We previously discussed the views of Boston University professor and head of the school’s Center for Antiracist Research Ibfram X. Kendi after his infamous description of Justice Amy Coney Barrett as a “white colonizer” for adopting two Haitian children. Despite such extreme views, Kendi remains a popular speaker at universities like Harvard. Now, Kendi is warning that the use of “legal vote” in the current election is itself racist.
Kendi declared on Twitter that “The term ‘legal vote’ is as fictionally fraught and functionally racist as the terms ‘illegal alien’ and ‘race neutral’ and ‘welfare queen” and ‘handouts’ and ‘super predator’ and ‘crackbaby’ and ‘personal responsibility’ and ‘post racial.’”
Many academic have used terms like “postracial” but the list of newly declared racist or “microaggressive” terms have been expanding at universities to combat racism, classism, fatphobia, sexism, transphobia, “othering” and other problems. As I have previously written, there are real issues and valid concerns with language and the need for greater sensitivity. I have tailored my own language after reading some of those concerns. However, the list of suspect or prohibited terms seems to be expanding exponentially. There are also issues of free speech raised by these lists and the chilling effect on discourse. Terms ranging from “melting pot” to phrases like “pulling oneself up by your own bootstraps” have been declared racist. While professors have made overtly racist statements about whites (including colleagues of Kendi at Boston University), the line of what is acceptable speech for faculty is getting more and more difficult to ascertain. Indeed, Kendi followed his declaration with “There are so many more terms like this. What did I leave out?”
Under Kendi’s new additions, it is not clear if a professor would be summarily dismissed for passing around a “handout” on the “personal responsibility” to cast your “legal vote.”
Professor Kendi explained “The misinformation of widespread voter fraud—or ‘illegal voting’—in Detroit, Philadelphia, Atlanta, and Phoenix where Black and Brown voters predominate is baked into the term ‘legal vote.” No matter what GOP propaganda says, there’s nothing wrong with those voters and votes.”
I have no problem with Kendi striking out at what he sees as misinformation. As I have repeatedly said, there is still no evidence of systemic voting fraud. There is evidence (in the form of sworn affidavits of localized voting fraud and officials in states like Georgia have stated that they expect to find more such evidence (though they questioned whether it will be enough to make any real difference). However, illegal voting is still a crime. Cities like Detroit and Philadelphia have had prior histories of voting irregularities and fraud. So has my home town Chicago where one were guaranteed under the Daley machine a type of electoral immorality. If any inquiry into illegal voting is racist, it is not clear what we are supposed to do with our election laws. Illegal voting is a simple descriptive term on the status of a vote as improperly cast.
The doctrine of “one man, one vote” is actually a civil rights mantra found not only in constitutional law but political movements (like this Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee button). It is the doctrine embraced in a long series of court cases. See Gray v. Sanders, 372 U.S. 368 (1963); Reynolds v. Sims, 377 U.S. 533 (1964); Wesberry v. Sanders, 376 U.S. 1 (1964); and Avery v. Midland County, 390 U.S. 474 (1968).
The declaration of illegal votes as racist is clearly meant to paint anyone considering the current challenges as themselves racist, even before these claims are fully addressed in the courts. Yet, such challenges often are filed to protect minority votes. In the 2004 election, I was working for CBS and raised whether there should be challenges in Ohio over voter suppression and irregularities targeting minority areas in the Bush/Kerry race. The very heart of our civil rights and voting rights laws is found in our political system and the integrity of our elections. Illegal voting diminishes the voice of all Americans, including minority voters.
I remain unclear why there is such a wholesale effort to shutdown these challenges. Within 24 hours of the election, legal analysts and the media were declaring no evidence of fraud before we even saw a single court challenge. Now even the reference to “legal votes” or “illegal votes” is being declared racist. I have no reason to doubt that Biden is our president-elect. However, we have the time to address these challenges and assure all Americans that the election was legitimate. Almost half of this country voted for Trump. Those roughly 71 millions voters should feel that these challenges were given a fair hearing. It is the same assurance that Democrats have demanded in prior elections. Indeed, Democratic leaders declared before this election that Trump could not win by stealing votes and Hillary Clinton told Biden not to concede under any circumstances.
So let’s count the votes and conclude this election.
Add EBT card to the whistle list. Uncle Joe has a Big Guy box of EBT cards for all comrades of the collective.
