Wow, even for a cross burning, banjo twanging whero-neck local council politician – that’s racist

Even for a local council politician, this is appallingly racist!

Mayor considering action after community board member shared ‘blatant racist’ cartoon

The Thames-Coromandel mayor has reminded elected members of their code of conduct, after concerns were raised about a cartoon a community board member shared on social media.

The post, shared in a public Facebook group by Mercury Bay community board member Rob Davis, has since been deleted, at mayor Peter Revell’s request.

Stuff decided to publish the image below so you can see what was posted.

Stuff

 

Local Council Politicians seem to be some of the most racist and unhinged in our democratic representation but Mercury Bay community board member Rob Davis seems to have gone to a whole new level of stupid.

When challenged on this very racist meme, here was his response…

…ummmmmm.

Y-e-a-h.

I’m not sure true best defence to this is ‘I do not see it with colour eyes”, eh?

Let’s put him aside and talk about the idea here because I have heard this type of tripe a lot.

It goes like this, ‘All the Māoris are on benefits while I work blah blah blah’.

We are a liberal progressive democracy, we don’t accept survival level poverty. The Welfare State was a response to modernity and the complexity of society.

I don’t begrudge anyone needing welfare, and see their support and ability to live is more important than punishing them for failing neoliberal cultural mythology.

What always surprises those who trade in this garden variety bigotry is that the numerical majority of poor whites is far larger than poor Māori. Percentage wise Māori are poorer, but total number of whites in poverty is numerically larger.

Comrade.

Your enemy is the person on welfare. It isn’t a kid transitioning, it’s not a Māori wanting the Treaty respected or the environmentalist wanting climate change taken seriously.

Your enemy is who it has always been.

The Banks, the Billionaire Class, the Big Polluters and the Speculators are your enemy, they manipulate your misplaced anger into supporting their agenda.

Those on welfare are your fellow citizens, wanting to dismantle the Welfare State as some sort of moral gesture that takes us back to Dickens and kids up Chimneys is a right wing revenge fantasy that is as stupid as it is wrong.