Chapter 38: Proximity Denial

158      the ultimate “grift,” as journalist Clay Cane termed  Clay Cane, The Grift: The Downward Spiral of Black Republicans from the Party of Lincoln to the Cult of Trump (Naperville, IL: Sourcebooks, 2024). Find the library book at search.worldcat.org/title/1374100546.

158      label antiracist. . . as “grifters” accusing us of . . .  Zachary Faria, “Ibram Kendi’s ‘Antiracist Center’ Was a Multi-Million Dollar Grift All Along,” Washington Examiner, September 21, 2023, www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/2434020/ibram-kendis-antiracist-center-was-a-multi-million-dollar-grift-all-along; and Mary Grabar, “Is Nikole Hannah-Jones’s 1619 Project Grift Drying Up?” Federalist, June 9, 2025, thefederalist.com/2025/06/09/is-nikole-hannah-joness-1619-project-grift-drying-up.

158      seem rather aggrieved . . . are paid, or paid well Charles Fain Lehman, “What Woke’s Worth and Why,” Washington Free Beacon, June 3, 2021, freebeacon.com/culture/what-wokes-worth-and-why/.

158      the significant compensation . . . who outed freedom revolts  In 1822, the South Carolina legislature ordered that slaves Peter Prioleau and George each receive an annual stipend of $50 per year—about $1,400 today—for the rest of their lives as a reward for informing on Denmark Vesey’s planned freedom revolt. “An Act for the Remuneration of Peter, of George, Pencil, and of —–— Scott,” December 21, 1822, in The Statutes at Large of South Carolina, d. David J. McCord, volume 6 (Columbia, SC: A. S. Johnson, 1839), books.google.com/books?id=v_tKAAAAYAAJ&pg=PP7#v=onepage&q&f=false, 194, 195. Contemporary purchasing power calculated using the CPI Inflation Calculator, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, www.officialdata.org/us/inflation.

158      should only be . . . when defending White racism See “Friends of the Court: SCOTUS Justices’ Beneficial Relationships with Billionaire Donors,” ProPublica, accessed November 7, 2025, www.propublica.org/series/supreme-court-scotus; and Martin Pengelly, “Clarence Thomas’s Salary Complaints Sparked Rightwing Fears He Would Resign,” The Guardian, December 18, 2023, www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/dec/18/clarence-thomas-salary-complaints.

159      pointed out . . . misrepresented her father Be A King, Twitter, September 23, 2021, 12:41 a.m., x.com/Bernice King/status/1440899121947234305; and Be A King, September 23, 2021, 12:47 a.m., x.com/BerniceKing/status/1440900624472760320.

159      accused her . . . “race politics profiteers” Josh Mandel, deleted tweet, quoted in Aisha Powell, “Bernice King, MLK’s daughter, Called Race Profiteer by GOP Senate Candidate,” Grio, September 25, 2021, thegrio.com/2021/09/25/mlk-daughter-bernice-king-race-profiteer-gop-senate-candidate/.

159      the more . . . positioned as selling Black people out  Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor, “Ibram X. Kendi’s Anti-Racism,” New Yorker, October 21, 2023, /www.newyorker.com/news/our-columnists/ibram-x-kendis-anti-racism; and Jasper Smith, “Can Ibram Kendi Find a New Home at Howard?” Chronicle of Higher Education, March 5, 2025, www.chronicle.com/article/can-ibram-kendi-find-a-new-home-at-howard.

