Now, I’ve written my share of posts defending Texas from overeager Yankee liberals who want to write the state off completely. I have my reasons: Texas has a progressive history, Texas has some of the more interesting cities in the country, and Texas is one of the most racially diverse states in the country (something that could be a plus if anyone was just willing to harness that diversity). But this article by Michael Lind defending Southern whites from the charge—-in light of polling data that shows that the majority of Southern whites believe that Obama isn’t a natural-born citizen—-of being a bunch of hate-filled racists? He’s just going too far. And if he really is a white man from Texas as he claims, he’s either lived ensconced in Hyde Park in Austin his whole life, or he’s being intellectually dishonest, because if you’re a white person living in Texas very long, you soon discover that most white Southerners are hate-filled racists. And I use “hate-filled” for a reason, because most white people—-most people in general, which I’ll get back to—-have to contend with a lifetime of vicious stereotypes worming into your brain, and so you are often a condescending or unintentional racist. But that’s not what I’m talking about. Those white people, in which I include myself, are well-meaning, believe racism is wrong, and often try really hard to overcome it. I’m talking about rolling in the mud, oinking, proud-to-be-racist racists.
Believe me, I’ve lived my whole life trying like hell to weasel out of conversations with people who get that gleam of pseudo-naughtiness in their eye before they drop some horrible stinking racist comment, and then puff up with the pride that comes from believing you’re superior for what is essentially an arbitrary reason. Name a racial slur, and I’ve heard a white person use it with malice. They assume you want to hear it, because you’re white. Or they know you’re a liberal, and they want to push your buttons. When dealing with the redneckeria, few conversations are safe from racist comments. I’ve even had a card game go sour because a player insisted on making racist jokes about the cards, due to the fact that they do come in different colors. Oh, racists all claim not to be racist, even if they find inventive new slurs to call black people or stick to the old ones like “wetbacks” to describe Mexican immigrants. It’s all in fun! Get a sense of humor! But the reaction that you’re seeing at these town halls, or the very existence of the birther conspiracy theory, proves otherwise. They very well fucking mean it.
As a Southern white who puts myself in the good guy column, I can relate to getting your hackles up when some liberal bloggers lump all Southern whites together. I’ve made similar lists to the one Lind makes: Molly Ivins! Ann and Cecile Richards! Jim Hightower! Lyndon B. Johnson! (Okay, these are all Texans. What can I say? We have the mojo.) But Lind pulls a sleight of hand that I find intellectually dishonest:
I grew up in Texas, which gave our nation champions of the New Deal and civil rights like Maury Maverick, Ralph Yarborough, Lyndon Johnson, Henry Gonzalez, Barbara Jordan, Lloyd Doggett and Frances “Sissy” Farenthold, who argued Roe v. Wade.
Or, Sarah Weddington, who argued Roe v. Wade, but I’ll let that one pass. Do you see a problem with marshaling a list like this in a specific defense of white Texans? How about the fact that Henry Gonzalez is Hispanic and Barbara Jordan was black?
Lind then proceeds to spend the rest of the article lashing out at what he assumes are liberal taboos, such as criticizing white women, blacks, or Latinos for having similarly backwards opinions like those of Southern white men. For someone who is preaching about creating bridges with others, he’s not being very politic. There’s a great deal of wisdom in the idea of tending your own garden, and liberal Southern whites have a duty, first and foremost, to resist and speak out against other Southern whites who are sexist, racist assholes. But Lind is doing the opposite here, lashing out at anyone who isn’t a Southern white man. First, you have black people.