What is the “race card”?
John McCain’s camp accused Barack Obama of “playing the race card”. Now, bloggers, journalists and ordinary folk are asking if Obama has indeed played the race card.
My first question is what the hell is the race card? What does it actually mean? What is the true definition of that phrase?
According to Wikipedia “Playing the race card is an idiomatic phrase referring to an allegation raised against a person who has brought the issue of race or racism into a debate, perhaps to obfuscate the matter. It is a metaphorical reference to card games in which a trump card may be used to gain an advantage.”
According to the BBC it is a “political tactic to appeal to racist motives in the electorate. Alternatively; political tactic to appeal to non-racist motives in the electorate by accusing an opponent of appealing to racist motives. ”
Ok, now that I’ve answered that question, I have some more questions. How, and by whose criteria, is ‘playing the race card’ defined? Who gets to decide whether or not I’m playing said card? If I accuse someone of being racist or discriminatory, how would anyone else - apart from me since only I know my own motives - know whether or not I was ‘playing the race card’? If I talk about being black, does that mean that I’m playing the race card? If I talk about differences associated with being black, does that mean I’m playing the race card? If I talk about race at all, does that mean I’m playing the race card?
Once I went to the cinema and a group of black kids came in half way during the film, making a lot of noise and generally being disruptive. When the police came in after them, I heard one of the girls in the group say “see, they only target the black kids”. Of course, considering their appalling behaviour, that was an ignorant - and wholly inaccurate - accusation. Their race had nothing to do with being targets for the police. I guess that could be described as playing the race card.
Now if I say ‘hey, I’m black, that makes me more likely to be pulled over by the police’, does that mean I’m playing the race card? Am I not just stating a fact?
If I as a black person talk about race, I can be accused of playing the race card, as if my race was not already a factor before I mentioned it… Barack Obama may have called attention to the fact that the Republicans may use his difference as a weapon against him, but it was not as if nobody was aware of that difference before he mentioned it. He just drew attention to it. So how exactly is that ‘playing the race card’? Surely, playing the race card means inserting a particular meaning where none previously existed?
Another time, at university, I was in the kitchen and it was hot. I complained about the heat and a white friend of mine said ‘you should be used to it - you’re from Africa’. Now, although my parents are African, I had not until that point visited or lived in Africa. I was actually quite offended by his comments. He thought what he said was pretty legitimate though. Now, if I had said to him ‘I found what you said ignorant and offensive’ would I have been playing the race card, being that he thought he was just making an observation and hadn’t said anything untoward? I.e. does the other person’s intention actually matter in whether or not something can be described in that way?
The ‘playing the race card’ comment is a tough one to combat because it tends to shut down any subsequent debate. How exactly do you prove that you are not playing it, if someone accuses you of doing so? And isn’t it just a very convenient way of dismissing one’s comments and lumping them into a box of nothingness, basically saying that the comments are not to be taken seriously or given any meaning?
It’s all a bit confusing to be honest. One of those areas where race becomes a very tricky and complex matter. What do you think?
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Comments
Hi Lola,
Are you hip to “The Devil and Dave Chappelle & Other Essays” by William Jelani Cobb, professor of history at Spelman College? His essay called “Hanging Curve: Barry Bonds as Tragic Hero” explains the phenomenon, albeit by another name, and provides historical context and a few examples.
thanks
I tend to believe that regardless of whatever connotation the phrase originally held, in practical application, “the Race Card” is a phrase used to describe any discussion that even suggests an act of racism, racial discrimination, or race consciousness on the part of whites; modern or historical.
It is the equivalent of a semantic stop sign, designed solely to stifle debate and halt any discussion or further examination of the possible racial undertones of a statement or issue. It is the epitome of Political Correctness… A phrase, practically applicable only to minorities, used to deflect any criticisms, shunt any serious consideration, and to turn the offended party into the culprit.
Hello, Lola. I found your site from a google feed referencing your articles on The Guardian. Thx. I enjoy reading here, too. On the topic: some folks would find the race card not so surprising, thus don’t spend any time in thought on whether or not it has been played. They just live the metaphor and play the race card simply to follow suit. Those’r the prevailing rules of the game, however impolitic and non-turn-the-other-cheek they may be away from the card table.
Much peace.
e