Week on week, we are taken on a new roller coaster designed by Disaster Donald’s latest Twitter tirade. Sometimes, these tweets seem to be designed to detract from the previous self-inflicted wound. But this time it was different.
Acting like the racist wasteman-in-chief we know him to be, he singled out four of the most impressive young leaders in the United States for the colour of their skin by saying that they should “go back” to their supposed countries of origin. Representatives Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rashida Tlaib and Ayanna Pressley were all born in the US and Representative Ilhan Omar, though born in Somalia, was naturalised as an American when she was a teenager – making her an American for longer than Melania Trump.
Disaster Donald’s words were obviously xenophobic and racist. “Go back to your country” is a classic racist trope. If you don’t believe me, maybe you will believe the US House of Representative who just passed a motion to this effect. Still don’t believe it? George Conway, Kellyanne ‘Alternative Facts’ Conway’s husband, says that Disaster Donald is a racist president. Even Anthony Scaramucci, Disaster Donald’s short-lived press secretary, says the tweets were “racist and unacceptable”.
So why has Disaster Donald done nothing but double down since? To make us all forget his connection to the Epstein scandal? To make the democrats unite around women of colour in the hope that this would turn off fearful white voters in 2020? Or to show to the world – once again – that the President of the United States of America can be a racist bigot right out in the open and get away with it?
“Honestly, who cares what Disaster Donald’s motives really are? What matters is that he represents a brand of politics that seeks to separate people and instil hatred.”
Honestly, who cares what Disaster Donald’s motives really are? What matters is that he represents a brand of politics that seeks to separate people and instil hatred. Unfortunately, this brand of politics is on the ascent in much of the democratic world – from Hungary’s Orban to Salvini in Italy and Farage in the UK. What we do know is that these political figures entertain a web of connections – some loose and secretive, others binding and official. Indeed, these nationalists are organised in a global movement to reshape politics along white supremacist lines.
Now, like Harvard Professor Cornel West says, white supremacy – in some sense – lives in all of us. Consciously and not so consciously, we have all inherited some of the remains of empire and racism in our world views. But the real question is: What do we do about it everyday? Do we fight the patterns of oppression that operate across the world or do we revel in them? Do we call out injustice in all its shapes, forms, and colours when we see it, or do we selectively turn a blind eye? Do we work every day at becoming better friends to those who have been given the least, or do we turn our backs on them and kick them back into the Mediterranean sea or the Rio Grande to die before our very eyes?
“We are living through a historic moment. Right here, right now, the only difference that we should be focusing on is the difference between those who choose hope, compassion and human rights against those who chose fear, hatred and racism.”
We are living through a historic moment. Right here, right now, the only difference that we should be focusing on is the difference between those who choose hope, compassion and human rights against those who chose fear, hatred and racism.
The Squad make the positive case for change every day. At great risk to themselves, they stand up in front of millions of people and let their conscience speak loud and clear. In a political system that strengthens the hand of the rich and powerful, they stand up for ordinary people – wherever they find themselves. They champion healthcare as a human right, free at the point of use, free public higher education, as well as unconditional student debt forgiveness, the cause of peace across the globe, the rights of workers, and the plight of refugees and undocumented migrants. Like the best leaders, they are driven by a profound sense of ethical vision.
Their courage, care and sacrifice is a stark contrast of the cowardice, malice, and greed of Disastrous Donald and his far-right friends. It is also a source of tremendous hope and inspiration, not just for girls and young women, but for people of good conscience across the world.
Since the far-right are willing to organise across international boundaries to advance their agenda, it pushes those of us who believe in genuine democracy, human rights, and compassion to support and help one another across borders, oceans and mountain ranges.
Our greatest strength is our care for one another and our sense of compassion for strangers in need of a new home, healthcare and education. Before we belong to any nation, we are human. And it is as humans that we need to come together to tackle the great challenges that confront our species. The first and most important of these is climate catastrophe. Were the Squad in charge in the US right now, I think we’d have a much better chance of defeating it, before it is too late.
Magid Magid is the Green Party MEP for Yorkshire & The Humber