Erosion
White Supremacy is how we got here. Fighting for a multiracial Democracy is the only way out.
“That is why the effort by Trump and Republican state leadership to gerrymander Black representation out of Congress must be understood as not only an attack on Black people, but on democracy itself. If the Republican racial gerrymandering effort is successful, the U.S. will lose any claim to democracy for a generation or more.” -Sherrilyn Ifill
White Supremacy is why we can’t have nice things.
Everything from public pools to universal healthcare. Name a potential public good, benefit, or right that is wildly popular but hated by the MAGA Right, and white supremacy is why Americans don’t have it. And as Sherrilyn Ifill pointed out in her excellent newsletter this week, white supremacy is also why we don’t currently live in a democracy (and why America hasn’t been one for most of its history.)
This week, I’ve been thinking a lot about Democratic backsliding and erosion. Mostly because we’re seeing the Supreme Court of the United States engage in it so blatantly. The same court that happily took away women’s rights has now set its sights on Black voters with a new level of aggression. This week alone, SCOTUS continued wreaking havoc in Alabama and Louisiana, allowing both states to pause primary elections already in progress in order to implement new maps that eliminate minority-majority districts entirely.
The Right doesn’t believe in free and fair elections. This has been true for some time (arguably, it has always been true), but the U.S. and Virginia Supreme Courts have really driven the point home over the last couple of weeks. Writing in his Democracy Docket newsletter, voting rights attorney Mark Elias lays out what’s happening in plain language:
The pattern is unmistakable. In case after case, the window in which courts may act to protect Democrats and Black voters has been shrunk to nearly nothing. Meanwhile, the Court has moved with urgency to protect maps that favor white voters and Republican candidates, even when doing so required acting closer to an election than it had previously deemed acceptable.
It is impossible to view this honestly without concluding that the Court has not been applying a neutral principle. It has been choosing sides.
Alabama is particularly egregious, given that the Supreme Court had already ruled against the state’s maps in 2023. At the time, the MAGA Right didn’t take kindly to the court their donors had bought and paid for offering even minimal resistance to their voter suppression agenda, and there were calls for Alabama to simply ignore the ruling altogether. But of course, none of that matters now that SCOTUS has essentially reversed course and given the state the green light to suppress away.
(Note that these decisions have come via the shadow docket. John Oliver covered the shadow docket and the ways it’s being exploited and abused just last week. It’s worth watching.)
I’ve written extensively about how the Supreme Court is no longer a legitimate institution and that we should treat it accordingly. That’s still the case. But this week, I want to talk specifically about the impact of these decisions on the next couple of election cycles and how they contribute to democratic erosion by making it impossible for Black voters to be represented, while impairing Democrats’ ability to govern once they’re elected.
It’s a vicious cycle that’s important to spell out. When Republicans have a majority, they do everything they can to further enshrine it. So even when Democrats win, they don’t have as large a majority as they should, making it difficult to govern and do what voters elected them to do. Voters then become further disillusioned, making it even easier for the Right to win back majorities again. Each time, Democrats lose more ground and our base of voters becomes more disenfranchised.
We also have to acknowledge that Democratic elected officials haven’t always understood the assignment, and that they have contributed to the problem. For far too long, the Party has been playing defense, focusing on preservation of norms and the status quo rather than fighting for America. I’d like to think the tide is turning somewhat on this, but Democrats in Virginia opting to all but give up the redistricting fight this week is a stark reminder that we still have a leadership vacuum on the Left. These folks either don’t understand what’s happening or have made a calculation that they can live with it, the rest of us be damned.
Still, there are signs of life and hope from Democratic leadership. Mad as I am over the current strategy in Virginia, support for redistricting in Blue States, and become a mainstream party position almost overnight. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries has been particularly bullish in his rhetoric, promising that Democrats in Congress will launch “a decisive and overwhelming response in advance of 2028.”
Court reform is the next battle and there are signs of life here as well. Kamala Harris, a likely 2028 contender, called for reforming the Court and considering “bold” political reforms that “may be about assuming some risk,” including court expansion. Journalist and commentator Joan Walsh reacted to Harris’ stance by saying, “This is a required stand for anyone running in 2028.” A sentiment I completely agree with. Democrats need to adopt this as a baseline with the same speed they did with blue-state redistricting.
Politics is a game of inches, and elected Democrats have also been hamstrung by those numbers. Our wins haven’t resulted in the changes voters want, and gerrymandering and voter suppression contribute mightily to that. It’s an erosion of American rights and freedoms happening over decades. If you feel disillusioned by the system, it’s vital to understand that the MAGA Right has been a huge part of the problem. I’d even argue that their tactics have led to some of your least favorite Democrats being elected in the first place, rather than candidates who more closely align with the base’s priorities and values.
Trump and the MAGA Right don’t want free and fair elections. This movement has already attempted a violent coup once before, and I have no doubt they’d attempt another without a second thought. But I also think it’s important to understand that a Democratic majority where we don’t have the numbers to accomplish anything is also a win for the MAGA Right. If our elected officials are hamstrung, if they can’t deliver, Americans will lose even more faith in democracy as something that has any impact on their daily lives. And the cycle continues.
So what do we do? I’ll be honest, I always struggle when talking about this because the scale of the problem can feel overwhelming. We need people to fight the disillusionment and vote in large numbers. We need to fight for marginalized communities because we’re only as free as the most vulnerable among us. But I think it’s important to acknowledge that white supremacy is why we’re here, and that the game is rigged against our favor. This isn’t a fair fight by any means, but it’s still winnable. The recent election in Hungary showed us that.
Voting matters. So does working to ensure that our elections are free and fair, starting in our own communities and states. We’ll also need to keep pushing the leaders we do elect to get creative in their strategy, find new levers to build power, and defy the Regime at every turn. It’s only because of pressure from us that Democrats are finally mounting a fight. We can’t allow that to stop in November or in November of 2028.
Finally, we have to believe that we deserve better, envision a better country, and demand it. Playing defense doesn’t get us anywhere. We’ve learned that lesson time and time again. America could have a government that serves the common good. We could have universal healthcare, childcare, paid leave, better schools – anything is possible. If we fight against White Supremacy and for a multiracial democracy, America could have nice things.
Join Me at Netroots Nation in Philly!
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A Goodbye and an Ask
Ctrl Alt-Right Delete is saying goodbye to COURIER, and this is the last newsletter that will be published under the COURIER banner. I want to thank Tara and everyone at COURIER for the partnership, which came at a time when I really needed it and helped me keep things afloat through some rough times for my family and me. I’m sad to part ways, but I remain a big fan of what they are doing, especially in building out local newsrooms. If you’re in a state with a COURIER outlet, I encourage you to become a daily reader.
Don’t worry, though, Ctrl Alt-Right Delete isn’t going anywhere. I’ve been working behind the scenes and some big changes are ahead, starting with migrating off Substack and adding ActBlue for fundraising. I’m planning more collaborations, some slight editorial tweaks, and new branding. And if you’re interested in partnering, sponsoring, or advertising, let’s talk! You can reply directly to this email.
In the meantime, I do need to make up for the lost income and raise $15,000 between now and the end of the year. Every dollar raised helps me keep the newsletter afloat, produce more content, and keep it free instead of behind a paywall. That’s something I’m especially passionate about, since I want as many people as possible to have access to the information and analysis. If you want to support CARD and are in a position to contribute, now is the perfect time to take the plunge.
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I’m taking next week off for Memorial Day weekend. Back at it on Sunday, May 31!
White supremacy and lies. The right wing myth first proclamated in the Reagan era that we are now a "color blind" society.