Some people think Dante de Blasio’s afro won the mayoral race for Bill de Blasio.
Can it really be as simple as that?
About The Author
BooMan
Martin Longman a contributing editor at the Washington Monthly. He is also the founder of Booman Tribune and Progress Pond. He has a degree in philosophy from Western Michigan University.
32 Comments
Recent Posts
- Day 14: Louisiana Senator Approvingly Compares Trump to Stalin
- Day 13: Elon Musk Flexes His Muscles
- Day 12: While Elon Musk Takes Over, We Podcast With Driftglass and Blue Gal
- Day 11: Harm of Fascist Regime’s Foreign Aid Freeze Comes Into View
- Day 10: The Fascist Regime Blames a Plane Crash on Nonwhite People
In a word: Yes.
I think I understand this. But explain how that worked within the demographic and geographic segmentation of voters in NYC. How would we see that in the election results?
And what was the difference about that message that made a difference for various NYC voters?
I know how that would work in the South. I just want to compare.
Well, you can see it as a response to the Republicans’ all-white-people strategy. I can’t speak for NYC voters, but as I Californian I like it because it’s a giant Fuck You to the racists and xenophobes.
The problem with the all-white-people strategy is that they think it’s white people versus non-white people, whereas in reality it’s white racists and xenophobes versus all non-white people and all non-racist white people. There are too many racists, even in California, but there also lots and lots of white people who despise racists.
This ad came out during the primary. During that time, there was one voting block that was fluid, and that was the Black vote
You had a Black candidate that had to “EVOLVE” about Stop and Frisk. Here comes this White guy, who is progressive, but you know how the community can be. Right underneath the surface is the seething of the Black community about the policy. Putting Dante in this ad talking about this policy was political gold. Looking at Dante,the Black women who loved those Black men that had been stopped could say-DeBlasio understands.
Plus, let’s face it, America hasn’t seen an afro that dominating since Michael Evans, or maybe Dr. J’s stint with the Nets.
And, no, Oscar Gamble doesn’t count, because you can’t wear a baseball hat with an afro without looking like a damn fool. (Love him, anyway).
Given authenticity and practicality to de Blasio’s position on stop-and-frisk makes sense to me. And not just for people of color in New York. No doubt there were a few white New Yorkers who were caught up with the thought about “what if it were my kid?”
Thanks for the explanation.
It worked off of an issue that was central to the primary campaign and the general election.
So glad to have another edition of “what rikyrah said”.
Yeah, I agree with this 100%. Especially wrt the primary.
Some of my friends of color in NYC endorsed Thompson, though they were more than happy to go out and vote for de Blasio. A lot of them just happened to be in a union that endorsed Bill T…so that’s where their support went.
I would have supported John Liu in the primary, personally, however.
I’m not a New Yorker, but it positioned DeBlasio as Brooklyn (for which you can read “outer boroughs”) v. Manhattan, as “not just another boring white guy” v. the “boring white guy” who’s been mayor for 12 years, as someone who has a personal stake in opposing “stop and frisk” as opposed to someone who only has an ideological opposition to it.
Maybe the majority of voters welcomed the kid’s afro as an excuse/ an opportunity to dump what has been going on for the past 12 years in the hope of trying something else. Not that it will necessarily matter. Funny, an afro, a hairdo, can be seen as decisive in an election but not Bloomberg’s enormous, phenomenal wealth and influence, the building on Fifth Avenue named after him (I suppose because he owns it) and the whole Bloomberg Financial Empire (not to mention that he succeeded where Giuliani failed by getting THREE terms). Let’s at least wish De Blasio well. But then of course there’s Twitter on the NYSE, enough to make me realize that those who have will only get more, especially in the USA of today. What is that anyway—Twitter—what’s the use of it, just a way to get attention and to strike a pose?
What is that anyway—Twitter—what’s the use of it, just a way to get attention and to strike a pose?
It’s like AIM, Gchat, Yahoo Messenger or what ever but public. At least I think so.
