Gazza M wrote:
Mirth wrote:
Can someone explain why the African American demographic tends to vote for Biden?
Obamas VP, abd tendencies to stick to the conservative democrat lane out of loyalty and fear of big change. I think religion plays a part too. Bernie is a atheist and that doesn't fly among conservative african americans that make up the bulk of their vote. I would say also a lack of specific messaging from bernies campaign. An african american friend of mine voted biden in TX and basically said when there's a big shake-up like what bernie is proposing black folks still end up at the back of the line. He also said he felt bernie worked overtime for the latino vote, and felt like his policies were only beneficial to black people tangentially or as an afterthought. Things like M4A and tuition free college would benefit the black community immensely, but the message was delivered as a rising tide lifts all boats, and the more extreme interpretation as my friend put it was heard as 'all lives matter'. The classism over racism rhetoric just isnt received well
Good points. Another aspect is the risk: reward issue. Based on conversations I have had with African American friends, they look at electability seriously. They know that they face a bigger risk than White friends if Trump continues to be president. He’s been openly racist in a first term where there is a threat of losing an election. What might he do in a second term where he has no controls? So they prefer the moderate candidates.
There are a lot of other under-reported dynamics going on with black voters. A lot of black voters I know are dedicated churchgoers and socially conservative, regardless of where they sit on the economic spectrum. But a post-Gingrich Republican Party is no place for a black voter, and the further left you go in the Democratic Party is also increasingly alienating. So it’s always interesting to hear the media talk about black voters, but I suspect there are at least two clusters (and it might be worth thinking of them that way even if they only constitute 4-7% of the vote each).
Oh, just saw that Jens covered atheism. 🙂
