On a recent episode of Jon Stewart's Comedy Central hit, "The Daily Show," reporter Rob Riggle made his way to Platteville, Wis. for a segment on the local sheriff's race. The story was about joke-candidate Will Fenrick, whose basis for running was to mock the boorishness of his own town. Prior to the race, he changed his name to Andy Griffith in an attempt to compare Platteville to the fictional Mayberry of "The Andy Griffith Show." His campaign slogan was, "Vote for me, you hicks." Of course, "The Daily Show" had great fun with the story, agreeing with Fenrick's analysis of the people of Platteville as crude and backward.
Most liberals no doubt approved of the piece, enjoying a few laughs at the expense of rural, conservative Americans. Indeed, ridiculing red-state culture has become a staple of American comedy. It seems that, these days, laughing at the backwardness of the South, for example, just makes for quality humor. But here's the best part about it: Comedians can get away with this behavior because mocking traditionalist, white Americans isn't bigotry.
Or is it? It seems political correctness offers NASCAR culture no refuge. Laughing at the church rituals of the evangelicals, using a Southern accent when depicting the uneducated, or wondering aloud how people can be so fascinated by a sport — which consists of people driving in circles — is all considered to be acceptable.
But should it be? Consider if similar humor was applied to the cultural attitudes and practices of racial minorities: The response would be justified outrage. This is interesting, since many cultural elements that liberal elitists are so intent on criticizing conservative whites for apply only more so to oppressed groups. For example, the religious orthodoxy of Southerners — via the Southern Baptist Church of Jerry Falwell and the like — is a common source of ridicule. And yet, according to a recent Associated Press poll, 38 percent of Southerners reported to attend church regularly, while more than four in 10 African-Americans gave the same response.
Another poignant example comes from liberal treatment of homophobes. In the aftermath of the disappointing marriage referendum results in November 2006, most leftists turned to rural Wisconsin as the culprit. The sentiment on the UW campus and elsewhere was one of rage toward the backward bigots from up Nort'. Curiously, this type of demeaning treatment doesn't extend toward the almost universal homophobia of the Muslim world. According to Amnesty International, Saudi Arabia leads the world in public beheadings for the "crime" of homosexuality. Where is the anger and ridicule?
A common response to this obvious double standard is that minority groups — like African-Americans and Muslims — deserve protection in virtue of their oppression. Conservative whites, as the argument goes, do not merit such special treatment. This argument would have validity if the whites who faced the brunt of Jon Stewart's comedy were not at the bottom of the economic ladder; it is the poor, the rural and the uneducated that the people of New York and Madison love to laugh at.
The sad reality of this liberal pretentiousness is that it alienates the very people needed to bring about social change. And what a waste of potential it is. Poor whites, after all, understand what it means to live without health care, to work for minimum wage and to worry about paying the heating bill. This untapped source of political support is a tragedy and only limits the path to social equality for all Americans.
Still, red-state residents do stand on the reactionary side of many social issues. Gay rights, reproductive rights and the death penalty are just a few such examples. It is these few hyped issues that mark the fundamental difference between liberals and conservatives. The goal progressives should have is to transcend such issues by uniting people on the concerns that actually affect their lives. Moreover, bringing traditionalist whites into the progressive fold is likely to convince them the Republican wedge issues — like whether John marries Bill — really don't matter after all.
Either way, scorning blue-collar whites for their conservatism only further increases America's artificial political divide. Perhaps Jon Stewart and the like believe that laughing at the heartland hicks will convince them they're wrong. More likely, rich East Coast liberals like Stewart are more interested in just laughing, since they have no concern with the issues most hardworking Americans face. So, Stewart, instead of laughing, do us all a favor: Shut up.
Kyle Szarzynski ([email protected]) is a sophomore majoring in Spanish and history.
