Donald Trump, Chris Rock, and 21st Century Racism

Will you condemn David Duke and say that you don’t want his vote or that of other white supremacists in this election?

That was the question CNN’s Jake Tapper asked Donald Trump over the weekend. Trump, who has had no problem condemning Muslims and Mexicans throughout his campaign, failed to condemn white supremacists. He responded,

Well, just so you understand, I don’t know anything about David Duke, okay. I don’t know anything that you’re talking about with white supremacy or white supremacists.

When pressed, Trump wouldn’t even condemn the KKK. We probably shouldn’t be surprised, given Trumps constant race baiting. Much of white America, including the mainstream media, is up in arms. For example, conservative commentator Joe Scarborough of MSNBC said that this should disqualify Trump from the presidency. Marco Rubio claimed that Trump is a “con artist” who would virtually destroy “the party of Lincoln” if elected.

I get it. Trump is despicable. Politically speaking, it was an easy question to answer. To say it was a softball of a question is an insult to softball. Instead of denying the he knew David Duke or anything about white supremacy, he should have simply said, “Yes. I condemn David Duke and I condemn white supremacy.”

So white America is up in arms, pointing our collective finger against Donald Trump, accusing him of being a racist. Rightfully so.

But as someone who has been studying mimetic theory for many years, I know that when a crowd unites against someone, there’s a good chance it is scapegoating him. It may sound counterintuitive, but I also know that scapegoats can be guilty. In fact, the guiltier the person is, the easier it is to scapegoat him. Trump provides a great example of a guilty scapegoat. Here’s why:

What happens when white America condemns Donald Trump for being racist? We claim that he is the racist, which means that we are not.

René Girard made the psychological observation that, “At the source of hatred of the Other there is hatred of the self.” Trump holds up a mirror to white America. The truth, as offensive as it may be, is that at the source of white America’s collective hatred of Donald Tump for his racism is our own racism. And the more we unite against Trump, the more we hide from the fact that racism infects us, too.

After all, on Sunday we celebrated the Oscars. Hollywood, the beacon of American liberalism, was called out for racism. Chris Rock, in front of a dominantly white audience, made this prophetic statement –

Is Hollywood racist? You’re damn right Hollywood’s racist, but it’s not the racism you’ve grown accustomed to. Hollywood is sorority racist. It’s like, ‘We like you, Rhonda, but you aren’t Kappa. That’s how Hollywood is.

Hollywood’s racism is actually more pernicious than Donald Trump’s racism. That’s because Trump’s racism is out in plain view for everyone to condemn. And how easy it is to condemn Trump! But Hollywood’s racism is more concealed. Rock made it clear that Hollywood celebrates an ideal that everyone is welcome to the party, but in reality, only white people are allowed to attend.

To say that Hollywood’s racism is “sorority racist” means that inclusion and exclusion is based on the color of one’s skin. To paraphrase Rock, it’s to say, “We like you, Rhonda, but you just aren’t white.”

Hollywood’s racism is the 21^st century racism of white America. It’s “polite” racism. It abhors the word “segregation,” but in reality it comfortably lives in a racially segregated world where the best opportunities for success are given to white people.

Chris Rock told the prophetic truth about racism in America. It’s bigger than Donald Trump. It’s bigger than Hollywood. For white America to condemn Trump’s racism or Hollywood’s racism is to scapegoat them, because it conveniently absolves us from examining the racism that infects each of us.