This chart was made from an Education Week Research Center analysis of U.S. Department of Education figures. It shows a reality that Republicans continue to ignore. This country is changing. The chart shows that in the 2013-14 school year, white students already made up only 50% of the national school enrollment. This trend will continue (with white students soon becoming the minority of students), and in some states (like Texas) that is already the case.
The Republican Party continues to be the party of "white privilege" -- pursuing policies that favor whites over minorities. They won't be able to get away with that much longer. They will have to change those policies (which the racists and xenophobes refuse to let them do currently), or they will be relegated to permanent minority status (and possibility follow the Whigs into non-existence).
By the middle of this century, whites will no longer be a majority of the population. That is just a fact. And this demographic change will start affecting our elections years before that. The GOP is trying to stave off the inevitable with things like voter suppression and opposing immigration. Those efforts are destined to fail (especially the anti-immigrant policies, since most of the increase among minorities comes from those born in this country).
There really is no future in this country for a party dominated by racist and xenophobic policies.
If the gop really does go the way of the Whigs what would replace them? I don't see any other party growing. Or will we become a single-party country? Much as I'm a liberal, I do not want to see that.
ReplyDeleteThis is more of a 'heads up' than an actual comment, and doesn't need to be published, but I hope and beg you to include a piece on the Flint, Michigan water story. This flew under thee radar for too long, except for Rachel Maddow, but it is hitting the news now, and I find no problem in considering it on the same level as 9/11, One had 3000 people killed in one action, this had 7000 children, at least, poisoned by lead -- with the resultant life-long and irreversible brain damage, behavioral and emotional problems -- in one community over a period of twenty months, all in a community already far too poor to provide ordinary services, entirely through governmental (Republican)mismanagement and budget cutting. And even when the state government was already aware of the problem, they kept telling the citizens "Don't Worry. Drink the water. It looks and smells funny, but it is safe, we've tested it." Which is 'worse'? And the question needs no answer.
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For the best technical coverage on the story, I'm going to send you to the Skeptical Blogosphere and the wonderful "Orac." (He is actually Dr. David Gorski, a prominent clinical and teaching oncologist, and his blogging career goes back two decades to pre-blog discussion groups. He was also the head of the Skeptical Circle blog 'carnival' when that existed.