Racial polarization, consequences for American democracy.

[So rightwing that I broke the Political Compass!]

Much ink has been spilt discussing America's changing demographics. It is my contention that they will seriously undermine the democratic process.

Exhibit 1: Mississipi, and the South more generally. We see here that as the black population's share of the vote grew due to birthrate, White Southerners increasingly shifted away from the Democrats to the Republicans. This is most pronounced in states with larger black populations. It is the reason the Democrats remain strong in states like Arkansas and WV that have only tiny black populations.

Exhibit 2: Hawaii. Effectively a one party state except on the gubernatorial level. Within the Democratic party ethnic identity politics holds quite as much if not more sway then policy based politics.

Exhibit 3: DC. Much like Hawaii, except spared from identity politics somewhat due to being homogenously black rather then ethnically fragmented like Hawaii.

...

These 3 examples are the way politics in America is headed as diversity increases. We see similar trends elsewhere... in California, Arizona, Chicago, Michigan, you name it.

[politicus]

It is one of the worst consequences of having a truly multiethnic society with a majority of minorities. Tribalisation seems inevitable where many different ethnic groups live together without a nationwide majority. Mauritius is a classic example. Each group carve out their own little fiefdom.
In the US White Americans over time managed to gain a common identity and transcend ethnic politics (of course there are significant remnants of it). Hopefully the Hispanics will eventually assimilate into the White majority and secure a dominant voting bloc, that is not too ethnically focused.

[cope1989]

Much ink has been spilt discussing America's changing demographics. It is my contention that they will seriously undermine the democratic process.

Exhibit 1: Mississipi, and the South more generally. We see here that as the black population's share of the vote grew due to birthrate, White Southerners increasingly shifted away from the Democrats to the Republicans. This is most pronounced in states with larger black populations. It is the reason the Democrats remain strong in states like Arkansas and WV that have only tiny black populations.

Exhibit 2: Hawaii. Effectively a one party state except on the gubernatorial level. Within the Democratic party ethnic identity politics holds quite as much if not more sway then policy based politics.

Exhibit 3: DC. Much like Hawaii, except spared from identity politics somewhat due to being homogenously black rather then ethnically fragmented like Hawaii.

...

These 3 examples are the way politics in America is headed as diversity increases. We see similar trends elsewhere... in California, Arizona, Chicago, Michigan, you name it.

Whites in the deep south started voting Rep at the national level almost immediately after blacks in the deep south were able to vote in large numbers.

You've been very concerned with Racial issues today. I know your signature says Australia, but  do you live in the US? If not, how does our racial and ethnic makeup compare to Australia's? I know both countries have experienced a lot of immigration.

[So rightwing that I broke the Political Compass!]

You've been very concerned with Racial issues today. I know your signature says Australia, but  do you live in the US? If not, how does our racial and ethnic makeup compare to Australia's? I know both countries have experienced a lot of immigration.

Born in America, moved to Australia when I was 7, have always wanted to return to America but doesn't seem like such a great idea at the moment given the present economic and societal problems.

In racial and ethnic terms, Australia is more homogenous then America but more diverse then the average European country. We have predominantly Asian immigrants, with a great deal of Polynesians but only a handful of Africans. We also have a small but prominent indigenous community- I wouldn't say they're comparable to America's indigenous though, they're a lot more dysfunctional... probably the most dysfunctional subpopulation in any developed country.

[GM Griffin]

We also have a small but prominent indigenous community- I wouldn't say they're comparable to America's indigenous though, they're a lot more dysfunctional... probably the most dysfunctional subpopulation in any developed country.

Then it must be pretty bad; Native Americans, generally speaking, are highly lagging in the US by most economic and social indicators.

[Hatman]

We also have a small but prominent indigenous community- I wouldn't say they're comparable to America's indigenous though, they're a lot more dysfunctional... probably the most dysfunctional subpopulation in any developed country.

Then it must be pretty bad; Native Americans, generally speaking, are highly lagging in the US by most economic and social indicators.

Same in Canada. It is a problem not unique to Australia.

[shua]

Nationally, whites are not going to be voting in the same strong blocks as we have seen from blacks and to a lesser extent from Latinos. In the long term, the GOP can't be limited to just a white party.   The GOP will either have to find a way to appeal across ethnic lines, or no longer be one of two major parties.

[I Can't Get That Sound You Make, Out Of My Head]

We also have a small but prominent indigenous community- I wouldn't say they're comparable to America's indigenous though, they're a lot more dysfunctional... probably the most dysfunctional subpopulation in any developed country.

Then it must be pretty bad; Native Americans, generally speaking, are highly lagging in the US by most economic and social indicators.

It is. Most Aboriginals rarely finish school, and we see them walking around the street, drunk or looking scraggy, asking for a dollar or something.

(sorry if that sounds like racial stereotyping, but it's the truth)

Anyway, Australia isn't as diverse as the US - WASP's make up about 70% of our population whereas it's only like 30-40% for the US, and we don't have much Africans or Hispanics, but we have a higher proportion of Islanders and Asians.

[So rightwing that I broke the Political Compass!]

We also have a small but prominent indigenous community- I wouldn't say they're comparable to America's indigenous though, they're a lot more dysfunctional... probably the most dysfunctional subpopulation in any developed country.

Then it must be pretty bad; Native Americans, generally speaking, are highly lagging in the US by most economic and social indicators.

Same in Canada. It is a problem not unique to Australia.

It's a matter of degree though. Australian Aborigines have a substantially lower life expectancy then native Americans, Inuit or Maori. Indeed they have a lower life expectancy then Nigerians!
http://www.creativespirits.info/aboriginalculture/health/aboriginal-life-expectancy.html

[ottermax]

What's more likely to happen than racial polarization is the continued disenfranchisement of minorities. One of the biggest problems with our two-party system is that groups like Latinos and Blacks have to choose between empty promises and outright disagreement. Democrats promise to provide new programs for immigration, healthcare, jobs, but fail to do so, hanging the fruit just out of reach of these groups that reliably vote for the Democratic Party. Republicans have managed to alienate these groups entirely, but considering their voter turnout of Latinos and the high numbers of African-Americans in prison, the GOP can survive a little longer than you might think.

Unfortunately this treatment towards minorities usually results in unrest and violence. America is already a very violent country, and crime is largely committed by these minorities, so it will likely only worsen unless politics changes.

But I don't think ethnic factionalism will be as much of an issue. While social mobility is pathetic currently for many immigrants and minorities, traditionally people have been able to come to America and assimilate through economic prosperity.While multiculturalism presents a challenge, I would argue that the only way to fix it is to embrace it and invent creative methods to turn this diversity into an asset, just as America has done in the past. 

[shua]

We also have a small but prominent indigenous community- I wouldn't say they're comparable to America's indigenous though, they're a lot more dysfunctional... probably the most dysfunctional subpopulation in any developed country.

Then it must be pretty bad; Native Americans, generally speaking, are highly lagging in the US by most economic and social indicators.

Same in Canada. It is a problem not unique to Australia.

It's a matter of degree though. Australian Aborigines have a substantially lower life expectancy then native Americans, Inuit or Maori. Indeed they have a lower life expectancy then Nigerians!
http://www.creativespirits.info/aboriginalculture/health/aboriginal-life-expectancy.html

Life expectancy on the Pine Ridge Indian Rez is nearly 30 yrs less than US average.