GET BACK TO WHERE YOU ONCE BELONGED

Jesus said (John 8:31-32), “If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;  And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”

But that was 2000 years ago.  Many a weary century has passed since then, and believers continued to assume that truth was the only path to freedom.  And then, in 2016, God anointed Donald Trump as Jesus’ spiritual heir.  His divinely ordained mission was to bring Biblical morality into the 21st century.  In the forthcoming addendum to the New Testament, “St. Donald’s Epistle to the MAGAs,” believers are given a new dispensation:  Trump trumps truth. 

Out of all Trump has done for his Deplorable base, the thing they appreciate most is that he showed them better living through hypocrisy.  The whole “go back where you came from” controversy is just the latest case in point. 

There is a long history of white folks trying to intimidate Black folks who fret too publicly about the discrimination they face.  A letter to the editor of the NEW ENGLAND BULLETIN in 1949 illustrates a typical two-pronged argument (see below).  Mrs. Ada Hills deploys a classic carrot and stick combination.  (But the carrot can also be used as a stick against ingrates who refuse to heed sensible advice.) 

In the Hillis letter, the carrot comes first – in the form of a reminder about all those “splendid opportunities” that slaves and their descendants were afforded by their benevolent white overlords.  Didn’t they receive on the job training about how to pick not only cotton, but tobacco, peanuts, and other crops as well?  If, after 400 years, Black people haven’t figured out how to monetize these skills, it’s not Mrs. Hillis’ fault, is it? 

Having dispensed with the obligatory nod to the blessings of involuntary servitude, Mrs. Hillis pivoted to her main point.  But she said the quiet part out loud – not just “go back where you came from,” but explicitly “go right back to Africa.” 

Because it’s Africa that’s the problem, after all.  No one worries much about Slovenian models entering the country illegally.  I’m sure Mrs. Hillis then, like Evangelicals today, simply didn’t have time to reflect on why so many Black folks left their African homes for a life of ease as plantation slaves. 

Maybe those illegal African immigrants were simply bored with life back in the jungle.  Perhaps they’d heard rumors about the generous welfare checks that British and Spanish colonial governments were giving out back in the 17th century.  Why did they come here in the first place if they were going to be so ungrateful?  Well, there’s no use crying over spilt milk.  As long as it’s somebody else’s spilt milk.

In 1949, Mrs. Ada Hillis would have been just another grumpy old white lady.  Seventy years later, it’s clear that she was a prophet.  She articulated one of the key platform planks of the 2020 Republican Party, which is that Black people should go back to Africa, or maybe to our hated geopolitical rival du jour.  In 1949, it was Russia.  Now that President-for-Life Trump and Czar Vladimir Putin are BFFs, Mrs. Hillis and her spiritual heirs would probably say if you don’t like it here, try living in Iran. 

Maybe I missed it, but I’m not aware of a single Deplorable, including Birther-in-Chief Donald Trump, who opted to leave the country during Barack Obama’s eight-year reign of terror.  No, they stuck around and complained.  Incessantly.  And they’re still complaining, even though the throne is now occupied by their avatar, whose European ancestry is indisputable. 

Somehow, despite their general “fuck your feelings” attitude towards those who offended by Donald Trump, the Deplorables get all sensitive when Democrats point out that anyone who supports Trump’s racist remarks is supporting racism. 

Unless you live in a world where logic and proportion have fallen sloppy dead, it’s really pretty simple.  If you agree with, approve of, and/or amplify racist statements, you’re a racist.  There’s no way out.  Well, except for denial. 

The truth is, it doesn’t matter who else is racist too, or whether they’re Republican, Democrat, or whatever.  Nor does it matter why you decided to become a racist in the first place.  The conversation has to start with your racism.  Own that, and we can talk about why.  But first, take responsibility for your beliefs. 

Unless you’re a white Evangelical Christian.  Luckily for Evangelical Deplorables, the rise of the new Cyrus (also known as Donald J. Trump, professional con man) helped them understand that they could stop worrying about morality.  Instead, do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the law.  Trump fans can do whatever they want as long as they proclaim their love for Jesus and the American flag.  (Or the Confederate flag, because there are good people on both sides.) 

Trump has also modernized the philosophy of Benjamin Disraeli, the 19th century British Prime Minister who coined the phrase, “Never complain, never explain.”  Trump loves to complain, and does so compulsively.  But he has a consistent, one-size-fits-all response.  If something bad happens, it’s always someone else’s fault.  Call it fake news, and do something new to piss off the liberals. The key is to stop making sense.

Harry Truman and George Orwell both left their mark on post-war culture, and they both knew the value of facts – plain old accurate information.  Truman put it this way: “The only thing new in the world is the history you don’t know.” 

On the other hand, Orwell observed that, “Who controls the past controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past.”  Donald Trump is trying, and at least partially succeeding, in controlling the past by calling it fake news and ignoring it. 

After all, studying history is hard work, and mostly boring.Instead of learning from your mistakes, it’s easier just to deny that you made them.If an inconvenient truth surfaces, just repeat Trump’s update of the Golden Rule – “If you’re famous, they let you do it.”