How diamond and silk became a shield against racism for conservatives

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Diamond and Silk have gained viral popularity as two of Trump’s strongest supporters. Some critics say the sisters have become a way for conservative lawmakers to shield themselves from allegations of racism. Lynnette Hardaway, widely known by her stage name Diamond, died in January. LoadingSomething is being loaded.

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When popular conservative influencer Diamond passed away on Monday, January 9, the Republican Party lost one of its strongest supporters.

“Diamond’s death was totally unexpected, probably his big and precious heart just gave out,” former President Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social, the social media platform he founded.

Diamond and Silk, whose real names are Lynnette Hardaway and Rochelle Richardson, went viral in the run-up to the 2016 presidential election, becoming two of Trump’s most vocal and spirited supporters. At a December 2015 campaign rally in the sisters’ home state of North Carolina, Trump invited the duo onto the stage and told them, “Do your routine.”

The sisters quickly became influencers, amassing a passionate fan base for their unbridled energy and humor. Their Twitter account, which says “President Donald J Trump’s Most Loyal Supporters” in the biography, has 1.9 million followers, while their Facebook page has 2.4 million.

But Diamond and Silk are an anomaly among Trump supporters, the vast majority of whom are white. In contrast, only 8% of black Americans voted for Trump in 2020, according to AP VoteCast.

Diamond and Silk have come to represent the small but vocal cadre of Black Trump supporters. They have also sometimes become a way for conservative lawmakers to hide their own racist policies and behavior, according to political experts.

“A lot of the work that black Republicans do is to make Republican positions on race bearable and tolerable for white audiences,” said Corey Stokes, associate professor of sociology at Northwestern University and author of “Black Elephants in the Room: The Unexpected Politics of African-American Republicans.

A black conservative performance for a white audience

While the likes of Diamond and Silk, Candace Owens and Herschel Walker might inspire some black voters to support conservative political positions, they are more effective for white audiences, especially when it comes to divisive issues like the abortion and immigration, according to political experts.

“Having black influencers is a way for hesitant white conservatives to say, ‘How racist can it be if these black people support it? ‘” Stokes said.

Conservative lawmakers have recognized the usefulness of black influencers like Diamond and Silk, who can speak about Republican politics in ways that appear racially neutral, while using language and mannerisms that are widely associated with “blackness.” “.

“The performance they engaged in drew heavily on the aesthetics, attitude, and language of black communities. But they deployed those elements to talk about politics in line with what white conservatives wanted to hear” , Stokes told Insider.

“It’s a discourse of blackness where the actual black participants are almost secondary characters,” Stokes continued. “It’s a version of Blackness that should be read as legit for a white audience.”

Diamond and Silk speak at a 2016 Trump campaign event in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Johnny Louis/WireImage via Getty Images Advancing Conservative Politics

Republican lawmakers have called on Diamond and Silk to advance conservative policies.

In 2018, the sisters appeared before Congress to testify about their allegations of censorship during Facebook hearings. They claimed the social media company shut down their page because of their support for Trump. Conservative lawmakers were quick to build on this argument.

“What’s ‘Dangerous’ About Two Black Women Supporting Donald J. Trump?” Republican Representative Billy Long said during a hearing with Mark Zuckerberg.

Experts testified there was no evidence of discrimination, but conservative lawmakers used the drama to their advantage, according to academics Insider spoke to.

“Part of the role of having people like Diamond and Silk is to signal, ‘Hey, look, this party isn’t just white people, and it’s not just a white people problem,'” Stokes said. .

But the blame also lies with influencers like Diamond and Silk, who “talk about racist double standards, but themselves misrepresent how racism works,” according to James Jones, who teaches African studies and sociology at Rutgers University.

“Rather than addressing the very real issue of how race influences algorithms on the internet, their testimony focused on protecting and uplifting their own personal brands,” Jones said.

Diamond and Silk arrive to testify before the House Judiciary Committee on April 26, 2018. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Skirting Racism Accusations

The sisters also became the faces of an anti-sanctuary bill introduced by Conservative politician Steve King in 2019.

Officially called the “End Sanctuaries and Help Our American Homeless and Veterans Act,” the proposed bill sought to redirect federal funds to sanctuary cities to help homeless military veterans. King called the bill “the Diamond and Silk Law,” saying the sisters helped draft the bill.

The bill, which ultimately failed, drew criticism from both sides of the aisle: Conservative pundits derided the bill as a political stunt at the expense of homeless veterans, while the media left blasted King’s partnership with Diamond and Silk as an attempt to protect themselves. allegations of racism.

King had been stripped of all committee assignments by Republican leaders after questioning how terms like “white supremacist” became “offensive.” He has previously made other statements which have been criticized for racism, including suggesting that “Western European” and “Eastern European” people have contributed more to the world than any other “sub-group”.

“Republican leaders have openly embraced and raised these black conservative voices, however, these numbers are only useful to deflect allegations of racism,” Jones said. “What we don’t see are figures like Diamond and Silk holding Republicans accountable for their dangerous rhetoric and policy positions.”

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