Q 1: The rhetoric of law and order enables southern racist politicians to extend the longevity of outdated discriminatory policies while undoing their blatant faults. This allows them the ability to thrive post Civil Rights Movement with racist remarks in camouflage all while endorsing rapid racial change instead of learn from their past hatred fueled mistakes. The justice system will continue to interject punitive legislation strictly intended to oppress colored people from utilizing the focal point of crime.

Q 2: If we look at recent societal politics, I find it hard to believe that the Southern strategy truly still has influence. A large aspect that is a recurring theme is that in today’s political climate, communities have the ability to choose black leaders in the form of mayors, governors, Senate, etc. and we had President Obama for two terms which is magical in itself. In the most recent election, Kamala Harris who is not only a person of color but was elected as a black woman of color into being the United States’s Vice President. She made history and gave many people hope for the future.This would have not happened or have been possible if the past southern policies were still in affect. Hypothetically, if these policies were still in play, a slew of things possible today would no longer be possible including transportation, employment opportunities, institutions, and colored people facing prejudice which would be at the forefront of today’s political decision making as well as the public’s.

1- Law and order rhetoric helps one to maintain prior discriminatory policies while becoming “race-neutral.” It was no longer fashionable to use the rhetoric of a rabid racist after the Civil Rights Movement. Governments are able to keep to propose punitive legislation almost explicitly meant to oppress the black community by emphasizing on crime, and especially the concept of crime.

2- In today’s politics, I don’t believe the Souther Strategy has any impact. One of the numerous reasons is that, in today’s political climate, we can elect black governors, mayors, and district leaders, not to mention a black president again!  we have a woman of color serving as Vice President of the United States. This would not be feasible if the Southern Policies were still in force. If this were still in place, many things would be impossible, including institutions, transportation, employment, income, and prejudice against people of color, which would be much more prevalent now.

Social racist politicians chose to frame their defense of racial segregation through the language of “law and order” since Nixon’s administration.  Nixon’s campaign rise in a time of a lot of social discomfort or malaise about how the “progressive” government of LBJ failed to provide to the needs of the people because of the Vietnam war, they (southerners) were not happy about segregation, civil rights social unrest, anti-war protest, and the new queer liberation movement. The United States of America was living a time of social unrest likely in a way to what we experienced last 2020 summer.  Nixon used coded racism to appeal to what he called “the silent majority”. White-suburban and southerners that were not comfortable or this not feel represented by the new “liberal” democratic party.  With Law and Order, Nixon is calling and promising the stop of protest voiced by the minorities in the country.  To bring things to normality, or to what it was (America Great Again) means to give back to the white people their privilege their comfort of superiority.  We are right, they are wrong, we are patriots they are terrorists, type of relationship. Law and Order became a coded speech to ensure to those white privileged people that their ideas, their America, their privileged reality, their way of life will not suffer more, they are the majority, they are the representation of American Values. 
Donald Trump and the Republican party are the greatest examples of the effects of Nixon’s Southern Strategy.  He tapped into the fears of White People losing privilege or more than anything being forced to share it. The Make America Great Again was the “law and order” of Trumps campaigns.  A promise to those southerners and northerners white people, that their “American way of life” will never change, or rather will comeback again, a white America, with white supremacy values and beliefs. 

1. Southern racist politicians decided to frame their defense of racial segregation through “law and order” because they felt it was the only way they could still oppress black people without being justified by the system of segregation. Moreover, it was imminent the civil rights were gaining momentum, so southern racist politicians were scared. They choose law and order to continue carrying out racist behaviors because they knew that technique would mainly be applied to black people.
2. To me, the Southern Strategy is not influencing American politics. This is because so much has changed since the death of Jim Crow. Even though there are still racial disparities in the American political system, the masses are aware and will stand up against any form of racial segregation. For example, the recent Georgia elections that sent Jon Ossoff to Congress clarify that people are aware of the racial strategies used by the left to win elections.

1. Why do think Southern racist politicians chose to frame their defense of racial segregation through the language of “law and order”? What special advantages was this choice of words going to give them?

Southern racist politicians chose to frame their defense of racial segregation through the language of “law and order”, because they can make their discrinmination to seem more reasonable legitimate, more over, to control people’s thoughts.

2. Do you think the Southern Strategy is still influencing American politics? Give an example supporting your answer.

I think Southern Strategy is still influencing American politics, for example, Donald Trump. I don’t know much about him, all I know is that he’s a racist and has lots of White votes for him. As long as humans exist, so do conflicts, those thoughts just learn to hide in the people’s minds, discrimination and stereotypes would never actually go away.

1. Why do think Southern racist politicians chose to frame their defense of racial segregation through the language of “law and order”? What special advantages was this choice of words going to give them?

