@ican711nm,
From TPMCafe:
To deny that there are racist elements in the Tea Party seems to be a pretty fruitless Republican exercise. So on the Sunday talk shows all the Repubs were on the defensive. But Matt Bai has a much more interesting take. Racism is basically an old people's disease. It will eventually die off in America.
From Andy Ostroy:
Contrary to how the movement is portrayed as a non-partisan, multicultural, age/gender-diverse "big tent," most Tea Baggers are wealthy, white Republican males over 45, according to the poll. The poll chillingly illustrates what's really at the core of the movement: intense frustration, anger and resentment over the belief that a black president is giving taxpayer handouts to other blacks. In fact, 25% believe the Obama administration favors blacks over whites. As the Times reports, they believe that "too much has been made of the problems facing black people."
There's no denying the level of ignorance that permeates the Tea Party movement or the rampant racism in which it's rooted. Here's a classic example of Tea Bagger "populist rage:" "I just feel he's getting away from what America is," said Kathy Mayhugh, 67, of Jacksonville, Fl. "He's a socialist. And to tell you the truth, I think he's a Muslim and trying to head us in that direction, I don't care what he says. He's been in office over a year and can't find a church to go to. That doesn't say much for him."
From Dean Walker:
My T.P. friend earnestly believed that I was using “hate speech” when used the term "teabagger," but that there is nothing wrong in using pejoratives when referring to the left. I once again pointed to the widespread racism found at T.P. gatherings and he dismissed my examples as the work of “just a few loons,” which he claims can be found in every movement.
While I agree every nationwide movement is bound to have a “few loons,” recent polling data on T.P. members show racism is represented in a solid majority and is proving to be a systemic problem within the movement. Over the last month, I have visited dozens of Tea Party websites, YouTube videos of rallies, read speeches and articles from T.P. supporters, and researched academic reports that have been released on T.P. ideology, racism and their connections to militant extremists. And while the T.P. movement is just over a year old, there is a growing mountain of data which allows us to draw some early conclusions. One conclusion that is becoming increasingly clear is that the Tea Party has a problem with racism.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQOwkDJMyZ8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S38VioxnBaI
From DiversityInc:
By the Editors of DiversityInc - Apr 12, 2010
As the Tea Party movement has gained momentum over recent months, researchers at the University of Washington (UW) wanted to know: Who are the supporters and what are their beliefs?
Between February and March, UW researchers conducted a phone survey of 1,015 residents living in the 2008 presidential-election battleground states (Nevada, Michigan, Missouri, Ohio, North Carolina, Georgia and California). Among the respondents, 494 were white, 380 were Black, 77 were Latino and 64 represented people of other races/ethnicities. Here are details of the study, entitled "2010 Multi-state Survey of Race and Politics":
Thirty percent of all respondents had never heard of the Tea Party. But among those who had, one-third (32 percent) strongly approved of it. In that group, 56 percent of Republicans strongly approved, 31 percent of independents strongly approved and 5 percent of Democrats strongly approved.
Among white respondents, southerners are 12 percent more likely to support the Tea Party than whites in other parts of the United States.
Those who self-identify as conservative are 28 percent more likely than liberals to support the Tea Party.
Respondents who believe the U.S. government has done too much to support Blacks are 36 percent more likely to support the Tea Party than those who are not.
"The tea party is not just about politics and size of government. The data suggests it may also be about race," said Christopher Parker, a UW assistant professor of political science who led the study, in a press release.
Survey takers who strongly support the Tea Party movement had a 45 percent decline in support for healthcare reform, compared with those who oppose the Tea Party.
"While it's clear that the tea party in one sense is about limited government, it's also clear from the data that people who want limited government don't want certain services for certain kinds of people. Those services include healthcare," Parker said.
Among whites who approved of the Tea Party, 35 percent said they believe Blacks to be hard working; 45 percent said they believe Blacks are intelligent; 41 percent said they believe Blacks are trustworthy.
Whites who disapprove of President Barack Obama were 55 percent more likely to support the Tea Party than those who say they approve of him.
The Washington Institute for the Study of Ethnicity, Race and Sexuality and the UW Department of Political Science paid for the survey. It was conducted by the UW's Center for Survey Research.
