Los Angeles Times “Black Twitter” correspondent Dexter Thomas has a New Year’s resolution for white people: dump Donald Trump.
“Trump is not a Republican problem. He’s a white-people problem,” writes Thomas, in a provocative column entitled, “In 2016, white people must take responsibility for Donald Trump.”
In Thomas’s view, Trump is not only racist, but appeals to the nascent racism of white people in general–and ignoring him is not an option.
“Even for whites who find Trump’s rhetoric repulsive, joking about him, or even rejecting him, will not be enough,” Thomas writes. “They now need to turn their focus to the society that allowed him to come to prominence. Particularly among whites who prefer to view themselves as ‘color blind,’ there is a dangerous attitude that the best way to make racial injustice go away is to not talk about it.”
Instead, white people must make Trump their problem.
Thomas quotes race entrepreneur Tim Wise, who once accused Andrew Breitbart–falsely, and viciously–of burning a cross on the grounds of his own fraternity at Tulane University.
Wise says that Trump will not win the election–and that will make him more dangerous, because frustrated white voters will then turn to terrorism.
In agreement, Thomas cites a California man who was recently arrested on terror charges after threatening the mosque. The man was described in media reports as a “Donald Trump supporter,” though his praises for Hillary Clinton were ignored.
In addition, Thomas also cites “racial justice” activists who are trying “to organize 7 million whites who will pledge to combat racism in their daily lives.” The need is urgent: “Too many whites are satisfied with things as they are–probably because the system seems to work for them.”
Opposing Trump, he says, is a way to show you care.