7 ms·

Evan Smith, of the Texas Tribune, has closely followed thirteen legislative sessions. He noted that, even as Dan Patrick and his Republican allies slashed gover

by themgt 9y ago

Evan Smith, of the Texas Tribune, has closely followed thirteen legislative sessions. He noted that, even as Dan Patrick and his Republican allies slashed government services, they allocated eight hundred million dollars for border security. “White people are scared of change, believing that what they have is being taken away from them by people they consider unworthy,” he told me. “But all they’re doing is poking a bear with a stick. In 2004, the Anglo population in Texas became a minority. The last majority-Anglo high-school class in Texas graduated in 2014. There will never be another. The reality is, it’s all over for the Anglos.” Texas leads the nation in Latino population growth. For Wu, the sanctuary-cities bill was the natural culmination of the “bigoted, racist mentality” that has emerged in Texas, which he calls the epicenter of the Tea Party. “Trump is simply the most visible manifestation of that mentality,” he told me. “It’s been percolating up in the Republican Party for the past decade.” I find the way this piece is written really emblematic of the sort of two-faced and bad faith style for which our urban elites are becoming infamous. We have a number of things going on in the article, but part of the core point is stated only partially, which is that due to mass immigration the demographics of Texas are rapidly changing to "majority-minority" in such a way as to almost guarantee Democratic victory in the near future. And yet at the same time, the causes of this rapid demographic change are just barely hinted at, and mainly to not-so-subtly suggest anyone who opposes the demographic change or wants to enact policy measures to try to stop the trend is simply backwards, bigoted and naive to political realities. Trump is president, the GOP is currently ascendent, the political divide in the country is about as bad as it's ever been and getting worse, and the New Yorker is seemingly clueless to the way it's perceived by much of the country when it puts out a barely read-between-the-lines article whose message is: we will replace your people via mass immigration and you dumb hicks aren't going to stop it. If this becomes a country where saying "it’s all over for the Anglos" is normalized or even celebrated among urban elites, I seriously worry about our future for any kind of political peace.

