Mitt’s Shockingly Racist Acceptance Speech!

As is well known, Republican politicians and pundits frequently use words like “European,” “Chicago,” “golf,” “skinny,” “angry,” and “welfare” to subtly remind voters that President Obama is black. This leads people who would otherwise support President Obama to oppose him. Perhaps the best example came during the Republican presidential primary, when Rick Perry described the national debt as a “big black cloud” hanging over America. More recently, a Romney aide called attention to the president’s race by referencing America’s “Anglo-Saxon heritage.”

But in his acceptance speech at last week’s Republican National Convention, Mitt Romney went even further, delivering a shockingly racist address. Below I will enumerate some examples (follow along with the transcript here):

“Mr. Chairman”: This is a reference to RNC Chairman Reince Priebus. Just two years ago, Priebus replaced Michael Steele, an African-American, as RNC chairman. By mentioning the current RNC chairman, Romney is reminding voters that Priebus is not Steele, and therefore not black, which reminds voters that Romney is not Obama, and therefore not black.

“delegates”: Next, Romney mentions the convention delegates, a reminder that most of the delegates are white (unlike Obama).

“I”: The word “I” reminds people of themselves. Racists, upon hearing the word “I,” are reminded of who they are — which reminds them that they are white, which reminds them that Obama is not. Critics may claim that Romney is talking about himself here rather than about the listeners — but Romney, too, is white, so a word like “I,” urging voters to focus on Romney, also reminds them that he is white and Obama is black. The shape of the word “I” also recalls a tall, thin person, and, as mentioned earlier, “skinny” is a well-established racist dog whistle.

“accept”: This word sounds just like the word “except,” which evokes the idea of exclusivity. Blacks are excluded from white-only country clubs.

“your”: Like “I,” this word asks voters to think about who they are — i.e., white.

“with”: Any word that means “together” is a call for white racists to stick together against the black outsider.

“humility”: Another reference to a foreign band, Humble Pie (again, British), who were known for their cover of the song “Black Coffee.”

“deeply”: Everybody knows the phrase “Beauty is only skin deep.” Therefore, the word “deep” is associated with the word “skin,” which reminds people of Obama’s skin color.

“moved”: This word asks racists to recall how upset they are over black people moving into their neighborhoods.

“by the”: When hearing these words, one immediately thinks of the song “Down by the Bay,” whose next words are “where the watermelons grow.” Here, Romney is evoking the stereotype of black people eating watermelons; it’s a very underhanded tactic.

“trust”: MSNBC recently proved that Republicans are trying to link Obama in voters’ minds to the philandering ways of Tiger Woods. The word “trust” is an overt and reprehensible callback to that theme.

“you”: See above.