It is apparent that the Democratic Party has been having major identity problems. The vision that brought it so much success in the 20th Century is being clouded by 21st Century social, economic and political insecurities at home and the emergence of an interdependent global community.
On the other hand, the Republican Party is in the process of completely reinventing its vision which seeks to lead a “racially and ethnically clean” nation that honors the European background of the founding fathers. “Making America Great Again” feels almost like “making America small again” as a “true citizen” is being redefined to be a reduced numbers of people under a rubric of a particular race and ethnicity.
When I first became aware of the role political parties play in America, there seem to be a clear difference between Democrats and Republicans. For the Democrats, the residue of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s leadership to victory over the Great Depression and victory over our enemies in World War II still provided for a distinct imprint of endorsement by the people of the country.
The Republican Party was seen by many as belonging to a moneyed class as well as the exclusive home of a well-to-do political minority. Although President Eisenhower was elected on the Republican ticket in 1952, there was a feeling that this World War II hero belonged to everyone.
The Democratic Party under President Kennedy took on the great issue of civil rights for minorities before he was murdered in 1963. President Johnson that followed went farther and created a federal initiative called the Great Society.
The Great Society not only recognized the need to address the issue of civil rights but also took on the question of poverty in the country. Since 1 out of every 4 Americans were considered poor and so many of them were in minority communities, both concerns became cornerstones of the Democratic Party’s vision for America.
The generation of Democratic leaders that followed grew up with that vision and have done little to change its conceptual structure. Although there are numerous utterances related to building and serving the middle class, at its core, the original reality associated with poverty and minority rights continues to prevail.
That is not the America we live in today. Further, the very reason minorities are the target of attacks by extremists in the departing majority is tied to the notion that the minorities have achieved much and there are those that want to take it away by illegitimizing those gains.
That minority communities stand to become a majority is in the research literature. Also, research indicates that there is less than 10 percent of people in poverty.
Yet I see old and new faces, Black and Brown, still insisting on recognition of socioeconomic grievances and access to wealth they feel they deserve. I even see those consistently advocating for the poor at the same time that we are beyond that.
I am reminded of Mexico’s ruling party that governs under the motto, “for the betterment of Mexico, the poor come first.” In their case however, their major constituency are the 54 percent of Mexicans that are considered poor.
America has other more important matters to deal with. Democrats cannot afford to continue to voice the same ideas with different words. For the Democratic Party to become relevant beyond the 28 percent of voters support, it has to go back to the drawing board and reform its vision. If not, the current 43 percent Independent voting community will continue to grow.
The views expressed by David Conde are not necessarily the views of LaVozColorado. Comments and responses may be directed to News@lavozcolorado.com.
