04/06/2020
It feels like we're living through history with protests erupting across America because of another act of police brutality and racism. There's a nationwide feeling of wanting real change to happen. We're all fed up with tragedy after tragedy, but as history shows, we may soon go back to "normal"... an unfortunate trend that needs to stop.
In previous episodes, I've been doing a deep dive with historian Marjorie Spruill about the history surrounding the Equal Rights Amendment in the 1970s. So much of that era’s history informs our lives today. I wanted to know what she thinks about this current situation. Where is our country heading? What are the strategies at play? How can we all come together to create real, lasting change? What's worked before and what hasn't?
It's a fascinating 40 minute conversation, but if you can't listen, here are my key takeaways:
-Our country is being run by Christian nationalists, basically conservative racist extremists, practicing their “Southern Strategy” by supporting and enforcing systemic racism against black Americans and other minorities. Equality is not on the agenda for this group.
-Racism has always been a huge problem in America going back centuries. It informs so much of who we are as a culture.
-The Trump administration and its Republican enablers have to go. If we don't stand up to them, Trump will assume absolute power. He has already done massive, lasting damage to our courts. It's one thing to lean conservative, but conservative extremism is dangerous, especially when you throw religious fundamentalism into the mix.
-Trump is making a lot of money off the presidency which is illegal due to the emoluments clause, but no one is holding him accountable. If no one is above the law, then how is he getting away with it?
-The Trump administration shuttered the government office created after Ferguson designed to help address systemic racism in policing. They’re also effectively shutting down the COVID-19 pandemic office, even though we’re nowhere close to where we need to be to safely reopen. Trump’s leadership is an abject failure, and he consistently makes bad, dangerous, ill-informed decisions, now with deadly consequences.
-In this time of multiple crises, Trump's strategy to divide the nation instead of uniting it is an obvious election tactic. It worked successfully for Nixon in the 1972 election. Trump even uses the same phrase: “Law And Order". Nixon won in a landslide.
-In the 1970s, American women divided over the fight for women's rights. This struggle galvanized formerly apolitical religious conservatives into becoming politically savvy Christian nationalists, even though church and state are supposed to be constitutionally separated. Their fundamentalist agenda allowed the rise of Trump and helps foment the current political and social polarization that is tearing this country apart.
-Americans HAVE to unite, march, peacefully protest, engage in difficult conversations with each other about equality, connect both in person and online, basically do whatever we can... the fate of American democracy is in our hands.
So many countries around the world love America because of our freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom to live... Trump, his lackeys in Congress, and the extremist Christian nationalists pulling their strings are threatening those freedoms we all hold dear. The time to act is now, before it’s too late. Let’s all be on the right side of history.
Check out the latest podcast episode of She's History on Apple Podcasts and SoundCloud.
https://soundcloud.com/sheshistory
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/shes-history/id1509084412
