Why Donald Trump’s Behavior is So Important to Understand
By Dr. Henry Flores, NewsTaco
By now you may have gotten sick or bored with the entire Donald “The Hair Guy” Trump’s behavior and all the subsequent analyses offered by various pundits. After watching all the hullabaloo surrounding his now infamous rantings about Mexicans, however, I have concluded that pundits, intellectuals, and the general public are letting a golden opportunity slip through our fingers without taking the discussion of Trump’s behavior seriously. The Hair Guy’s blurting is important on many levels but mostly because his language is at the heart of America’s “id.”
The Id
Sigmund Freud first identified the id as that part of our personalities made up of the basic urges that are driven by our primal needs, i.e., hunger, thirst, and so forth. These basic needs are driven by our instinct to survive and can lead to bothersome behavior if not properly checked. The best example of how an individual behaves who is almost totally driven by their id is Roger the alien in Seth MacFarland’s American Dad. Roger will do and say anything as long as he gets his way which usually is having unlimited amounts of alcohol and food to consume. Roger is driven by revenge if anyone or anything gets in his way of fulfilling his basic urge for more and more alcohol. The alien’s behavior causes him to say and do anything. He insults those closest to himself, he betrays everyone, and he is inordinately greedy. The alien, I guess that is why the id is portrayed as an alien from outer space in the cartoon, only feels empathy when someone close to him is hurt beyond comprehension.
Donald Trump as America’s Id
[pullquote][tweet_dis]The silence and “hemming and hawing” of the other Republican presidential candidates regarding Donald Trump reflects their deep-seated beliefs on race and women[/tweet_dis].[/pullquote]The Hair Guy’s racist rantings about Mexicans being criminals, drug traffickers, and rapists were statements that most racists won’t make publicly but will say behind closed doors. These racists who proliferate throughout the public and private sectors of America and make and implement many policies affecting Latinos on a daily basis keep explicitly racist comments to themselves. Sometimes they spew their racial venom behind closed doors among themselves but never in public where they can become targets of Latinos, the media or a shocked and embarrassed public. Nevertheless, Trump’s comments reveal what many Americans feel and think about Latinos but are constrained to say so publicly by convention.
When NBC and NBCUniversal withdrew support of Trump and refused to carry his beauty pageants it revealed a deeper, richer strain of chauvinism that is also part of the American ideological fabric. These contests that have been going on for more than a hundred years march women about as if they were in some slave market. All that is lacking is an audience of people offering money for the services of the contestants. Trump’s affiliation with these sexist displays goes hand-in-hand with his racism. Mr. Hair Guy is not only a racist but he is a sexist as well. And, I contend that both sexism and racism are essential elements of the American id.
Why is This Important to Understand?
[pullquote]Donald’s rantings about race and his support of misogynistic beauty pageants reflect deep seated beliefs held strongly by many Americans.[/pullquote]The Hair Guy’s behavior (why does he insist upon having that shiny comb over that blinds people when they look at it?) is important to understand because it represents America’s Id. Yes folks, Donald’s rantings about race and his support of misogynistic beauty pageants reflect deep seated beliefs held strongly by many Americans. Although it’s appropriate to castigate and counter Donald’s behavior it’s important not to shut him up. My position is not based upon any First Amendment protections but on the notion that we need to make sure that racism and chauvinism are visible in order to fight any tendencies against complacency. Keeping racism and sexism out in the open also reminds us of who some of these political actors are so that voters can make rational choices when they go to the voting booths.
Trump’s behavior has caused the Republican Party to face themselves squarely. The silence and “hemming and hawing” of the other Republican presidential candidates on this issue reflects their deep-seated beliefs on race and women. Thomas Carlyle once said that “silence was golden” because it revealed the truth of people’s nefarious thoughts and actions. The silence of the GOP on Trump’s behavior is indeed golden and says a great deal about what they think and feel about Latinos, African-Americans, other people of color and women.
Henry Flores, PhD, is the Distinguished University Research Professor, Institute of Public Administration and Public Service; Director, Masters in Public Administration (MPA); Professor of International Relations and Political Science at St. Mary’s University. He is the author of Latinos and the Voting Rights Act: The Search for Racial Purpose.
Latinos and the Voting Rights Act: The Search for Racial Purpose.