Twitter is drastically more used by low income folks, as well as ethnic minorities, than other forms of social media. It’s not just used to “strike a pose” – I’ve found it invaluable to learning about entire industries, and specific countries, by following key people who represent those areas. It’s a way to instantly communicate information and disseminate important links.
Twitter is as useful as you make it. If you follow people who don’t say anything important, you’ll be disappointed. But if you assemble a list of people who really interest you, it becomes a shortcut to a lot of great information that you might not otherwise catch. It can also be a good – and bad – way to catch breaking news. But you have to choose your sources wisely.
And a lot of folks enjoy it to talk about popular culture, too, which can be fun, but that isn’t all it’s about.
I wonder how we know this: ‘Twitter is drastically more used by low income folks, as well as ethnic minorities, than other forms of social media.’
Anyway, you’ve given me at least some idea of its positive and practical use.
Google “Black Twitter” and you will get the answers you seek
Good ad, but they should’ve placed the TelePrompTer so he’d seem to be looking directly into the camera instead of slightly off to the side.
OK, so he has an Afro, and his dad is in a mixed-race marriage. That’s something I’d appreciate (as a mixed-race dad) but it doesn’t explain 73%.
That, it strikes me, is way more likely to have something to do with the content of what de Blasio stands for. And that content even colors (sorry) the way people look at the ad. If Bloomberg or Giuliani happened to have a mixed-race kid, do you seriously think it would have the same impact?
Honestly, some chin-stroking pundits will clutch at anything to avoid acknowledging that a left-leaning politician, and the things s/he stands for, might have widespread appeal.
Yeah. It was a really effective amplification of his progressive message, no more and no less. I mean, it is a thrilling ad. But if John McCain had released a similar one in 2008 with his Bangladeshi daughter it’s not like he would’ve won 73% of the vote in NYC too. Come on.
Politics is about a lot more than messaging, no matter how much campaign consultants and pundits wish otherwise.
On the other hand, if you have the positions but not the messaging, you’ll lose. De Blasio was mired in 3rd place in the polls and the ad moved his numbers with remarkable speed. I’m guessing it got people to pay attention and find out about his progressive positions, when they might otherwise have continued ignoring him.
True. It does seem like it provided a big boost to his campaign, in terms of awareness and perception. That’s what a great ad can do, especially in a contested primary. But its effectiveness was undergirded by DeBlasio’s strong progressive policies.
This was a positive message from the face of the 21st century. If you close your eyes and listen he probably sounded like someones son with Asian eyes, or the son who wears baggy clothes, or the son with the purple mowhawk. NYC is ready to move on from 9/11.
I think the argument is why he won and capitulated in the primary, not the GE.
This is the first time I’ve seen the ad and my impression is very positive. He comes across as a genuine good guy. I like the afro, reminds me of the 60’s and 70’s. The whole ad is calm and positive. It definitely makes me want to know more about the candidate.
OT: just lost a 3rd comment into cyberspace today [on different computers too]. anyone else having this problem. don’t have time to rewrite my comment right now
I just lost one a few minutes ago, but it my own stupidity ~ clicking before thinking;-)
In all three instances the BT page was suddenly replaced with a blank page. Twice I had hit “preview”, once it happened all by itself.
For the AA and Latino communities, I think Rikyrah has the right explanation. But it doesn’t explain 73%.
As a native of Brooklyn not from those communities, and somebody who supported John Liu in the primary, I couldn’t wait to vote for De Blasio.
Let me try to sum it up. New York has always had a concentration of huge wealth. And between the 60s and Giuliani, New Yorkers saw their city bankrupted, decaying, and becoming a more dangerous place. But traditionally, New York’s always had something for everyone. It was a place with a lot of free and low-cost benefits regardless of income, like museums, libraries, parks, lots of good inexpensive restaurants, etc., etc.
Unlike so many American cities, New York maintained a huge and vibrant downtown area, and it never “plastic”.