rayiner 9y ago
The liberal rhetoric against white people has gotten alarming. Replace "anglos" in those quotes with another ethnic group and the result would be scary. Can you imagine a purportedly mainstream person cheering, e.g. the changing demographics of D.C. (where the black majority is rapidly being replaced by white gentrifiers) in that tone?
- angersock 9y ago
  Christ, I never thought we'd cleanly agree on something, but here we are.
- tptacek 9y ago
  Can you be more specific about the rhetoric you're referring to? "Liberal" means a lot of things, and the subtext behind different mentions of "white" people varies a lot too. If you're going to wade into this particular debate, you should be as clear as you can. It's especially tricky on this thread, because you seem to be responding to a quote expressing concern about demographic changes in Texas, which carries a weird subtext of Latinos and African Americans somehow being responsible for ensuring that they remain minorities. That can't possibly be what you mean. So, what do you mean?
  - themgt 9y ago
    I think it's easier to discuss this notion mapped to other nations, because the set of assumptions and stigma around these issues specifically in the US makes it very difficult to talk about. The US has also always been ethnically diverse, but diversity is not the same thing as to be devoid of an identity. Suffice it to say that US demographics are changing rapidly and many who see that as a good thing are going from acknowledging the change as a fact to actually openly celebrating it and predicting their own near-future cultural/political dominance based on the decline of whites to a minority status on national and state levels. Trying to point out how ... uncouth and toxic at best, this sort of rhetoric is, and the way it's heard in much of the country - simply trying to point out this interplay from an anthropologist on mars perspective - itself becomes almost impossible because accusations of racism fly immediately upon even bringing up that some people may be offended and angered when others celebrate the impending decline of their race and culture. Let's take a hypothetic Japan, or Ghana say, facing low native birth rates and a huge influx of white northwest European immigrants rapidly changing the demographics, culture and politics in their country. You can have whatever perspective you want on whether that new diversity and demographic replacement would be a beneficial thing in a given context, but regardless can you not see how elites celebrating that cultural/ethnic change in the faces of those confronting newfound minority status would often not be taken well? If you wanted to bring about a minority-Japanese nation of Japan, a minority-Ghanaian nation of Ghana, would you do it while also high-fiving over the decline of ethnically Japanese/Ghanaian people and their culture? Would you say "The reality is, it’s all over for the Japanese" and that their complaints about said fact is "poking a bear with a stick"? Might, just might, that serve to ratchet up tensions? Trump is sitting in office, and those of us on the left who try to point any of this utterly toxic dynamic playing out out are just routinely attacked as racist. It's a truly disheartening own-goal by those who claim to want this whole project to work out. You're not changing anyone's minds, just convincing them to keep their mouths shut and vote Trump.
mc32 9y ago
Unfortunately dog-whistling pays off. It's unfortunate that those who most vociferously propose politically correct speech abandon it when it comes to the working class and specifically working class whites. There is no shortage in media of the stereotypical fat lazy uneducated white worker who disrespects women. It's unfortunate because it causes even further division and actively drives this class of people towards the Trumps of the world. I say the world because the same happens in Western Europe.
- dtornabene 9y ago
  This isn't dog whistling. For the love of G-d, someone look up Evan Smith and tell me he's a jaded NYer tweeting from a loft overlooking the Hudson eating brunch with his brown comrades plotting the overthrow of Real America.
malcolmgreaves 9y ago
As we dismantle the institutions of racism, white people will no longer be the only ones to enjoy a multitude of subtle, pervasive privileges. E.g. being the default image of "an American" or the hero in an Western-centric movie, book, story etc. Or a person who doesn't look like they're up to no good. Note that this isn't an attack on white people, but a natural consequence of equalization. For there to not be special treatment on one ethnic group, we must either remove that treatment or distribute it among all. America is moving in the direction of the latter. White people are afraid of this distribution: they fear it will cheapen their special status and errode their identities. However, this is irrational: fully including everyone doesn't cheapen, errode, or otherwise destroy anything. It's a prehistoric, childish emotion: to horde something and play king of the hill. Note: I am a white man.
- DonnyV 9y ago
  ^^^^^ Truth!!!! Couldn't have said it better myself. Welcome to the America the non-white people have been living this whole time.
joe_the_user 9y ago
The factor behind the Latino population growth rate is now no longer immigration but a high birthrate. http://www.pewhispanic.org/2016/09/08/latino-population-growth-and-dispersion-has-slowed-since-the-onset-of-the-great-recession/ http://www.pewhispanic.org/2016/09/08/latino-population-grow...
noduerespect 9y ago
And yet at the same time, the causes of this rapid demographic change are just barely hinted at, and mainly to not-so-subtly suggest anyone who opposes the demographic change or wants to enact policy measures to try to stop the trend is simply backwards, bigoted and naive to political realities. With all due respect - very little indeed is due your tone, so I'll give a bit more than that - as the child of a naturalized immigrant and native-born American, may I kindly ask what policy measures, precisely, you'd suggest were warranted or in any way defensible to "stop the trend" of my inconvenient citizenship? Like it or not, I'm here, and I'm also American. edit: also, I've got kids. Who are also American.
- otalp 9y ago
  Yeah, it's essentially "People who want fewer brown people should not be called racist, bigoted etc. because wanting a permanent white majority is a respectable position to have" It's a position people have, and I don't like to use labels myself, but I see no reason for worrying about changes in the ethnic distribution of a population aside from deep seated biases.
  - deleted 9y ago
    [deleted]
pmoriarty 9y ago
This article was not about the changing demographics of Texas, but, as the subtitle says, about the "crackpots and ideologues has fed its [Texas'] reputation for proud know-nothingism and retrograde thinking". The part you chose to quote was from a small part of a very long article on Texas crackpots. So, no, the author did not go in to depth as to the reasons for or implications of this demographic change. That's not what the article was about.
- dtornabene 9y ago
  Thanks for taking the time to post this. I was beginning to feel like I was the only one who actually read this article.
dtornabene 9y ago
There's a reason Evan Smith, who, despite this bizarre attack, is manifestly not some kind of anti-white race warrior, used the word Anglo. Texas is very much a melting pot, and even more so between Northern European settlers, Spanish settlers, and Mexican Americans. Anglo is used because more than a few people who are spanish-speaking descendent identify as white. I know this is shouting in the hurricane, but it might do you good to actually check out who it is your complaining about before you lob something like this out there. I'm also curious what your opinion is on "the causes of this rapid demographic shift" that are "barely hinted at"? Another point worth saying is that, its not the "urban elites" (wtf does that even mean) who are trumpeting the decline of "the anglos". Its the Daily Stormer. Its Breitbart. Its The Blaze. And, of course, its Fox News. I've stated elsewhere in the thread, I'm Texas born and bred. I've watched the descent into the maelstrom of Texas politics. Pieces sneering at Texas are a dime a dozen, this isn't one of them. I'm also curious about this line: "And yet at the same time, the causes of this rapid demographic change are just barely hinted at, and mainly to not-so-subtly suggest anyone who opposes the demographic change or wants to enact policy measures to try to stop the trend is simply backwards, bigoted and naive to political realities." What exactly are you trying to say here? Because, yeah, any attempt to some how shore up a white demographic majority is, yeah, racist.

