(Vox) Why do many working-class white Americans support politicians whose policies are literally killing them? This is the question sociologist and psychiatrist Jonathan Metzl tries to answer in his new book, Dying of Whiteness: How the Politics of Racial Resentment is Killing America’s Heartland. The book is a serious look at how cultural attitudes associated with “whiteness” encourage white people to adopt political views — like opposition to gun laws or the Affordable Care Act — that undercut their own health. The book is not about racism at the individual level, though you can certainly read that into it. For Metzl, the key question is how did a politics of racial resentment become so powerful that it overwhelmed even the basic instinct for self-preservation? https://bit.ly/3bzUygT
THE GOOD NEWS FIRST:
- Leslie Proll on Twitter: “Rare win in SCOTUS for racial justice. But this was a must-do, even for this Court. Non-unanimous jury verdicts were rooted in Jim Crow racism. Louisiana’s practice stemmed from Reconstruction when whites were upset about Black participation on juries. We still need a new Court. => SCOTUSblog on Twitter: “#SCOTUS rules in Ramos v. Louisiana that the Sixth Amendment’s guarantee of a unanimous jury applies to state criminal trials” https://bit.ly/2XYo0t5
AND NOW THE NEWS RELATED TO WHITE SUPREMACY:
- Tribes sue over distribution of coronavirus relief funding – The Washington Post https://wapo.st/2yBTJpm
- Ida Bae Wells on Twitter: “I’m thinking a lot about how media/others would react if the people protesting these stay-at-home orders were black. What would the coverage look like? What would the tone be? I feel strongly that if you’re not noting the timing & racial dynamics, you’re failing somehow.” / Twitter https://bit.ly/3as6j7D
- Phillip Atiba Goff on Twitter: “21% of ALL confirmed coronavirus cases in Ohio are from state prisons. The Marion Correctional facility has a 73% infection rate. We have to call this what it is: A human rights abuse.” https://bit.ly/353rKuW
- ADL Survey Finds American Jews Feel More Threatened Than At Any Time in Past Decade | Anti-Defamation League https://bit.ly/3eUzROW
- Coronavirus Has Made Incarceration a Potential Death Sentence | Common Dreams Views https://bit.ly/2RYmJOD
- These U.S. citizens won’t get coronavirus stimulus checks – Los Angeles Times https://lat.ms/3eKF8s7
- Asian American Doctor On Experiencing Racism During The Coronavirus Pandemic, Feeling ‘Powerless’ In Helping Patients | Here & Now https://wbur.fm/3cEDnLh
- For Indian Diaspora, Panic and Anger Over Trump’s Immigration Plans – The New York Times https://nyti.ms/2zk3h8E
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