Joe Biden will protect minorities and redress rising American racism

The argument

Donald Trump has not only encouraged acts of racism but also benefitted from them. Trump centered his 2016 presidential campaign on racism, sexism, and xenophobia, which ultimately won him the election. According to the FBI, the increased rate of hate crimes correlate with Trump’s time in office. Joe Biden will address systemic racism and work to reverse the damage left by Donald Trump. Joe Biden has made a promise to deal with institutional racism and police brutality within his first 100 days in office. He has not only addressed America’s plague of systemic racism but also encouraged white people to actively be anti-racist to dismantle racist tendencies. These plans will protect and reassure vulnerable communities affected by racism. Joe Biden also supports an economy that uplifts minoritized communities. Biden’s fourth pillar of his coronavirus plan promises “an economy where Black, Latino, Asian American and Pacific Islander, and Native American workers and families are finally welcomed as full participants.” Biden also seeks to dismantle the country’s racial wealth, opportunity, and job gap continuously affecting minorities. Following the passing of John Lewis, Biden also called on Congress to pass a new Voting Rights Act. This legislation intends on uplifting minority voters.

Context

Systemic racism has come under a new spotlight under the Trump administration. President Trump has done little to address systemic racism and even denounced the protests following the death of George Floyd. On the other hand, Joe Biden has made clear plans to address the plague of systemic racism.

Premises

Counter-arguments

Biden admits that white people can “never fully understand” racism, yet Joe Biden makes promises to solve racism. As a white male, Biden will never understand the extent of racism in America. If he cannot even fully understand racism, then he definitely cannot solve it. In addition, the plague of systemic racism is so brutal that it can never be fixed. Systemic racism has taken over society to the point that it is irrevocable. Nobody—especially Joe Biden—can solve the effects of systemic racism.

Rejecting the premises

[Rejecting P1] A correlation between an administration and reported hate crimes does not establish causation, and reporting rates are themselves affected by how much attention the issue receives. Attributing the trend to encouragement requires an argument the premise does not make. [Rejecting P2] These are campaign commitments. A hundred-day pledge on institutional racism and police brutality names a timeframe rather than a mechanism, and most of the relevant levers — police departments, prosecution, sentencing — sit with states and localities rather than with the presidency. [Rejecting P3] The economic and voting-rights agendas require legislation, and the argument does not address the majorities they would need. Aiming at racial gaps is not the same as closing them. [Rejecting C] 'Should be elected' is a comparative judgment resting on everything a presidency does, and the premises consider one issue. The record on which the promises rest is itself contested, which is reason to weigh past votes alongside present commitments.