In Brown v. Board of Education and the Interest Convergence Dilemma Derrick A. Bell, Jr. analyzes Black people's ability to achieve civil rights victories only when satisfying an "interest convergence." The interest convergence he describes happens when the political and social aspirations of Black Americans, or any marginalized group, aligns with an interest of upper class, decision-making, white Americans. Only when this happens, he states, will there be any changes made for marginalized groups. This is an interesting way to analyze the rural vote.
One of the first questions we discussed in our class about the rural vote was basically: Why do we even care about the "rural vote?" Obviously, we are taking a class about Law and Rural Livelihoods so that is one reason. The researchers, statisticians, journalist, etc. that write about the rural vote, however, are not in our class but they still spend a lot of time and effort analyzing this topic. Moreover, many politicians seem to care, at least as of lately. This is because rural Americans refusal to blindly support the Democratic party has allowed for an interest convergence.
We also discussed the commonly held idea that these people are voting against their own self-interest. After all, as Sara Smarsh's Aunt Pud says in Heartland, "The Democrats are for poor people, and the Republicans are for the rich." Although I agree with Aunt Pud, if rural Americans continuously showed up for Democrat candidates, would these candidates still have the same motivation to win them over as they do now? Probably not. In other words, by refusing to give loyalty to the Democratic party, rural Americans made their interests converge with the ruling class in a way that actually better fulfills their self-interests in the long run.
After Trump's 2016 election, political discourse began acknowledging the "forgotten Americans." Isabel Sawhill's What the Forgotten Americans Really Want--and How to Give it to Them describes this group as people without a college degree and lower income. She also notes that they represent thirty-eight percent of the working age population. She describes their issues with feeling like the government is out of touch and like current policies are not reflective of the values held by forgotten Americans.
Bill Hogseth discusses the rural vote in Why Democrats Keep Losing Rural Counties Like Mine. He states that while roughly two-thirds of rural voters voted for Donald Trump, in his opinion it wasn't because there was a lack of Democratic organization in these areas but because the Democratic Party "has not offered rural voters a clear vision that speaks to their lived experience. The pain and struggle in my community is real, yet rural people do not feel it is taken seriously by the Democratic Party."
By not just refusing to vote but voting overwhelmingly Republican, rural voters have created an interest convergence between their wants and the wants of both parties--to win elections. Now, politicians on both sides have no choice but to take their demands seriously and show tangible ways they will improve rural lives.
This blog, by Professor Pruitt, discusses how Democrat candidate John Fetterman's "every county, every vote" strategy secured him enough votes to win the senate race in Pennsylvania.
Most people in my life outside of school, who are working class, don't vote. The ones who do vote mostly do so because I have lectured them of its importance, and they just ask me who/what I'm casting my vote for and go along with my choice. It is safe to say that nobody on either side cares very much about politics.
Most of their ambivalence comes from similar feelings as the forgotten Americans Sawhill interviewed: that the government is "ineffective, untrustworthy, and out-of-touch." Although I would never advise anyone in my life to vote Republican (and honestly probably not forgive them for doing so, depending on how much I dislike the candidate), I can't help but admire the way rural voters fortitude has forced their issues into the hearts of legislators. I hope politicians remember the power that the working class has in every election.
2 comments:
Thank you for your post! I love how you're merging our studies in Equal Protection with Law & Rural Livelihoods. Kudos!
I particularly like how you discuss the rural vote and the current Democratic party. It reminds me of when we had the Democratic strategist come talk to us about how a lot of rural voters vote based on "labor economics" and feel left out of neoliberal policies. It also just makes me wonder: how can we force rural issues into establishment Democrats' hearts? Would shifting to a more working class economics platform be enough to allow Democrats to capture rural voters? I think so, but I would love to hear your thoughts.
I appreciate your discussion about why some folks simply don't vote. I have long wondered why more people don't implement the strategy of not voting in order to be heard (i.e., heard via statistics about people who don't vote). It seems that this is precisely what is happening now. There is much discussion about the populations that don't vote, and if we can simply get them to the ballot, then X political group will be able to win. This seems like a prime opportunity for such groups (including poor rural Americans) to leverage their power now that folks are talking about their lack of numbers on Election Day. It also makes me wonder, again, whether this is a worthwhile political strategy for other groups of people who don't feel adequately represented by current politicians.
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