I have never really understood exactly what a ‘liberal’ is, since I have heard ‘liberals’ express every conceivable opinion on every conceivable subject. As far as I can tell, you have the extreme right, who are fascist racist capitalist dogs like Ronald Reagan, who come right out and let you know where they’re coming from. And on the opposite end, you have the left, who are supposed to be committed to justice, equality, and human rights. And somewhere between those two points is the liberal. As far as I’m concerned, ‘liberal’ is the most meaningless word in the dictionary.- Assata Shakur
Lately, I have been returning to Assata Shakur’s words written over thirty years ago. Since the uprisings started, reactions to the movement’s escalation have revealed that Black people who are committed to Black liberation should be extremely wary of liberals. Liberals’ co-optation of this movement can and will ultimately set us back.
Shakur, a leader in the Black Power movement who sought political asylum in Cuba after the U.S. deemed her a criminal, had a deeply accurate analysis of American politics that still rings true today. Liberals’ actions are not just innocent misguided attempts at what they think will do good – rather, the events of this last year in particular show how liberals and the Democratic party move quickly to water down the true demands of the left before they attempt to address racism.
Especially since the 2016 election, it is clear that the leaders of the Republican Party are white supremacists. Because the Democratic Party looks relatively more humane and less racist, they can put forth a façade that they support everyday working people and are against racism – a façade which serves to hide their own racism and interest in upholding the status quo.
Until now, abolition has been seen by many as a fringe belief. The uprisings have brought radical Black ideas into mainstream political discourse in a way I haven’t seen before. Nationwide calls to defund the police and remove them from public schools altogether are being considered. Although consideration is still small in comparison to centuries of unceasing violence in the name of white supremacy, this moment is different than any other.
Like clockwork, as a response to these gains Deray, Obama, and other prominent liberals with political power sided with “law and order” and opted to preserve the status quo instead of believing in the communities they claim to serve. Democratic governors and mayors across the country enacted curfews and used mass arrests to quell protests.
The moment Black radical ideas made their way into mainstream political discourse, Black liberals attempted to make the public believe that reform, not abolition was the answer. To make matters worse, they suggested we vote for Joe Biden, a known sexual predator and racist.
I live in Washington DC, and our current Mayor Muriel Bowser rose to the national political spotlight for painting Black Lives Matter on a street near the White House. Meanwhile, Bowser’s police force (MPD) continues carrying out anti-Black policies and criminalizing its Black residents, having murdered 3 young Black people, Marqueese Alston, D’Quan Young, and Jeff Price in the summer of 2018 alone. Since Muriel Bowser has been DC’s mayor, 21 people have been killed by MPD.
As did many other liberal leaders, Bowser supported her police force in instituting curfews, teargassing constituents, and mass arresting protestors. MPD also regularly endangers the public by not wearing masks during a pandemic, and the city recently voted to approve Bowser’s budget which increases police funding by 1.6%. This is happening even as the DC government faces a $700 million budget shortfall and DC residents are suffering in the midst of a pandemic with no relief in sight.
The “liberal” and Democratic reaction to our uprisings aren’t random flaws, however. They are intentional, continual actions that attempt to undermine, if not crush, radical movements.
Bowser’s actions illustrate a larger trend: the illusion of progress is put forth by liberals, but the material conditions don’t change. They stay the same, if they don’t become worse. Do not forget that Minnesota, the state where the uprising started is run by Democrats. Like Republicans, Democrats have the blood of George Floyd and countless others on their hands, but focus on using performative gestures to feign supporting progress, while privately squashing any demands for radical change.
Do not be distracted and persuaded by liberals, as their actions are not the baby steps to progress that they frame them as- they seek to ensure the status quo remains.
Rather than committing to substantial change like defunding the police or freeing people from cages as the pandemic rages through them, liberals pivot to reform and tell us to vote. Their betrayal isn’t random.
Undergirding liberalism is an unwavering belief in racial capitalism and a commitment to upholding the political and economic order. The Democratic party and liberal leaders are just as much a part of the ruling class as Republicans and regularly ensure systems of domination and oppression remain intact. As Joe Biden himself said, electing him means that “nothing would fundamentally change.” Don’t believe their occasional feigned support for progressive and anti-racist causes are sincere, because there is no way the ruling class would actually want a system that is designed to benefit them to ever change.
Democrats will crush radical movements while pretending to be the party of everyday people. Putting aside our feelings about Bernie Sanders, we can acknowledge the liberal establishment openly worked to stop democratic socialist Bernie Sanders from winning the nomination. Obama publicly stated he would step in to stop him from winning months earlier, and instead leveraged his influence to coalesce votes around the first moderate candidate who won a primary.
I can admit that it hurts to let go of the fantasy that the Democractic party offers, and it feels terrifying because we’ve been taught that voting is the only way to engage with politics. But we’ve also been told that there is no alternative, which is a lie.
For many, even if known sexual predator Joe Biden is only slightly better, it’s safer to live under his presidency than under the current openly white nationalist in the White House. On a certain level, I do understand the concern that any critique of Biden may dissuade people from voting for him, which could result in Trump being reelected. I too sometimes miss the Obama era, where we were living in a police state and not realizing it. I miss being smoothly lied to by an excellent orator and politician who pretended to care.
But voting is not and will never be enough. Voting often legitimizes the never ending good cop/bad cop routine of the two party system. And now, with the announcement that Biden has chosen Kamala Harris, former “top cop” of the most populous state in the country, as his VP, that routine becomes even more apparent.
Like Shakur, I do not know what it means to be in the middle of supporting slavery and wanting to end slavery, but I do know that Black people will not accept the weak crumbs of “reform”. Even when liberal political leaders like Bowser, Obama, and Harris make these promises, we know that they will betray our movements every time.
The uprisings show us that the only way out of this for Black people are radical collective action, and never conceding to those who wish we would just shut up and accept the weak crumbs of “reform”.
Reading suggestions:Civic Engagement Does Not Begin and End with Voting
Joe Biden, Mass Incarceration Zealot
Assata (Shakur), An Autobiography
Reformist Reforms vs. Abolitionist Steps in Policing
The Rush to Redefine “Defund the Police”