by themgt 9y ago

rayiner 9y ago

The liberal rhetoric against white people has gotten alarming. Replace "anglos" in those quotes with another ethnic group and the result would be scary. Can you imagine a purportedly mainstream person cheering, e.g. the changing demographics of D.C. (where the black majority is rapidly being replaced by white gentrifiers) in that tone?

angersock 9y ago
Christ, I never thought we'd cleanly agree on something, but here we are.
tptacek 9y ago
Can you be more specific about the rhetoric you're referring to? "Liberal" means a lot of things, and the subtext behind different mentions of "white" people varies a lot too. If you're going to wade into this particular debate, you should be as clear as you can. It's especially tricky on this thread, because you seem to be responding to a quote expressing concern about demographic changes in Texas, which carries a weird subtext of Latinos and African Americans somehow being responsible for ensuring that they remain minorities. That can't possibly be what you mean. So, what do you mean?
- themgt 9y ago
  I think it's easier to discuss this notion mapped to other nations, because the set of assumptions and stigma around these issues specifically in the US makes it very difficult to talk about. The US has also always been ethnically diverse, but diversity is not the same thing as to be devoid of an identity. Suffice it to say that US demographics are changing rapidly and many who see that as a good thing are going from acknowledging the change as a fact to actually openly celebrating it and predicting their own near-future cultural/political dominance based on the decline of whites to a minority status on national and state levels. Trying to point out how ... uncouth and toxic at best, this sort of rhetoric is, and the way it's heard in much of the country - simply trying to point out this interplay from an anthropologist on mars perspective - itself becomes almost impossible because accusations of racism fly immediately upon even bringing up that some people may be offended and angered when others celebrate the impending decline of their race and culture. Let's take a hypothetic Japan, or Ghana say, facing low native birth rates and a huge influx of white northwest European immigrants rapidly changing the demographics, culture and politics in their country. You can have whatever perspective you want on whether that new diversity and demographic replacement would be a beneficial thing in a given context, but regardless can you not see how elites celebrating that cultural/ethnic change in the faces of those confronting newfound minority status would often not be taken well? If you wanted to bring about a minority-Japanese nation of Japan, a minority-Ghanaian nation of Ghana, would you do it while also high-fiving over the decline of ethnically Japanese/Ghanaian people and their culture? Would you say "The reality is, it’s all over for the Japanese" and that their complaints about said fact is "poking a bear with a stick"? Might, just might, that serve to ratchet up tensions? Trump is sitting in office, and those of us on the left who try to point any of this utterly toxic dynamic playing out out are just routinely attacked as racist. It's a truly disheartening own-goal by those who claim to want this whole project to work out. You're not changing anyone's minds, just convincing them to keep their mouths shut and vote Trump.

mc32 9y ago

Unfortunately dog-whistling pays off. It's unfortunate that those who most vociferously propose politically correct speech abandon it when it comes to the working class and specifically working class whites. There is no shortage in media of the stereotypical fat lazy uneducated white worker who disrespects women. It's unfortunate because it causes even further division and actively drives this class of people towards the Trumps of the world. I say the world because the same happens in Western Europe.

