New media writer Clay Shirky took to Twitter Friday afternoon to dismiss white liberals’ response to Donald Trump as ineffective and self-indulgent – and to rally them to defeat Trump.
“Believe this: Trump could win,” Shirky tweeted. “We can help stop him, but that means giving up on a lot of comfortable illusions.”
I want to say something to my liberal white friends: Trump talked a lot of shit last night, but not one word of “I am your voice!” was a lie
— Clay (((Shirky))) (@cshirky) July 22, 2016
Trump IS the voice of angry whites. He wasn’t on stage because he has unusual views. He was on stage because he has the usual ones, loudly.
— Clay (((Shirky))) (@cshirky) July 22, 2016
He is the voice of whites who want their neighbors deported if they speak Spanish. He is the voice of whites terrorized by seeing a hijab.
— Clay (((Shirky))) (@cshirky) July 22, 2016
He is the voice of people who think legal & cultural privileges for white conservative Protestants are God’s plan, not a bias to be overcome
— Clay (((Shirky))) (@cshirky) July 22, 2016
He is the voice of people who hear ‘hard-working’ as a synonym for ‘white.’ He is the voice of people who think black lives matter less.
— Clay (((Shirky))) (@cshirky) July 22, 2016
He speaks for millions.
— Clay (((Shirky))) (@cshirky) July 22, 2016
During the speech, a lot of white liberals in my timeline – people like me – were reacting in disbelief. We can’t afford disbelief, not now.
— Clay (((Shirky))) (@cshirky) July 22, 2016
So, believe this: Trump could win. We can help stop him, but that means giving up on a lot of comfortable illusions.
— Clay (((Shirky))) (@cshirky) July 22, 2016
The hardest illusion to give up is the majority illusion, where we confuse our neighborhood with the world. https://t.co/2Fm1pmB4Uf
— Clay (((Shirky))) (@cshirky) July 22, 2016
Elections are a harsh corrective to thinking everyone agrees with you. Winning isn’t about policy, or passion. It’s about headcount.
— Clay (((Shirky))) (@cshirky) July 22, 2016
Liberals cluster, in cities and in states. My home state, Missouri, has gone from purple to red because enough liberals left.
— Clay (((Shirky))) (@cshirky) July 22, 2016
Meanwhile, California’s high-margin vote for Clinton will be wasted, because the election hinges on Ohio and Pennsylvania and Virginia.
— Clay (((Shirky))) (@cshirky) July 22, 2016
I’m a white guy, so I’m an imperfect vehicle for this message. Follow @docrocktex26 and @jbouie, who serve hot coffee on this stuff all day
— Clay (((Shirky))) (@cshirky) July 22, 2016
But I can remind other white people, as an insider, that the amount of white rage available for political use in America remains enormous.
— Clay (((Shirky))) (@cshirky) July 22, 2016
“When you’re accustomed to privilege, equality feels like oppression.”
— Clay (((Shirky))) (@cshirky) July 22, 2016
White liberals should know headcount is against us. In our communities, we’re a comfortable majority. In the US, we’re a permanent minority.
— Clay (((Shirky))) (@cshirky) July 22, 2016
Most whites vote /against/ Democratic presidential candidates, and have done in every election since LBJ signed the Civil Rights Act in 1964
— Clay (((Shirky))) (@cshirky) July 22, 2016
When Democrats committed to reducing whites’ ability to lord it over blacks, it cost the party the white vote for two generations. So far.
— Clay (((Shirky))) (@cshirky) July 22, 2016
The liberal cause has been saved by African-Americans, who are populous and disciplined and consistent enough voters to overcome white rage.
— Clay (((Shirky))) (@cshirky) July 22, 2016
Unlike President Obama’s campaigns, though, whites can’t coast on minority Get Out The Vote work in 2016, not with VoterID laws in 33 states
— Clay (((Shirky))) (@cshirky) July 22, 2016
Trump can win, if he can whip up white rage unchallenged, if enough women vote for him, and if Red states suppress black and Hispanic votes.
— Clay (((Shirky))) (@cshirky) July 22, 2016
Trump can win, if he concentrates on white fear. Thats how you get white evangelicals to pick a libertine agnostic over a liberal Christian.
— Clay (((Shirky))) (@cshirky) July 22, 2016
So what’s a white liberal to do? First, realize we are a minority, and we have to campaign like one. Donate to the campaign, for starters.
— Clay (((Shirky))) (@cshirky) July 22, 2016
Yes, yes, Clinton’s not as liberal as we’d like, but minorities never get the luxury of demanding a perfect candidate. Just give.
— Clay (((Shirky))) (@cshirky) July 22, 2016
Talk with pro-Trump relatives, because they won’t listen to people who aren’t white. (Statistically, they won’t know any they care about.)
— Clay (((Shirky))) (@cshirky) July 22, 2016
Donate to fight voter suppression. https://t.co/CF8a45ThAY
— Clay (((Shirky))) (@cshirky) July 22, 2016
In November, call voters, or better, get to a swing state and knock on doors. Get to poorer communities and drive people to the polls.
— Clay (((Shirky))) (@cshirky) July 22, 2016
Trump has promised 40% of the country what they’ve always wanted: a racist welfare state. If he persuades 1 additional voter in 10, he wins.
— Clay (((Shirky))) (@cshirky) July 22, 2016
Seeing my timeline during the convention last night made me despair. We’ve brought fact-checkers to a culture war. Time to get serious.
— Clay (((Shirky))) (@cshirky) July 22, 2016