more problematic is his attribution of national and global issues to specific races and religions instead of either singling out bad apples without having to mention race or religion or addressing the deeper-seated causes of these issues in lieu of broad-brushing.

Perhaps Trump's most consistently insulting remarks have been at the expense of women.  He questioned Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton's ability to run the country based upon her assumed inability to sexually satisfy her husband, former President Bill Clinton.  He called Rosie O'Donnell "disgusting, both inside and out", Bette Midler "extremely unattractive", said Angelina Jolie's "been with so many guys she makes me look like a baby" and agreed with a vote about Sarah Jessica Parker being the "unsexiest woman alive".  He suggested that the female participants on The Apprentice needed to rely on their sex appeal and that all of them "flirted with me--consciously or unconsciously".  (According to him, "That's to be expected.")  In his 1997 book, Trump: The Art of the Comeback, this particular quote probably best sums up his misogynistic view:

Women have one of the great acts of all time.  The smart ones act very feminine and needy, but inside they are real killers.  The person who came up with the expression "the weaker sex" was either very naive or had to be kidding.  I have seen women manipulate men with just a twitch of their eye--or perhaps another body part.

The sad part about his disdain for women is that, unlike with racial, ethnic and religious groups, you don't see as many disclaimers or backtracks on his comments.  Fox News' Megyn Kelly excoriated him for his insulting remarks toward women during an August 6 GOP debate, and his only response was that he didn't "have the time for total political correctness", said that "Fox viewers give low marks to bimbo" as a slight to Kelly but later claimed that he didn't have knowledge of his insults and planned to "have it checked out".  (Trump supposedly not having any knowledge of something...having to check it out...sound familiar?)  From just these examples, Trump holds some very controversial views for which he never apologizes.  Moreover, his arrogance and brash dismissiveness, often spoken from a place of entitlement, is what makes his viewpoints especially detrimental.

However, is Donald Trump and the contingency of supposedly-disenfranchised, bigoted White people the only demographic of prejudiced people in America who, despite hating the sight of Trump's face, aren't too far off from sharing in his candor?  Keep it funky and think about that particular Christian you know who has some choice, often derogatory words for homosexuals and anyone who doesn't believe in or agree with our religion--or someone who claims to be a Christian, but doesn't believe in racial equality.  Think of certain Muslims who aim the same vitriolic tenor in the direction of homosexuals as many Christians do as well as harboring hatred for White people.  Think about many atheists who take every opportunity to mock every religion that believes in a higher power or a "sky daddy".  Think of that person you know with their snide remarks about Mexicans and Salvadorans taking all of the custodial and/or construction jobs, all while they either turn their noses up at that line of work or have an even cushier position.  Think about anytime you've heard someone speak harshly about or toward Ethiopians who prevail in the public parking industry; Koreans and the Chinese who dominate convenience stores, nail salons and carryouts; or a wide array of nationalities who make sandwiches at Subway.  Think about anyone who will complain in a heartbeat about how White people act within government and corporate America, but will shade any person, place or thing associated with "ghetto" behavior, being from the lower class or not living on the same side of town as them--and the shade thrown is often intraracial.  Think about that dude who may feel a certain way about Trump's views on women and will be quick to holler "the revolution will not be televised", but got a baby momma, a concubine, seven popoffs on standby and a wife on the side while being a thirst bucket behind every woman who puts her booty on display for the whole world to ogle over.

Let's call a spade a spade: the rhetoric that we're hearing isn't just a Donald Trump or White Nationalist/supremacist problem; it's an American problem.  Since Europeans "discovered" the Americas, separation has been key in keeping hierarchies, dichotomies and the status quo intact.  Rich vs. poor...men vs. women...Whites vs. Native Americans, Blacks, Asians, Hispanics and Latinos...masters vs. slaves...house Negroes vs. overseers vs. field hands...light-skinned vs. dark-skinned...White women vs. Black women, often over Black men...rich Blacks vs. poor Blacks...poor Blacks vs. other poor Blacks...weaves vs. natural...slender vs. full-figured......old vs. young...cool kids vs. smart kids...street smart vs. book smart...Christians vs. Muslims, atheists and every other religion...natives vs. immigrants...citizens vs. illegal immigrants...heterosexuals vs. homosexuals, bisexuals and the transgendered...police vs. minorities...Republicans vs. Democrats...conservatives vs. liberals...North vs. South...East vs. West...the United States vs. the rest of the world.  You name it and America can figure out a way to unceremoniously split it.  It seems like the only time that we're "united" is when someone from another country attacks us, forcing America is like any other dysfunctional family: "We can curse out, fight and kill each other, but if y'all even look at us wrong, we'll whip ya head, boy!"  Because separatism exists within families, communities, schools, workplaces, social clubs and even places of worship, separatism seems nearly inevitable for the average American.  Many not only exhibit these behaviors, but are either in denial about how much they identify with Trump or are unremorseful about their allegiance to him.  Ultimately, his ascension as a realistic presidential candidate is a symptomatic representation of the much larger disease from which we all have suffered to a lesser or greater degree because, as Nino Brown said during his big-picture defense in New Jack City, "This is the American way."


Now am I saying that we should continue this country's historically-perplexing legacy of separatism?  Am I encouraging anyone who recognizes the myriad of ways that we divide ourselves from others to vote for Donald Trump just because his prejudices are not far off from many of our own?  That would be a resounding, Sofia-from-The Color Purple-super-duper-indignant "hell naw".  If anything, his extensive bloopers reel in political incorrectness should be a stern reminder of the work that we have to do as individuals and how some of the ugly truths about this supposedly "great" land have been exposed and never truly went away.  The routine failure to acknowledge significant historical contexts firmly holding these barriers in place preclude them from being torn down, hence why Trump and many Americans refuse to have meaningful conversations toward lasting change about any of the "isms".  I am an optimist at heart who believes that it's not impossible for us to be united as long as there are those of us who choose to understand, relate and reach out to one another across the various lines that create natural and/or superficial chasms.  However, we must simultaneously distinguish the existence of generational curses through faulty and biased teachings--many of which were passed down from America's founding fathers as well as ancestors pursuant to our races, religions, genders, cultures, communities, etc.--that keep the rest of us from crossing those lines.

Please come back and read next week's installment of "The American President: Donald Trump & The Societal Exposé" titled "Part 2: America the Incendiary"...