Op-Ed by Rev. Conrad Tillard
The American voters have spoken. Black leadership must now develop strategies to put an agenda before the next administration. It is the duty of Black leadership to petition the government on behalf of our people, not to grandstand or play politics. Kamala Harris fought valiantly for three months; I respect her.
I also respect the President-elect, as he has done something almost impossible. The American people have given him an Electoral College and apparently a popular vote victory! The Republican Party is likely to control the House and Senate as well. Donald J. Trump will now be the 47th President of the United States.
History has been made, political realignment has happened. The Black community cannot afford to mourn, we must with intellect and maturity engage and participate and continue to “March on till victory is won!” We all want America to be greater than it has ever been and we need to be involved in that process.
Black leaders who did not prepare for this possibility and prepare our people for this likely outcome are guilty of leadership malpractice. It’s not unusual for a party in power to be turned out. The other thing Black folks have to do is seek many sources of information, we can’t exist in an echo chamber. This victory has been likely and many predicted it, but one wouldn’t know that only by listening to MSNBC or CNN.
I believe that all things work for good (Romans 8:28) for faithful people, and we need to be imagining opportunities to work with the new administration. Black and Brown people played a key role in this victory and we need to appreciate the new possibilities.
The other thing this election shows is that Black Democrats need to push the party to once again become a centrist party of regular working men and women.
Party leadership must stop focusing on extreme leftist social policies and worshipping and catering to the celebrity crowd, cool entertainers and academic eggheads who have all bought into an elitist worldview that has now alienated the American people.
The Democrats need to take reasonable positions on critical issues and try to better represent where everyday people are rather than appropriating the extreme positions the party has come to exemplify. A new Black politics is crucial to our survival and prosperity in a changing America.
Let’s be clear: Kamala Harris did not lose this race, a woman did not lose this race, a person of color did not lose this race! Biden would have gotten it worse! (Let’s not forget he was pulled off the ticket, the party knew he was going down!)
Kamala Harris, after only 3.5 months raised more money than anyone ever in the history of American politics, earned 226 electoral votes and 70 million Americans voted for her.
The DEMOCRATS’ MESSAGE lost this race! The party is too extreme, too left, too academic and too elitist! The party needs to get back to the basics, looking out for everyday people! Look at the map, two elite coast and skiing areas are about all Democrats won! Wake up! Stop being so WOKE and wake up!