Pursuing Veritas

2 responses to “Recommended Reading: November 12”

1. 

   Vincent S Artale Jr

   November 12, 2016

   Reblogged this on Talmidimblogging.

   Reply
2. 

   jacoblquick

   November 13, 2016

   Hi Jacob,

   Thank you for these great links. As usual, I enjoy the recommendations that I am able to read. For the sake of constructive dialogue, I would like to offer some pushback on the David French article regarding race and Trump in this list.

   I believe that his analysis relies on a misunderstanding of the complexities of race relations and, as a result, presents an invalid argument. As I understand it, French’s argument purports that since a significant amount of minorities voted for Trump, racism should not be considered as an explanatory factor in Trump’s election. However, the conclusion does not follow from his premises. For example, there were many women who were opposed to women’s suffrage (likewise, there still are women who believe that women should not vote). If French’s argument is correct, then the opposition to women’s right to vote was not motivated by misogyny, since there were women who maintained that the right to vote should be restricted to men. But such a conclusion is clearly false. The reality of race (and gender) discrimination is far more complex than the individualistic framework that French presupposes.

   The article also raises a larger concern of mine regarding the conservative response to the results of this election. It seems that many of the moderate or reluctant Trump supporters are far more concerned with washing their hands of voting for Trump than for actually caring for and seeking to help the communities of minorities that are terrorized by his election. Likewise, many conservatives who did not vote for Trump prioritize defending Trump supporters against charges of racism over and against showing solidarity for those who have been victimized by his toxic campaign during this election season.

   To be clear, I am not insisting that everyone who voted for Trump is a vicious racist, nor do I believe that racism is the sole explanation for the rise of Trump. But Trump’s campaign has been characterized by racism, misogyny and xenophobia, and those who supported (and continue to support) him must acknowledge this and understand that putting such a man in power will have consequences for the communities that he has openly threatened.

   Thank you for hearing me out. I would like to say that I know that your recommendation of these articles in no way entails that you endorse their arguments. This is not meant to be a personal attack in any way, nor do I want to presume your personal opinion on the matter. I just wanted to raise my concern for one of the articles and the larger problems that it raises.

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