Editor,
Let’s keep this simple.
Telling a racial or ethnic minority to “go back” to the country he/she “originally came from” is racist. It’s the oldest racist attack in the book; every racial epithet is a shorthand way of saying, “You don’t belong in America based on your ethnicity.” It is discriminatory. A supervisor would put their company at legal risk for saying this to an employee. This is not a tough call. Like it or not, it’s racist.
Voting for a racist is a racist act. What is a vote? It is how we put a person in a position of power over others. Anyone who gives a racist power over those he/she is prejudiced against is giving that person real ability to harm people based on their race. When a racist asks for power, people of conscience say no.
Voting is a choice. A person can vote, or not, and they can vote for someone who should be entrusted with power, or not. Choosing to vote for a racist is a willful act of racism.
“Whataboutism” cannot excuse it.
In 2016, my neighbors voted for President Trump by a wide margin. Let all understand that in 2020, a vote for Mr. Trump is unequivocally and decidedly an intentional act of racism.
Christina Downey, Noblesville
