A Historic Race

A race that goes beyond race

Election 2024

A HISTORIC RACE

A race that goes beyond race

Adrian Lyles

Over the past several months many friends, constituents, and clients have asked me how I thought the election would turn out this year. I predicted that Trump would win in the most convincing way. I predicted that Trump would garner over 300 electoral votes. I couldn’t have imagined that he would also win the popular vote. The margin in the state of New York was the closest it’s been since 1984 when Ronald Reagan won the state with nearly 54% of the vote. People who dreaded a Trump victory, and those who campaigned for him, both met my predictions with skepticism.

What did I see that many were possibly overlooking? Vivek Ramaswamy, Nikki Haley, Kamala Harris, and even the children of J.D. Vance and his wife Usha are descendants of Indian immigrants. This may be a fact completely dismissed by most. While the media paints America as a place that is inherently xenophobic and racist, people from various backgrounds are being launched to the highest offices in the land.

As an advocate of racelessness, I purport that wherever race exists there inherently lies racism. We are not inherently “raced” beings. Race was invented to oppress some people and elevate others. Thus, the way I define racism is different than most. The belief that one class, group, or supposed race, is better than another, is how I define racism. While this often occurs subconsciously on the part of those who believe in race, it does not necessarily equate to hatred.

What you are witnessing in the historic reelection of Donald Trump is not evidence that tens of millions of Americans are hateful bigots who want to exclude those who don’t have blonde hair and blue eyes. What you are seeing is the reflexive expression that the American public overwhelmingly rejects the idea that people should be chosen on the basis of their skin color. This is hard to see by many because race blinds and creates a thick veil, but the facts speak for themselves. Exit polls show that Trump did historically well among the federally recognized so-called racial and ethnic groups. Figure 1, from CNN, shows that Trump lost share among men racialized as white but gained share among so-called Asian, black, and Hispanic voters over his previous two runs. This suggests that Trump’s victory owes to an increasingly “raceless” sentiment among Americans to the effect that presidents and parties should not be chosen out of any sense of racial loyalty, and certainly not “white supremacy.”

Figure 1: Exit polls

The polls will tell you that American voters are not primarily concerned with race but with the economy. The American economy has been remarkably strong in many respects under president Biden, but it is simply a fact that many voters feel that Trump is a better steward of the economy than his Democrat opponent Kamala Harris. (I anticipate the economy to begin to slow down under Trump for a variety of reasons. Some of that will be a result of the natural business cycle. Most people are not financial professionals, and base their decisions on how they feel rather than analytics.)

I’m not advocating here for Trump as the 47th president of the United States. I’m simply highlighting that which is unlikely to be expressed by most media outlets. Many are disgusted by the thought of four more years of Donald Trump. I try not to get emotional about these sort of things. I’m much too busy with a very full life to get entangled worrying about uncontrollable things.

Instead, I advocate seeing the reelection of Donald Trump as an opportunity for those who see everything through the narrow prism of “black and white” to take notice of just how “brown” America is becoming. My efforts as it relates to the dismantling of the concept of race will see great fruit in my lifetime. I’m only showing you the future. It’s clear to see if you just pay attention. The idea of a “black vote” will become antiquated. It will become just as obscure as a politician talking about how hard they will work to earn the “white vote.” Just typing that feels icky. It’s because we all recognize deep down inside just how obtuse and evil the concept of race is at its core.

Trump is married to a foreign-born woman. The Slovenian people are only considered “white” by the ridiculous standards of America. How could so many people miss so much of this? It’s the blinding veil of race that clouds judgement and distorts reality. I’m not naive enough to think that we live in a world where “we don’t see color.” I don’t even advocate for such a dystopian society. I pray that one day we can see all the different colors, and celebrate the beauty of God’s creation, without prejudice against anyone. Just like the autumn trees draped in all their splendor, so are the shades of humanity.

I have a job to do and don’t have time to pacify the feelings of people who refuse to see the obvious. America has many challenges ahead. We as a nation don’t agree on some fundamental issues like how to define a woman, or if Ukraine needs more money. Heck, we never even reached a consensus on whether or not Kamala Harris is “black.” This national disagreement on race is in fact a sign of massive progress in this great land. A century ago, Madam VP Harris would have certainly been cast as a so called “negro” with no option to identify otherwise. In fact, women would have just received the right to vote via the ratification of the 19th Amendment. America is a great place to live. There’s a lot to fix, and certainly some relationships to mend. We as a nation are moving closer to recognizing that there are many colors, cultures, heritages, and nationalities, yet still one human race.

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Adrian Lyles is a business owner, church leader, and family man who wants to help unite rather than divide people and send the message that we are more alike than we are different. Lyles is the president and owner of Lyles Wealth Management and is also founder of the P.U.L.L. (People United in Life and Liberty) movement, a social advocacy group that campaigns for human equality. As the founder of P.U.L.L, his mission is to dispel myths about race and present the concept that there is only one race—the human race. Through P.U.L.L Lyles seeks to educate, empower, and encourage people to take a broader view of equality. He personally funds college scholarships and counseling in areas of race, relationships, career, and finance to three Gordon County, GA high school seniors annually. Finally, Lyles is the board chair of Voluntary Action Center, which offers free meals, a food bank, financial assistance, and more to Gordon County residents in need.