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Welcome to West Virginia |
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In anticipation of the Democratic primary in West Virginia, as well as the imminent end of the seemingly perpetual nomination process, my girlfriend and I went to Morgantown to volunteer for Obama’s campaign this weekend. Good news, there are some Democrats here. A 74 year old white woman, offended by Hillary’s recent comments about working class people, told me she is voting for Obama because he represents the working people and can actually change things. Dozens of other Morgantown residents we spoke with are enthusiastic Obama supporters, and it was clear that they appreciated canvassers’ efforts to engage them and their neighbors.
Bad news, there is still an awful lot of racial and homophobic tension ’round these parts. West Virginia University had let out the day prior, so there weren’t too many people bar hopping in this hotbed of liberalism on a Saturday night. There were enough to disgust me, though, so that’s a start. As we walked by one club we were warned, “don’t go in there unless you want to dance with spooks.” A bit later, as we were waiting for a cab, we chatted up a young man in jacket and tie, discussing mostly politics. Before long he was explaining that he was against gay marriage because it is “sick” and that “homosexuals have an extra gland in their brain, it’s well documented.” He also said that he would rather his (future) child commit suicide than be homosexual. After attempting to abuse his illusions for a few minutes, we walked off to get our tab, wondering whether we should laugh or cry. As we walked away the young man hollered in our direction, “Walk away, gays.” Sadly, he wasn’t the only one. We heard concerns about gay marriage from several registered Democrats that day.
Why, in a place that has been economically devastated by NAFTA and other unsound policies, are Democrats fooled by so called “moral issues” so easily? There are theories about Kansas, but what’s the matter with West Virginia? This thread is wide open. I’d love to hear your thoughts on this, and I’ll have more later.
One word: Yikes!
Because when people are economically disenfranchised, they cling to guns, religion, or other issues to rally around.
And yet you could have walked a few yards down High St. in Morgantown and walked into a packed gay club and had a different impression. I’ve been called a fag (not in a nice way) in San Francisco and heard racist ignorance at bars in New York City. There is nothing uniquely wrong with Morgantown or West Virginia that isn’t a problem in most places in the US.
Some years ago while working in W. Va., a friend pointed out to me that W. Va. always has been devastated economically and dependent upon a few corporate interests as well as the federal government. Like Kansans and other poor, dependent and downtrodden areas they tend to turn to guns, god and glory. Inexplicable but simple as so often is the case.
I wonder about your phrasing of the question as “Why … are Democrats fooled?”
I would ask the question — are these folks what we would understand as “true Democrats”? Is it possible that they were traditional “southern strategy” Democrats, who morphed into “Reagan Democrats”, remaining registered as Democrats out of habit, but not necessarily ever being progressive Democrats? I know it’s sad to contemplate, but it suggests a different story rather than “(progressive) Democrats getting fooled”.
i would be embarrassed to win this state
As a minority woman that grew up in rural WV and has worked in NY, I personally feel that while the racism is far more overt and open in WV, it is no more than the racism and sexism I felt in NY, which is more institutionalized. Furthermore, many of the citizens of NY have the view that anyone from the south, or that has an accent, is less intelligent than them. The assumption that all people have no shoes, or are “inbred hicks” is very common (and untrue) and just as prejudice as racism or sexism.
The problem Democrats have in general, and Obama in particular, is that they appear to so arrogantly believe that their policies can help poor people, but the population is “too stupid” to understand that and therefore turn to guns etc. For example, I don’t think that was the intension of any of the commenters above, but to someone from the South, that is exactly what it seems like. The Democrats come off as patriarchal, sacrificing themselves and their wealth to take care of the poor rural folks. Well, the poor rural people feel like they are doing the same thing; they feel that those big city people have forgotten what is truely important, so we’ll sacrifice our economic well-being to take care of their moral incompetencies. I don’t personally agree with their beliefs, but I don’t think the Democratic party will ever win over the region, unless it finds a way to work with the people instead of condescending to them.
Hello. I think you are eactly thinking like Sukrat. I really loved the post.
You go to a bunch of bars filled with “pickled brains” and pin the opinions of a few on all of WV?
That’s rich!