I am continuously astonished by how bad Republicans can be. It’s not just that I disagree with their policies, but that they themselves paint their policies in such a ludicrously stupid manner. Take, for example, this incident at a candidate forum in Idaho.
- They discuss discrimination in Idaho. The Republican, Dan Foreman, claims there isn’t any. I’ve gotten used to Republican denial, so that doesn’t shock me.
2. The Democratic candidate, a native American woman, politely “highlighted our weak hate crime laws and mentioned the presence of the Aryan Nations in northern Idaho as undeniable evidence of this reality.” Growing up in the Pacific Northwest, we all knew there was a gradient of bigotry that ascended from the coast to the potato brains of Idaho (partly to avoid confronting the reality of racism in Seattle), so this was already making Foreman look foolish.
3. The Republican then tells the Nez Perce woman to “go back where you came from.” Unbelievable. It’s like a bad joke on a bottom-of-the-barrel sitcom.
Trish Carter-Goodheart has written about the incident.
Last night, I entered what should have been a respectful and constructive public candidate forum. Instead, I was met with hateful, racist remarks from State Senator Dan Foreman, who screamed at me to “go back where you came from.” The question on the floor was about a state bill addressing discrimination. One of the candidates responded, claiming that “discrimination doesn’t exist in Idaho.” When it was my turn to speak, I calmly pointed out that just because someone hasn’t personally experienced discrimination doesn’t mean it’s not happening. Racism and discrimination are real issues here in Idaho, as anyone familiar with our state’s history knows. I highlighted our weak hate crime laws and mentioned the presence of the Aryan Nations in northern Idaho as undeniable evidence of this reality. That’s when Sen. Foreman lost all control. His words to me: “I’m so sick and tired of this liberal b*lish*t! Why don’t you go back to where you came from?!” I stayed. I stayed because I wanted to show our community that I can, and will, handle difficult, unpleasant situations. After the forum, several members of the crowd came up to me and offered their support, apologizing for Sen. Foreman’s behavior. But it’s not the people in the crowd who need to apologize. I need to thank the women who stood with me against this hate: Representative Lori McCann, Kathy Dawes, and Moscow City Councilwoman Julia Parker. You had my back when it mattered, and I appreciate your strength and solidarity. What happened last night was a reminder of why this election matters. I am a proud member of the Nez Perce tribe, fighting to represent the land my family has lived on for generations. People like Dan Foreman do not represent our diverse community, and I will continue to stand against the hatred and racism they spread. Our state deserves better. Our community deserves better. We deserve better.
The last time I was in Idaho, my talk was attended by a bunch of people from Doug Wilson’s church (but not Wilson himself). Doug Wilson was an Idaho preacher who got a boost in popularity because Christopher Hitchens toured with him for a while, something I don’t forgive Hitchens for. Doug Wilson co-wrote a notorious pamphlet titled Southern Slavery
, where he said
Slavery as it existed in the South … was a relationship based upon mutual affection and confidence,the excerpts read in part.There has never been a multiracial society which has existed with such mutual intimacy and harmony in the history of the world. …
Slave life was to them [slaves] a life of plenty, of simple pleasures, of food, clothes, and good medical care.
But oh no, racism and discrimination don’t exist in Idaho.
Republicans. Because nothing disproves the existence of racism as good as “go back where you came from”.
*as well as
If Republicans don’t like indigenous people, maybe they should go back to Europe…
Thinking about an old article where the author just didn’t understand know how to handle the existence of American “mongrels,” mixed from so many European origins. Think it’d be darkly funny if they were introduced to a group of Europeans who used that kind of language to argue why their particular country shouldn’t take in these “mongrels.”
“Indigenous people, including the Nez Perce tribe, have lived in the Columbia River Basin for thousands of years. Foreman was born in Lake Forest, Illinois.”
this (https://www.boisestatepublicradio.org/politics-government/2024-10-03/dan-foreman-racism-idaho-nez-perce-candidate-kendrick) is also a nice writeup, with a great though not unexpected kicker
“Indigenous people, including the Nez Perce tribe, have lived in the Columbia River Basin for thousands of years. Foreman was born in Lake Forest, Illinois.”
I need coffee, somehow I missed that you already linked the story
“Go back where you came from!”
“You mean over there, where members of my family have lived for centuries?”
A lot of white people move to Idaho because it is a racist, christofascist state.
Idaho is one of the fastest growing states in the USA.
You do know that Hitchens became a right wing crank in his later years, right? He was a major cheerleader for the invasion of Iraq, spewed misogyny at every opportunity, along with right-wing conspiracy theories. This is not news.
I grew up in Idaho. I am unsurprised by the racism, or that a senator would show his ass so plainly.
They discuss discrimination in Idaho. The Republican, Dan Foreman, claims there isn’t any.
He may be right, to the extent that the haters aren’t all that discriminatory about who they hate — it could be anyone for any or no reason (subject to change without notice). Seriously, what group of Americans HAVEN’T been subject to such stupid hatred and scapegoating at some time or other? I’m white, straight, cis and male, and I’ve never felt any good vibes from that lot, even when I was both a Christian and a Reagan Democrat.