General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: They Dared Me to Post This... [View all]qwlauren35
(6,145 posts)Some people are willing to fight for both, some choose one over the other, some suggest that the two are intertwined. In my mind, the last is a cop-out, because it suggests that fighting for economic justice will somehow miraculously address racial injustice. I have tried my best to show how they are different. VERY different.
And I have been very careful with my words. I have said "ECONOMIC" vs. "RACIAL". I have not used the word "SOCIAL" which is an umbrella that tries to encompass both.
Because racial and economic "justice" involve policies, it is hard to "fight" for either of them. I find myself fighting symptoms more than causes. For those who have figured out how to fight for justice, I applaud them. But frankly, I think there are more people who say that they WANT them, and fewer who FIGHT for them.
I am not in the 1%. I wish we were closer to a socialist democracy. I wish that all of us had enough for basics, as is true in other European countries, and I have no problem taxing the 1% to achieve this.
But I do not see this as addressing issues of race. That is ALL that I am saying. Economic justice does not stop white people from hating black people.
Now, if you want to distinguish between DUers and liberal Democrats, and suggest that liberal Democrats will always fight for racial justice as well as economic justice, I will accept that, and not ask you to prove it. In fact, it may be the definition of a liberal Democrat, although to me it sounds like a socialist. The fact is, I'm glad that you highlighted my last sentence, because it seems to be getting ignored. So if I am incorrect about liberal Democrats, then I would state that they are a dying breed, and we still cannot count on them, because there are too few of them, and their energy is split. If you try to tackle too many things at once, none of them get your full attention.
With that said, I feel confident that there are LOTS of people willing to fight for economic justice, and that my desire to fight for racial justice should be accepted. It is like the PETA people. Or the climate change people. Or the pro-choice people (I'm one of them.) It's okay to focus on one. I respect that more than someone who suggests that "they are intertwined". To me, that's like saying climate change and abortion rights are intertwined, so when we fight for one, we are addressing the other. OK, maybe it's not that bad, but I'm trying to illustrate a point.
I do not respect people who will not let me distinguish between economic justice and racial justice. In my mind, that is disrespecting my reality.