Joy Reid, a prominent figure on MSNBC, expressed her disapproval towards white Christian voters in Iowa.
“These are white Christians. That this is a state that is overrepresented by white Christians that are going to participate in these caucuses tonight,” she said. “This is a hyper-evangelical white state, she declared.”
She referenced statistics indicating that 61 percent of the state’s inhabitants identify as white and Christian, contending that white evangelicalism is, in fact, synonymous with Christian nationalism.
“They see themselves as the rightful inheritors of this country, and Trump has promised to give it back to them,” she said. “All the things that we think about, about electability, about what are people gaming out, but none of that matters when you believe that God has given you this country, that it is yours, and that everyone who is not a White, conservative Christian is a fraudulent American, is a less real American. Then you don’t care about electability. You care about what God has given you.”
Setting aside Reid’s blatant anti-white racism, let’s review the facts.
Putting aside Reid’s evident prejudice against white individuals, let us examine the factual information.
Iowa, being a free state, had already abolished slavery and took a leading role in advocating for civil rights.
As early as 1868, Iowa demonstrated its commitment to equality by desegregating its public schools. This landmark decision was made by the Iowa Supreme Court in the case of Clark v. Board of Directors. The court ruled that racial segregation in public schools violated the Natural Rights/Equality Clause of the Iowa Constitution’s Bill of Rights.
Moreover, in the same year, Iowa became the first state outside of New England to grant African-American men the right to vote.
To further emphasize Iowa’s dedication to equal treatment, the Iowa legislature passed the Iowa Civil Rights Act in 1884. This act prohibited discrimination in various establishments such as barbershops, theaters, hotels, and public transportation. Additionally, in 1892, another law was enacted to make discrimination illegal in restaurants.
While it is regrettable that MSNBC would provide a platform for an individual who promotes racism, it is utterly unacceptable for the network to give a platform to an uninformed racist individual.
