Behind Look at LatinX for Trump
Our current Presidential election has become a call to arms from both parties where the scramble to convince minorities with overwhelming voting powers is now the focus. The fear of voter suppression in this election is not a new scenario for most minority voters but it is clear that certain efforts by Republicans are targeting the minority population.
With the detrimental effects of COVID-19 , we have seen an overwhelming damage to minority communities along with the raised social justice tensions preceded by the murders of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery and Breonna Taylor this presidential election is divisive. Moreover, the Latinx voter often overlooked, is now showing a striking loyalty to the Presidents re-election although just as well affected by these factors. The presence of a model minority myth is at large in America.
A certain group of Latinx voters have assimilated in hopes of having the same privileges and being recognized as a fellow Americans by joining the Conservative party. Ironically, this is the same party that rejects and oppresses their existence. It’s difficult to understand the degree of self-hate to support a political party that strives to rid the same supporters that have helped them win the last election.
One of the acts in which voter suppression is apparent towards minorities are voter ID laws that require an individual to present ID to cast a ballot on Election Day. The process of acquiring this ID can be often costly and complicated as it requires needing a birth certificate which is not exactly black and white for many of those who aren’t natural born citizens.
In addition to this issue, take a look at the scarcity in translated voting materials, which directly results in lower voter turnout of minorities. In Daniel J. Hopkins article “Translating into Votes: The Electoral Impacts of Spanish-Language Ballots” he discusses in 2008 the U.S. being home to roughly 38 million immigrants, the majority derived from Spanish speaking countries. Given limitations to translators, ballot design, and polls available the voter turnout amongst Latinx and Asian Americans lagged against those of non-Hispanic origin.
The Pew Research center analyzed detailed demographics and geographic distribution of those eligible to vote in the 2020 presidential election. They concluded that of the 23 million immigrant voters and for the majority they live in five states; Florida, California, New York, New Jersey and Texas. Taking a look at the 54% of Latino voters in Florida, they have been identified as having a varied level of English proficiency. Although they’re provided by Section 203 of the Voting Rights to be provided all written voting materials available in the language of the relevant minority group, there remain restrictions. One restriction is that the illiteracy rate of the minority population must be higher than the national illiteracy rate.
Despite all these disconcerting issues being faced by minority groups that are eligible voters, some remain unequivocal in their declared support for the Republican Party candidate Trump. Florida which held a large amount of Latinx voters is notorious for its Cuban and Venezuelan immigrants widely supporting the Republican Party.
Looking more into the dynamic of Cuban immigrants' relationship with Trump, we see an unrelenting admiration for his right wing policies. While President Barack Obama was in office, he fulfilled his 2008 campaign promise to make a “new beginning” with Cuba. With the motivations of creating opportunities for trade and travel through regulatory reforms to create stakeholders, Cuba began to see an increase in travel and commercial activity.
When Donald Trump began his office term, his foreign politics objectives with regards to Cuba were often filled with inconsistencies. These consistencies were created by a void in communication between Steve Bannon Jared Kushnor with the National Security Council. Adding to this foreign policy chaos, Trump had placed Jason Greenblatt as the one responsible for negotiating with Havana all the while equally responsible for negotiating peace in the Middle East.
The initial moves towards policy change of Cuba would come after a full review of policy was conducted which resulted in the White House consensus that the policy of engagement was working well. However, it all came down to Cuban Americans on Capitol Hill placing pressure to remind Trump of his campaign promises to roll back Obama's policies and Trump’s debt to Bay of Pigs veterans in Florida.
As stated by Trump in 2017, “America will expose the crimes of the Castro regime and stand with the Cuban people in their struggle for freedom. Devoid of these claims, these promises were in fact limited as he tightened the embargo but very much left Obama’s opening to Cuba intact. This was a move to maintain the support of his Cuban American voters without risking disagreements with stakeholders who were in favor of engagement. Despite being lied to by President Trump through his misleading completion of promising to eradicate a Cuban-American entanglement, they remain blindly ambitious to promote his continued term in office. The model minority argument largely used for the Asian American group is clearly present for the Latinx group.
This distaste with being called an immigrant and wanting to be seen as American in the exiled community came from believing the best way to defeat Fidel Castro and socialism was to be pro-American. This liberation came from the denial of Cuban nationalism and the embrace of an American nationalism. The similar effect of exiled Venezuelans and their anti-Chavista and anti-Maduro centering on emboldening American values which are commonly centered around a capitalistic and highly Christian value system of politics.
It’s important to understand the way that these voters are easily swayed towards Trump’s candidacy despite being the antithesis of what the very vain of his campaign stands for. Minority groups largely rejected by the white supremacists that make up for much of his anti-immigration policy backing, albeit most of these voters are immigrants, make it a layered case in understanding their desire to be represented by those who do not represent them whatsoever.
This is why it is so important that we show up and vote. We have to talk to our aunties and abuelos and have a calm conversation about the facts. The promises that have been made, both sides of the arguments, and the importance of making informed decisions in this election scale beyond one political issue. Overall, what kind of leader do we want to take care of us.