What really happened in Georgia when the water main reportedly broke causing a delay the election counting in the state?
On election night in Georgia President Trump was running away with the Presidential election, then suddenly it was reported that vote counting had stopped in Fulton County due to a water main break in Atlanta.
In response the only public records generated as a result of the alleged “burst pipe” that halted the counting of ballots in Atlanta (Fulton Co.) were a few text messages. These messages were with the Sr. Vice President of the Atlanta Hawks, Geoffrey Stiles, who called it a “slow leak” that was “contained quickly,” and he said the entire thing was “highly exaggerated.”
No repair orders or work orders or invoices from a plumber associated with this “burst pipe” were provided. Nothing.
Dzikowski also filed a similar request with the Fulton County Board of Registrations and Elections which resulted in no records being located per their response.
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The New York Times on Tuesday evening said Trump has an 83% chance of winning Georgia.
The New York Post reported:
A burst pipe has slowed the counting of absentee-by-mail ballots in the Georgia county that includes Atlanta by four hours — likely ruining any hope that the state’s election results will be known on Tuesday night.
No ballots were damaged in the mishap in Fulton County, which is home to a tenth of all Georgians, officials told the Atlanta Journal Constitution.
The water pipe burst happened in a procession center at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, the report said.
“There was a pipe that burst in the room where we actually had ballots; thank goodness that none of those ballots were damaged,” county election official Dwight Brower told the paper.
Results will now “be later than what we would like it to be,” another election official told the paper.
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What really happened on election night in Atlanta and what was the real reason they stopped counting tens of thousands of absentee votes until the next day?
– Joe Hoft
College professors are today’s court jesters…no…they’re today’s village idiots. WTF cares what they say?
Election officials, staff and operators in key states, if not all states, must have their testimony put on record.
Will they commit perjury?
The “fake” Biden victory is “too perfect” according to Shiva Ayyadurai, PhD., MIT.
It’s the algorithm, stupid.
Were they in China, all the officers, staff and operators who corrupted the Michigan vote and other election data would be immediately convicted of state “corruption” and executed.
He has created a career of calling everything racist. What a sad, pathetic existence to find hate in everything.
Of course I understand that. I also know it’s irrelevant to Sam’s claim that “a candidate doesn’t become “president-elect” until AFTER the Electoral College meets in December”.
“a candidate doesn’t become “president-elect” until AFTER the Electoral College meets in December”.
Technically and formally this is true, but IMO, informally, after a concession, the “president-elect” designation would seem uncontroversial.
But that’s just me…
Christina Bobb: Trump won. Dems are stuck.
Wow, great vid!!
The charge of “racism!” for anything and everything has become a way to numb the mind on the way to the revolution. Academia is abetting and indulging this type of hate and self-righteousness. With no checks, it’s “research” has become a joke.
This is what happens when the media gives a pass to a presidential candidate (aka “Caligula’s horse”):
“If I’d known Biden was open to ‘lockdowns’ as he now states, which is something historically unprecedented in any pandemic, and a terrifying practice, one that won’t ever end because elites love it, I would never have voted for him.” (Dr. Naomi Wolf, a liberal feminist)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MA8a2g6tTp0
When the president-elect speaks…he occasionally gets it right.
I would think a prominent professor and legal analyst would know that a candidate doesn’t become “president-elect” until AFTER the Electoral College meets in December. The current date is December 14. After that, and only after that, Biden will become “president-elect,” – IF he gets enough votes. Votes are still being counted and recounts are underway in two states so far, including a hand recount in Georgia. Who knows what will happen in PA? The legislature certifies the state electors and the Pennsylvania legislature is controlled by Republicans. This election is still up in the air.
People started calling Trump “President-elect” the day after the election in 2016. Did you object to that too?
“People started calling Trump “President-elect” the day after the election in 2016. Did you object to that too?”
Concession vs non-concession.
Surely you grasp the distinction…
Sam, in spite of the local reality-deniers, it is obvious that Trump won this election huge. HUGE.
Although it is theoretically possible to be struck by lightning 100 times in a single day, it is not consistent with reality.
Similarly, it is theoretically possible that Biden under-performed predictions everywhere except a handful of blue counties in a handful of swing states (by virtue of late-night ballot dumps), however, it is not consistent with reality.
The recounts and legal battles are going to be fun to watch, so grab some popcorn and enjoy.