On the Election Results: The Bad

By Tasha K

A tweet I read yesterday said, “We are back to regular racism, ya’ll.”...back to combating that “Get Out” racism. I dubbed the description as a “racism cushion.” The bad is here, even in the midst of a significant political change. Racism is still real. It still needs to be dismantled. It’s still killing us. 

I believe with this election result we will see a little less ease in the way racism—synchronously and asynchronously—will be moving about this country. I have no idea what the next two months will hold, but the next four years will be an uphill battle with hopes of a lot of change in the process. It will be a journey of accountability as we ask for what we want after rocking the vote. There is sooo much to do, and though the president holds power to change the systems, barriers of oppression remain. 

“The Bad” lies in the fact that we are still fighting the same battles. And though we are tired, we are energized by our recent victory. Small as it was, we can breathe a little easier, and move a little faster as we do this life-long work. My hope is that white folx don’t forget that. There is so much still to be done. Many have fallen off the journey, and stopped getting in good trouble because of busy schedules, racist family members, or sheer comfort in privilege. We are not done, we are just getting started. 

The fact of the matter is that we have another white male president who has also created systems of oppression, along with a vice president of color who has perpetuated those same systems. Though we wish racism would disappear, it is still alive and well in our country. Anti-blackness is echoed in media, court rooms, and loan offices. It’s been more of the same: comfort instead of uncomfortable challenge to what we have always done. 

I am sure that now we all know more about the geography of Georgia than we did before, and that we all want to buy our own election smart board, but all of the agony and waiting paid off for me when it became official on Saturday that Donald Trump will be a one term president. Joe Biden and Kamala Harris made history with this election. May we not forget the past four years have been unique and yet more of the same. This country has been racist—it is in our foundation—but the comfortability of racism in this country has been shouted from pulpits, not only in presidential press conferences, but during Sunday morning services, too. I will not forget the hate spewed through the othering, the discrimination, the violence, and the complacency of many because of their party allegiance. 

This is the bad that we must face so we can change it. This “Get Out” racism hiding in the policing of Black bodies in our streets, and in our offices must be combated, abolished, and destroyed.