‘White Dudes for Harris’ Debuts as Democrats Embrace Identity Politics To Make Up Ground

A “White Dudes for Harris” virtual event Monday night prompted a plethora of memes about low-testosterone men and the Democrats’ embrace of identity politics, but the more than three-hour live stream raised $4 million and attracted about 60,000 viewers at its peak. For the Trump campaign the event could prove to be worrisome. Monday night’s identity-based Zoom call was just the latest for Harris supporters, who are making up for lost time with virtual fundraising and volunteer recruiting events.The Harris campaign has raised more than $200 million since President Biden dropped out of the race on July 21 and endorsed her. “White Dudes for Harris” was the male version of a white women’s Zoom call last Thursday that raised $11 million and attracted nearly 200,000 participants. Black women’s and Black men’s Zoom calls preceded that.Democrats are fully embracing identity politics. Vice President Harris is being touted as the potential first female, Black, and Asian — or AAPI, short for Asian American and Pacific Islanders, to use the politically correct term in these circles — president. Yet there is risk in Republicans attacking Ms. Harris back along these same identity lines.“They would love to talk about everything other than the issues where Trump has a command,” a Republican strategist, Matthew Bartlett, tells the Sun. He advises that Mr. Trump stick to the issues and pin Ms. Harris down for her liberal record, not attacking her as a “DEI hire” or for anything related to her gender or her reported sexual relationships that may have helped her early in her career.“What is not wise is to go after her on some of the unsavory aspects of American politics — identity politics — which she would probably welcome,” Mr. Bartlett says. “White Dudes for Harris” comes as Ms. Harris is closing the gap in the polls between herself and Trump. The event featured more than 25 high-profile speakers, including some contenders to be Ms. Harris’s running mate. Other speakers included activists, labor leaders, and members of the Hollywood elite.The transportation secretary, Pete Buttigieg; Governors Pritzker and Walz; a handful of congressmen; gun restriction activist David Hogg; actor Jeff Bridges; and Mark Hamill of “Star Wars” fame urged listeners to donate to the Harris campaign and volunteer. They spoke about preserving abortion rights and the role white men need to play in preventing another Trump presidency.“I’m white, I’m a dude, and I’m here for Harris,” Mr. Bridges said, referencing his White Russian-guzzling character “The Dude” in the Coen brothers movie, “The Big Lebowski.”“I got to be honest, when I’m invited to an event with a name like ‘White Dudes for Harris,’ it doesn’t usually sound like something I would join. But this is a terrific cause,” Mr. Pritzker said. Then he proceeded to make a couch and cat joke directed at Trump’s running mate, Senator Vance.Actor Misha Collins called the “White Dudes” name “a little cringey” and said the quiet part out loud. “We hear about white men congregating and we think of tiki torches and AR-15s and the Klan, and I think it’s a really beautiful opportunity for us to take back that identity from those bands of bigots and misogynists,” he said.Billed initially as a Zoom call, “White Dudes for Harris” was switched before the event to a YouTube stream with a disabled chat. That meant the live commentary moved to X. There were jokes and memes about masculinity and crude ones about homosexuality, but there were also pointed criticisms about the double standard when it comes to identity politics.“If the GOP promoted a ‘White dudes for Trump’ event, it would be on the front page of the Washington Post and New York Times. Rachel Maddow would tell her audience that Trump wants to bring back segregation,” reporter Aaron Sibarium wrote on X in a post that went viral. “White dudes for Harris sponsored by treatments for Low T,” comedian Bridget Phetasy posted to X.“That has gotten more memes in the 24 hours than I’ve seen of anything,” the chairman of the Harlem Republican Club, Oz Sultan, tells the Sun. The “white dudes” likely learned from the white women who preceded them. There were fewer instances of language like “put on your listening ears” and “center Bipoc voices,” a reference to Black, indigenous, and other people of color. An influencer with 1.5 million followers, Arielle Fodor, was mercilessly mocked on X on Monday for her condescending Robin DiAngelo-style speech in last Thursday’s “White Women: Answer the Call 2024” Zoom. “If you find yourself talking over or speaking for Bipoc individuals — or God forbid — correcting them, just take a beat,” Ms. Fodor said, adding the advice about “listening ears.”Mr. Sultan says this type of talk is “infantilizing” to Blacks. “It’s a grift,” he says.Yet the Harris campaign is leaning fully into identity to mobilize its supporters. They also hosted an official virtual campaign event Monday night, “Women for Harris National Organizing Call,” which lasted two-and-a-half hours and featured Chelsea Clinton, Gloria Steinem, Governor Whitmer, and other politicos. They encouraged women to host fundraising events in their living rooms and asked mothers to consider volunteering for phone banks while their babies nap.Trump is so far avoiding the identity trap. His posts to Truth Social and press releases Monday didn’t mention her race or gender but focused on branding Ms. Harris as “dangerously liberal” and a supporter of “defund the police” during the 2020 George Floyd protests.Trump’s son, Don Jr, though, posted a snarky retort to X. “They should give it a more fitting name like: Cucks for Kamala,” he wrote.

‘White Dudes for Harris’ Debuts as Democrats Embrace Identity Politics To Make Up Ground

‘White Dudes for Harris’ Debuts as Democrats Embrace Identity Politics To Make Up Ground

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