The parable of Mia Love....

[_darth_bill]

I don't know anything about Mia, but when I attended BYU, the most republican district in america elected a democrat, twice if I recall, because the republican was a douche. I don't attribute the winners of elections other than the vote count. Some may have voted for or against her because she was black, female, Mormon or republican. She won. Let's carry on.

[_EAllusion]

But I don't understand how someone can say that voters are voting for a black woman because they are racist against black people. That's not how racism or sexism (as I understand it) works.

No. Tokenism - The, "How can I be racist? I have a black friend!" effect - is a notable aspect racist cultures. To what extent that is a factor with Love is a separate question, but it is not unfathomable that a racist would vote for a member of the race they are bigoted against as a way of absolving any sense of social guilt over their racism.

[_Craig Paxton]

I think this Mia quote says it all...

"I just can’t believe I was able to win here, in this state,” said Love. “People told me I was crazy to think that a practicing Mormon and an insane right-wing Republican such as myself would be able to make any headway with the people of the very conservative Fourth District. But this just goes to show that Utahns aren’t as parochial and close-minded as stereotypes might suggest. ”

yes I know the alleged quote is fake

[_Tim the Enchanter]

I hate to admit it but Mia Love was elected for four reasons:

01. She is Black.

02. She is Mormon.

03. She is Republican.

04. She is a Woman.

but help me please understand which of the four points I made that you disagree with? That she was black, a Mormon, Republican or a woman?

I disagree with all of them. She was elected because of a complex web of motivations that cannot and should not be reduced to such reductive prejudices.

I think you are both being too simplistic. Craig, by far the most important thing on your list is #3. She was the Republican candidate in a district with a R+16 on the Cook Partisan Voting Index. This gave her a big advantage. The other three things on your list, if they were a factor at all, were very minor factors. Do you think if she was a Republican white man with the same position on the issues she would have lost this race? I doubt it. Her opponent was a Mormon as well so I don't see how you can say she won because she was Mormon.

Mak, you don't think Mia Love being the Republican candidate had anything to do with her victory? Do you think she would have won running as an independent as opposed to a Republican?

[_EAllusion]

I'd add that very right-wing Republicans over-zealously support right-wing candidates of color who share their views, especially if those views match their veiled racist critiques of minority cultures. There's this vaguely disgusting cultural shield role those people play for them. Allen West is a good example. It'd be foolish not to think that tokenism - "How can we be racist? We got a black one!" - doesn't play a role in that.

In the broader national commentary on Love, there is definitely some of that going on. The extent to which it played a role in voter behavior in her actual election is a difficult question.

[_moksha]

No, no. I'll tell you why Mia Love was elected.

1. She is a Tea Party nut.
2. She is a Mormon.
3. Corporations were willing to give her campaign millions of dollars in financial support.

Additionally, Church members will vote for what they perceive to be the wishes of their Authorities, rather than their own best interests. To the extent that Mia is able to put her expressed ideas into action, such as the privatization of Social Security and Education and the dissolution of the "safety net", Mormons may wax nostalgic about the "old days, when the poor were taken care of" but on the other hand, they will love the tastey new Soylent Chips made in Lindon, Utah.

[_maklelan]

Mak, you don't think Mia Love being the Republican candidate had anything to do with her victory? Do you think she would have won running as an independent as opposed to a Republican?

Obviously it a factor, and of the four I think it's the only one that really played a deciding role. I don't agree with the way Craig framed his case, though, and I don't think it's just flat party line voting that did it. She had to have a coherent platform that resonated with the voters. She doesn't just win for signing up as a Republican.

[_maklelan]

No. Tokenism - The, "How can I be racist? I have a black friend!" effect - is a notable aspect racist cultures. To what extent that is a factor with Love is a separate question, but it is not unfathomable that a racist would vote for a member of the race they are bigoted against as a way of absolving any sense of social guilt over their racism.

+1

[_Brackite]

I don't know anything about Mia, but when I attended BYU, the most republican district in america elected a democrat, twice if I recall, because the republican was a douche. I don't attribute the winners of elections other than the vote count. Some may have voted for or against her because she was black, female, Mormon or republican. She won. Let's carry on.

+1

[_bcspace]

By being black she becomes the LDS Scapegoat of past Mormon racism.

It would seem that only Mormon Democrats are racist because they opposed her in the election. That is according to the Democrat's own logic that opposition to Obama by whites is necessarily racism.