{"id":4062,"date":"2011-11-26T21:56:00","date_gmt":"2011-11-27T02:56:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/journals.law.harvard.edu\/crcl\/?p=4062"},"modified":"2016-11-16T20:13:48","modified_gmt":"2016-11-17T01:13:48","slug":"the-racial-and-sexual-politics-of-the-cain-campaign","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/journals.law.harvard.edu\/crcl\/the-racial-and-sexual-politics-of-the-cain-campaign\/","title":{"rendered":"The Racial and Sexual Politics of the Cain Campaign"},"content":{"rendered":"

As the allegations of sexual harassment built against Herman Cain this month, Cain\u2019s supporters and the press have quickly invoked race as a part of the discussion in Cain\u2019s presidential campaign.\u00a0 After the press aired the initial allegations of harassment, Cain\u2019s supporters began to echo<\/a> the \u201chigh tech lynching\u201d terminology of the Clarence Thomas confirmation hearings, when Anita Hill testified that Thomas had sexually harassed her.\u00a0 While the left contends that this is not high-tech lynching but rather simple reporting<\/a> about the facts of Cain\u2019s presidential qualifications, Cain\u2019s supporters are openly discussing race\u2014Cain, for example, has argued that \u201cblacks have been \u2018brainwashed\u2019<\/a> into voting for Democrats in large numbers.\u201d\u00a0 The contrast between the two sides on the campaign trail is of interest: during the last election, Barack Obama situated a campaign in a race-blind and post-racial America, while Herman Cain now wants a conversation about race and is not afraid to bring it up.<\/p>\n

Obama\u2019s election signaled to many that society had overcome its problems with racial discrimination, some even contending that the election represented a new \u201cpost-civil rights era<\/a>.\u201d\u00a0 Democrats have recently relied on this notion and seem reluctant to expose themselves to the controversies that inevitably stem from politicizing race. But perhaps the myth of the colorblind America is very real.\u00a0 As some argue, this strategy may be harmful<\/a>.\u00a0 The left\u2019s silence on race allows us to ignore the persistent legacies of institutional discrimination. In prior decades, policy changes in all areas, from employment and poverty to education and housing attempted to remind us how much work society had to do to unravel hundreds of years of history.\u00a0 But policy issues are now less frequently discussed in the context of race but more in socioeconomic terms or as individual and fiscal responsibility.\u00a0 The last few decades have seen a reframing of race from the left.<\/p>\n

Similarly, the right has reframed racial discussions in ways that may distort race and that are self-serving for politics.\u00a0 The message is no longer government fixes versus individual responsibility, but rather that government handouts<\/a> subliminally tell minorities that we don\u2019t believe in their abilities and that society engages in high-tech lynching.\u00a0 By framing politics in this way, Cain attempts to draw voters with \u201cconservative positions<\/a> on gun rights, abortion and gay marriage, as well as disdain for tax increases.\u201d \u00a0\u00a0A Fox commentator mentioned on air last month that Herman Cain might be the first real black president<\/a>, suggesting that Obama is \u201cnot black enough\u201d because of his mixed heritage.\u00a0 Regardless of which political side might be right about race, it matters more that our political discussions don\u2019t distort or cloud racial discussions in the political process.\u00a0 We should question whether it is helpful to invoke notions of a race-blind society, the authentic blackness of our presidential candidates, or high-tech lynching, and whether this political rhetoric helps us solve real inequalities and existing discrimination.<\/p>\n

The messaging in Herman Cain\u2019s campaign has also distorted the allegations of sexual harassment.\u00a0 The allegations unveiled during Thomas\u2019s confirmation hearings led to a broader examination of sexual discrimination in the workforce.\u00a0 On the other hand<\/a>, Cain\u2019s recent events undermine the stories of the female accusers, as the controversy focuses more on the legitimacy of each side, reputation, and finger pointing. This framing of women\u2019s issues suppresses the voices of the female accusers, making their charges and the women themselves sound frivolous. Cain called Sharon Bialek, one of his accusers, a troubled woman<\/a> and accused the Democratic machine for encouraging her to come forward.\u00a0 The Cain campaign, which exposed Bilek\u2019s prior lawsuits and bankruptcies, defended its behavior by arguing that she brought it upon herself: “Ms. Sharon Bialek<\/a> has placed herself in the public spotlight through making patently false allegations against Herman Cain, it is only fair to compare her track record alongside Mr. Cain’s.”\u00a0 Cain\u2019s attorney, Lin Wood, argued that Cain is the victim<\/a> and warned potential accusers that they will go through \u201cintense scrutiny\u201d if they bring their claims forward.\u00a0 And a Youtube video<\/a> shows Cain joking about whether Anita Hill will endorse his campaign. As a result, there is no space to address the core issue of sexual harassment and no work is being done to prevent these incidents in the future.<\/p>\n

We have little to gain with this response to sexual harassment.\u00a0 Regardless of which side is right, whether Democrats or Republicans, or Cain or the women who came forward, what we need most is an open and honest discussion about race and sexual harassment, rather than clouding these issues in a way that best suits each side\u2019s political goals.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As the allegations of sexual harassment built against Herman Cain this month, Cain\u2019s supporters and the press have quickly invoked 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