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Identity politics

And, yes, using the same logic, all city dwellers should welcome measures that discriminate against farmers looking for jobs or doing business in the city.

No more examples. I think you’ve got the point.

I am simplifying matters to make a point, but identity politics does sound like the worst kind of politics, doesn’t it?

Well, perhaps it does, but it is there because it serves a practical purpose. To give one example, minority groups should better stick together if they want to win a particular social cause. Gay and lesbian people, for instance, should stick together if they ever want to enjoy the same rights to work and marriage as straight guys and gals.

All right, no more words from me. Let’s read a few media examples to see identity politics in action:

1. Picturesque: a large, celebratory crowd listens to inspiring oratory near the shore of Lake Champlain. The speaker is Vermont senator Bernie Sanders, announcing his candidacy for president of the United States. It’s a fiery, detailed, leftwing speech—about what you’d expect from this 73-year-old self-described democratic socialist and grandpa.

But columnist Byron York noticed something odd. “The racial issues that have dominated the news at various times in the past year were nowhere to be found.” Trayvon, Michael Brown, Freddie Gray went unmentioned. The words “Dreamers” and “executive order”—they weren’t said. No resounding endorsement of same-sex marriage, no call to the barricades in support of trans rights. “It struck me as a missed opportunity,” said MSNBC host Chris Hayes.