Giuliani brought in a fascist approach (and I don’t believe he or the NYPD had that much to do with the deop in crime, because the same thing happened in many other cities at the same time). The facsist attitude was symbolized, for me, by the fact that Giuliani closed City Hall Park to the public in 1999, allegedly for security reasons. (Bloomberg reopened the southern half when he was elected, but the northern half wasn’t reopened until 2007.
Times Square redevelopment was another one. When it started off it seemed like a great idea. It was large area of decay and sleacea right in the heart of the city. But what they did with it absolutely took all the life out of it and stuck a giant tourist mall in the heart of the city.
Under Bloomberg, the concentration of wealth and catering to the super rich increased to a tremendous extent. It was blatant and I am sure most New Yorkers felt it personally. It was like the entire city was being gentrified and huge out-of-scale buildings were going up almost anywhere.
The flaunting of wealth became obsessive. Rents had begun to skyrocket in the ’80s, but under Bloomberg all th4se trends began to choke the life out of the city. I could say a lot more, but this would get too long.
It’s hard to explain, but you start to feel like a stranger in your own city. And nobody was speaking up for the poor and middle class. With De Blasio, and certainly with John Liu, you immediately felt that these were people who understood and cared about the city, not for the money or the glitz, buy for what makes it home to so many people as well as one of the world’s great cities (the two things are conncted). You felt they understood tht something bad had happened to the place — and contrary to what their enemies allege — they also would understand what had actually improved over the past 20 years and leave that alone. It didn’t have to be an either/or.
Lately we’ve been hearing about New York’s “sharp left turn”. The reason most New Yorkers don’t pay any attention to thescare mongers is, they know how far New York has been pushed to the right over the last 20 years. Not the tea party right, but the Masters of the Universe right. A sharp left turn, if it even would be that, would just be turning back in the direction of some kind of balance.
well said.
Another John Liu supporter? How many were up there? 12? I supported him from afar lol.
A report from March 15th of this year:
“Democrat Bill de Blasio has raised the second-largest amount in the race, but John Liu is positioned to receive much more in matching funds because more of his support came in smaller checks. With the matching money included, Liu now has enough to spend up to the primary limit.
“That could change however, depending on the outcome of a trial of a former Liu campaign aide and fundraiser next month. They are charged with using straw donors to drum up the number of donations and evade contribution limits. Their trial is scheduled for next month, and Liu plans to formally announce his candidacy Sunday.” (ANNA SALE, WNYC NEWS)
Well, they were convicted and Liu was denied matching funds, which doomed his campaign. Those arrests were from a federal sting operation that was almost certainly politically motivated. They couldn’t find anything against Liu.
He actually had a lot of support, with many union endorsements, including the powerful DC 37.
http://politicker.com/2013/10/john-liu-rages-at-u-s-attorney-after-ex-treasurer-sentenced-to-prison/
One person that really doesn’t like Liu is Bloomberg, because he was probably his most effective critic.
Now you got me thinking about himu again, I really prefer him to Blasio. A very impressive guy. Intellect, courage, and compassion. I wish him well. (He’s still NYC comptroller until December.)
Interesting. any chance he’ll run again in the future?
I don’t think anybody know at this point. Possibly including him.
For the record, here’s what he said on a recent interview:
What’s next for John Liu?
I’ve given it a lot of thought. I’ve always wanted to drive a taxi. I know the streets really well. I think I could get some good tips.
Do you plan to stay in public service?
No matter where I get my paycheck from, I will be actively engaged in city affairs. At the end of the day, there are big changes that we need in New York City. This is a city that drew my parents to bring their family over here. It’s not easy relocating your family halfway across the world, and my family is not unique. New York CIty drew people for the promise that if you work hard, dream big, and then work a little harder, you can achieve great things. And I think that promise has been broken by this administration, and it needs to be fixed.
http://gothamist.com/2013/10/23/john_liu_feature.php