The elements of racists politicians choosing to frame their defense of racial segregation through the language of “law and order “ is to push white dominate over others. Through the lens of those white people, black people were always viewed as less-valued and weaker compared to the opposer. They chose a different way to detoriate black people after the civil rights movement. The racist found another way to inflict belligerency by considering criminal behaviors. Creating laws and enforcing laws that will be treacherous towards the black community while still discriminating them.

2. Do you think the Southern Strategy is still influencing American politics? Give an example supporting your answer.

I wouldn’t think those strategies are still emplaced, however those strategies have influenced American politics from the very beginning, so I wouldn’t justify if those practices are still being maintained. Although as Americans we are approaching a new era of living, we are able to see diversity, acceptance and people coming together to support each other, however we still witness white privilege occurring amongst us all the time. For example. when Zimmerman shot and killed Trayvon Martin who was unarmed and only going home at the time, Zimmerman did not receive prison time for killing and innocent black teenage boy. Being that Zimmerman was a neighborhood watcher, he is indeed supposed to be preventing crime but not be apart of it unless there’s a reason to need to take precautious actions. There may be some sort of evolution from these strategies but these practices are definitely still reoccurring around America in different forms.

DB2.2

1. Why do think Southern racist politicians chose to frame their defense of racial segregation through the language of “law and order”? What special advantages was this choice of words going to give them?

In my opinion the birth of the civil right movement reinforced the African American activist to challenging the Jim crew law and segregation which led them to acquire certain power that boosts their influences on the American justice organizations. Therefore, southern racist politician decided to frame their defense of racial segregation through the language of law and order instead of segregation forever arguing that the civile right movements increases the crimes rates as Alexander states, “Civil rights protests were frequently depicted as criminal rather than political in nature, and federal courts were accused of excessive “lenience” toward lawlessness, thereby contributing to the spread of crime.”(7) there position reveals that challenging segregation is considered as an act of breaking the law and they wanted to employ a strategy that enhances their appearance as men of law since they are dealing with a country of law as Alexander states, “ early on, little effort was made to disguise the racial motivations behind the law and order rhetoric and the harsh criminal justice legislation proposed in Congress.” This strategy demonstrates their intention to sustain supporting segregation ignoring all the efforts done by activist to defend poor people’s right.

• Do you think the Southern Strategy is still influencing American politics? Give an example supporting your answer.

I do not think that Southern Strategy remain influencing American politics because the battle of African American and protest could make their voices heard in the congress and equality begin to emerge in the United States. Even though, the impact of the segregation remains occur in the society at certain points and in certain circumstances, racial ideology had changed and faded since America as country of freedom and law have revealed the notion of equality through suppressing the differences between black and white people. Now day all Americans are integrated in different organism in the society no matter of their race or color and electing Kamala Harris as the first African American on the head of the country’s leaders as vice president is the most current and relevant example proving the amelioration of the American society in terms of racial disparity.

1. According to Alexander the rhetoric of “law and order” was first mobilized in the late 1950’s with an attempt to “generate and mobilized white opposition to the Civil Rights Movement”.  Civil right activists used “direct-action tactics in an effort to force reluctant Southern states to desegregate public facilities” . Alexander further states that “Southern governors and law enforcement officials often characterized these tactics as criminal and argued that the rise of the Civil Rights Movement was indicative of a breakdown of law and order”.

Alexander in her researched reveals the fact that “For more than a decade—from the mid-1950s until the late 1960s conservatives systematically and strategically linked opposition to civil rights legislation to calls for law and order, arguing that Martin Luther King Jr.’s philosophy of civil disobedience was a leading cause of crime. Civil rights protests were frequently depicted as criminal rather than political in nature, and federal courts were accused of excessive “lenience” toward lawlessness, thereby contributing to the spread of crime”. (p. 40-41)

Special advantages:

• Label people who engaged in nonviolent civil disobedience and protests as criminals and lawbreakers.
• Stop violators of segregation, who threatens the social order
• Crackdown on lawbreakers

2. No! In retrospect the past several decades in American politics has show:

1. The demographic of the country is changing every year with a more racially diverse population.
2. Police activities throughout the nation of outright brutalities toward mainly African American men such as George Floyd sparked nationwide protest of all background bringing awareness to many Americans and changing the minds of many.
3. Most Americans are moderate to conservative on immigration and other concerning issues.  
4. In recent years the nation elected the very first African American President, not once but twice
5. Election results and the leaders promoted to represent the people vacillate from one party to the next to assume power.  For instance, the recent election saw the rise of the Democratic Party and demise of the Republicans; this may certainly change next time around.