Compassionate Conservatism and African Americans: Politics Puts Faith to Work and Gains New Allies?

Abstract

Historically African Americans have been loyal to the Democratic Party; yet some discontentment may allow opportunity for the Republican Party to make inroads among African American voters. Situated within the context of the Republican electoral "compassionate conservatism" strategy, the purpose of this work is to demonstrate how Republicans are building political relationships with loyal democratic African American voters through cogitative tactics grounded in religion and moral values. We describe the relationship between African Americans and conservatism, examining alliances between Blacks and Republicans, highlighting "compassionate conservatism" and the Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives, and then analyze two case studies from the 2002 elections to explore the question: Is the compassionate conservatism strategy a blessing or curse for the African American electorate?

The Effect of Social Class on Political Party Affiliations in the African American Community

“…Ginwright (2002) notes the importance of making a distinction between type of labor, and amount of income in defining social class, this is because income alone can obscure conceptual differences between working class and middle-class culture. The distinction between the two is vital for understanding the shift in racial conflict from the economic sector to the socio-political order in society (Wilson 2014;Wallace and Lewis 2007).…”

“…Secondly, poor Blacks are entrenched in poverty as the power and negotiation position of labor unions has weakened, the criteria for welfare eligibility has toughened and penalties for financial instability have become more severe (Wilson 2014;Mattis et al 2008;Wallace and Lewis 2007).…”

“…In order to conceal the racist nature of the far right's policies, the Republican party has depended on a handful of Black conservatives who served to legitimate these policies as 'colorblind'. It is for this reason that Black Republicans are considered 'racial strays' who perhaps have a different racial ideology from most other Black people (Wallace and Lewis 2007;Staples 2009).…”

“…Although the Democratic party consistently wins the Black vote, Wallace and Lewis (2007) point out that before the election of Barack Obama in 2008, Black people were beginning to re-think their loyalty to the Democratic Party. This is because there is a feeling in the African American community that the Democratic party takes them for granted and only needs African-Americans during elections.…”

Theoretical Perspectives on Ethnic Political Behaviours in the USA

“…In the US, the relationship between political activism and religion made black ministers and churches targets for white violence, such as the church bombing in September 1963 in Birmingham, Alabama, in which four young girls were killed. More recently, Republican Party strategy under George W. Bush sought to build political support among African Americans through faith-based initiatives and organizations (Wallace & Lewis, 2007).…”