Historical memory might be on the wane elsewhere, but it is very much alive in South Carolina, whose expansive cotton fields and stately plantations memorialize the paradox of a genteel civilization built on slavery and segregation. So the world perked up this week to news that Tim Scott, an African American, won a Republican senatorial primary there over Paul Thurmond, son of the late Strom Thurmond, the fabled segregationist who served from 1956 to 2003. “Much of the racial gesturing and symbolism that we see from the Republicans … is designed as much to appeal to moderate white voters as it is to non-white voters,” said Thomas Schaller, associate professor of political science. “Though it is of course easier to identity and recruit the occasional non-white candidates for office here and there, the way to get minority votes is to support policies that racial minorities want.”
The article, “Guess Who’s Coming to the Tea Party?,” ran June 25 in the Globe and Mail.
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