White Racism Notes

I'm sure it's true everywhere, but those of us who have grown up in the South learn early on how best to conceal racism in a semi-public place. It typically happens when someone is about to make a racist remark or tell a racist joke. Sensing those in earshot might enjoy a bit of racist humor, one makes a silent signal to "gather around and listen," glances around to insure no one in the target group can hear, then quietly shares the humor with the others. I have witnessed this countless times, always being extra careful to conceal my identity as a closet liberal, sometimes even joining in by looking amused.
Believe me when I say I know the drill. After having been a civil rights activist for a couple of years away at college I had to drop out of school, return home and get a job to repay the money I had borrowed. The job I found was semi-skilled labor in a paint shop, working with a crowd of good old boys who had worked together for several years. This was when the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was enacted and conversations among working class white guys invariably mentioned the KKK. As far as I know none of the men around me were members, but I recall one of them speaking well of the Klan, citing how they did a lot more than persecute black people. He told of a situation in rural Alabama that involved a man who was known to be abusive to his wife and prone to drunken misbehavior. One night members of the Klan paid him a visit, warned him to clean up his act and literally whipped him, physically. After that, the story went, he was a different guy. He quit drinking so much and stopped beating his wife -- and the Klan got credit for having done something good than had nothing to do with black people.
Now, over fifty years later, circumstances have changed but the dynamic of being a closet liberal remains the same. Even (or especially) with social media I find myself being careful not to offend a few among my family and friends. Too much candor can cause trouble among those we know and we learn to overlook differences of opinion for the sake of relationships. I'm sure the reader knows what I'm talking about. It's one of the most important bonds of human behavior.

Having said all that, I must note that for the first time in my experience the subject of racism generally and white nationalism specifically is being discussed openly in the press and hopefully among ordinary people. Issues of race that simmered for years burst into the public square with the election of a black president, but he successfully calmed the fears of many white people, despite the relentless opposition of the man who has now become his successor. Which brings us to the subject of this post -- the racism of Donald Trump and his embrace of white nationalism. No need for me to list examples here. That assignment is done well by others. This, however, is what is happening at the moment in the aftermath of mass shootings in El Paso and Dayton.

This appeared in Facebook today:

This handy collection of images with
the "Crazy conspiracy theory"
underscores the point.

Crazy conspiracy theory of the day... As Trump read from the TelePrompTer, he ordered that all American flags at military installations, federal facilities, and the White House be flown at half-staff until sunset on August 8.
That is 8/8. Why THAT date?“88 is a white supremacist numerical code for "Heil Hitler." H is the eighth letter of the alphabet, so 88 = HH = Heil Hitler. One of the most common white supremacist symbols, 88 is used throughout the entire white supremacist movement, not just neo-Nazis. One can find it as a tattoo or graphic symbol; as part of the name of a group, publication or website; or as part of a screenname or e-mail address. It is even sometimes used as a greeting or sign-off (particularly in messages on social networking websites).”
Did white supremacist Steven Miller write his speech? Somebody up there is messing with trump now.

Taken alone this does indeed appear to be a "crazy conspiracy theory." But it doesn't take long to find similar examples of concealed racism described above in another instance noted in Salon over a year ago.

When there is no low beneath which a president and his administration will not sink, and no rule or norm which he, his allies and his supporters will not break, almost anything is possible. This atmosphere of chaos and unpredictability is one of Donald Trump's great political advantages.
Last week, reporters and those others who monitor hate groups and extremist movements called attention to a little noticed press release issued in February by the Department of Homeland Security. Its title was unremarkable, at least by the standards of Trump administration propaganda: "We Must Secure the Border and Build the Wall to Make America Safe Again."
Two things about that title have now attracted notice. It consists of 14 words, and its phrasing is strikingly similar to the 14 words of the neo-Nazi movement's semi-official slogan: "We must secure the existence of our people and a future for white children."
Just a coincidence? Probably. But the DHS release also contained another odd passage where, instead of using percentages or presenting statistics as a proportion of 10 or 100, as is routine, specific numbers were used: “On average, out of 88 [asylum] claims that pass the credible fear screening, fewer than 13 will ultimately result in a grant of asylum.”
The number 88 has a special significance to neo-Nazis and other white supremacists, as does the number 14. At Law and Crime, Colin Kalmbacher explains: "The '14 words' are frequently used in conjunction with the number 88 because 'H' is the eighth letter of the alphabet and therefore 88 becomes 'HH' which stands for 'Heil Hitler.'" Kalmbacher observes that in addition to its 14-word headline, the DHS release also contains "14 distinct sets of claims; 13 of which are bullet-pointed–one of which is not."

There is more at the link, but this is enough to make the point. I will add that the same date, whether coordinated or not, was also chosen by Florida's Governor Ron DeSantis. 

To honor the victims of the El Paso and Dayton mass shootings, which occurred just hours apart, President Donald Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis have ordered flags to be flown at half-staff.

Conspiracy or not, the significance of numbers and symbols is no longer a secret. 

Addendum, August 6...

This move addresses the point.
We have no way of knowing whether the initial date was chosen for it's symbolic message, or the order to "re-raise" flags is to correct or underscore that very point.

Trump has ordered flags to be reraised on 8/8. Perhaps he doesn't know any better, maybe he does. But neo-nazis will take it as a sign. It's one of their numbers. Who is advising him on this stuff? pic.twitter.com/p60dhLMwgR

— Alternative NOAA (@altNOAA) August 7, 2019