dtornabene 9y ago
This isn't dog whistling. For the love of G-d, someone look up Evan Smith and tell me he's a jaded NYer tweeting from a loft overlooking the Hudson eating brunch with his brown comrades plotting the overthrow of Real America.

malcolmgreaves 9y ago

As we dismantle the institutions of racism, white people will no longer be the only ones to enjoy a multitude of subtle, pervasive privileges. E.g. being the default image of "an American" or the hero in an Western-centric movie, book, story etc. Or a person who doesn't look like they're up to no good. Note that this isn't an attack on white people, but a natural consequence of equalization. For there to not be special treatment on one ethnic group, we must either remove that treatment or distribute it among all. America is moving in the direction of the latter. White people are afraid of this distribution: they fear it will cheapen their special status and errode their identities. However, this is irrational: fully including everyone doesn't cheapen, errode, or otherwise destroy anything. It's a prehistoric, childish emotion: to horde something and play king of the hill. Note: I am a white man.

DonnyV 9y ago
^^^^^ Truth!!!! Couldn't have said it better myself. Welcome to the America the non-white people have been living this whole time.

joe_the_user 9y ago

The factor behind the Latino population growth rate is now no longer immigration but a high birthrate. http://www.pewhispanic.org/2016/09/08/latino-population-growth-and-dispersion-has-slowed-since-the-onset-of-the-great-recession/ http://www.pewhispanic.org/2016/09/08/latino-population-grow...

noduerespect 9y ago

And yet at the same time, the causes of this rapid demographic change are just barely hinted at, and mainly to not-so-subtly suggest anyone who opposes the demographic change or wants to enact policy measures to try to stop the trend is simply backwards, bigoted and naive to political realities. With all due respect - very little indeed is due your tone, so I'll give a bit more than that - as the child of a naturalized immigrant and native-born American, may I kindly ask what policy measures, precisely, you'd suggest were warranted or in any way defensible to "stop the trend" of my inconvenient citizenship? Like it or not, I'm here, and I'm also American. edit: also, I've got kids. Who are also American.

otalp 9y ago
Yeah, it's essentially "People who want fewer brown people should not be called racist, bigoted etc. because wanting a permanent white majority is a respectable position to have" It's a position people have, and I don't like to use labels myself, but I see no reason for worrying about changes in the ethnic distribution of a population aside from deep seated biases.
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]

pmoriarty 9y ago

This article was not about the changing demographics of Texas, but, as the subtitle says, about the "crackpots and ideologues has fed its [Texas'] reputation for proud know-nothingism and retrograde thinking". The part you chose to quote was from a small part of a very long article on Texas crackpots. So, no, the author did not go in to depth as to the reasons for or implications of this demographic change. That's not what the article was about.

dtornabene 9y ago
Thanks for taking the time to post this. I was beginning to feel like I was the only one who actually read this article.

dtornabene 9y ago

There's a reason Evan Smith, who, despite this bizarre attack, is manifestly not some kind of anti-white race warrior, used the word Anglo. Texas is very much a melting pot, and even more so between Northern European settlers, Spanish settlers, and Mexican Americans. Anglo is used because more than a few people who are spanish-speaking descendent identify as white. I know this is shouting in the hurricane, but it might do you good to actually check out who it is your complaining about before you lob something like this out there. I'm also curious what your opinion is on "the causes of this rapid demographic shift" that are "barely hinted at"? Another point worth saying is that, its not the "urban elites" (wtf does that even mean) who are trumpeting the decline of "the anglos". Its the Daily Stormer. Its Breitbart. Its The Blaze. And, of course, its Fox News. I've stated elsewhere in the thread, I'm Texas born and bred. I've watched the descent into the maelstrom of Texas politics. Pieces sneering at Texas are a dime a dozen, this isn't one of them. I'm also curious about this line: "And yet at the same time, the causes of this rapid demographic change are just barely hinted at, and mainly to not-so-subtly suggest anyone who opposes the demographic change or wants to enact policy measures to try to stop the trend is simply backwards, bigoted and naive to political realities." What exactly are you trying to say here? Because, yeah, any attempt to some how shore up a white demographic majority is, yeah, racist.