159      the more . . .positioned as taking from White livelihoods  These theorists argue that we are not studying and speaking about racism since that is our jobs, since that is what we’ve been trained and employed to do, since that is our calling as we strive to counteract the ravages of the racism. These theorists claim we are doing this work to exploit White guilt, undermining their livelihoods. It is like describing an effective oncologist as exploiting cancer, or a bestselling therapist as exploiting mental illness. This attack—on manipulating White people for economic gain—is actually a projection. These theorists have made a lot of money capitalizing on White resentment of being described as racist, and on White rage at the thought that racial inequity is born of widespread racist policy, not Black inferiority. See Christopher F. Rufo, “Opinion: Ibram X. Kendi Is the False Prophet of a Dangerous and Lucrative Faith,” New York Post, July 22, 2021, https://nypost.com/2021/07/22/ibram-x-kendi-is-the-false-prophet-of-a-dangerous-and-lucrative-faith/; and Kirsten Fleming, “Opinion: Matt Walsh Exposes Anti-Racist ‘Grifters’ Getting Rich Off White Guilt: ‘Selling a Disease Without a Cure,’” New York Post, September 9, 2024, nypost.com/2024/09/09/opinion/matt-walsh-exposes-the-gurus-getting-rich-off-white-guilt/.

159      as “centrist” and “leftist”. . as “grifters” Pamela Paul, “‘Antiracism’ Was Never the Right Answer,” opinion, New York Times, October 5, 2023, www.nytimes.com/2023/10/05/opinion/ibram-x-kendi-racism.html; “‘Michelle Goldberg, “Ibram X. Kendi and the Problem of Celebrity Fund-Raising,” opinion, New York Times, September 25, 2023, https://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/25/opinion/columnists/kendi-center-antiracist-research.html; Tyler Austin Harper, “Ibram X. Kendi’s Fall Is a Cautionary Tale—So Was His Rise,” Washington Post, September 28, 2023, www.washingtonpost.com/books/2023/09/28/ibram-kendi-stamped-center-antiracist-research/.

159      “If Vox were racist or had a problem . . .”  Ignacio Garriga Vaz de Concicao quoted in Cecilia Jan, “Who Are the 24 New Deputies from the Vox Party in Spain’s Congress?” El País English, May 1, 2019, english.elpais.com/elpais/2019/04/30/inenglish/1556638318_321072.html.

159–160 “I grew up in the fifties and sixties . . .”  Fox News, “Ben Carson’s Appeal to the American People: Stop Listening to Media Foolishness,” YouTube, January 27, 2021, youtu.be/23yDRoDK8lg?si=j8jk5SMnWGyTg99M, 0:24–0:30.

160      “The world is very different here in America right now”  Fox News, “Ben Carson’s Appeal to the American People: Stop Listening to Media Foolishness,” youtu.be/23yDRoDK8lg?si=j8jk5SMnWGyTg99M, 0:32–0:35.

160      “The fact of the matter is that progress . . .”  Tim Scott, “Tim Scott   The View   Yesterday’s Exception Is Today’s Rule   6.5.23,” YouTube, June 5, 2023, youtu.be/rjElSuH9lPM?si=iy-fKflYSc3MM63C, 1:07–1:11.

160      “It can be measured in generations . . .”  Tim Scott, “Tim Scott   The View   Yesterday’s Exception is Today’s Rule   6.5.23,” youtu.be/rjElSuH9lPM?si=iy-fKflYSc3MM63C, 1:11–1:23.

160      “I know I faced racism when I was growing up . . .”  Bailee Hill, “Nikki Haley fires back at MSNBC’s Joy Reid: ‘We’ve Had Enough’ of Dividing People on Race,” Fox News, video, January 16, 2024, www.foxnews.com/media/nikki-haley-fires-back-msnbcs-joy-reid-weve-enough-dividing-people-race, 5:46–5:52.

160      “I was the first minority female governor . . .”  Nikki Haley quoted in Tom Barton, “Nikki Haley Urges Republicans Considering Trump to ‘Look Forward,’” The Gazette (Cedar Rapids), February 21, 2023, updated February 22, 2023, www.thegazette.com/government-politics/nikki-haley-urges-republicans-considering-trump-to-look-forward.

160      Ndongo, known as “Vox’s Black Guy”  See Bertrand Ndongo, X, December 18, 2023, 5:36 a.m., x.com/bertrandmyd/status/1736696848730018160, archived at archive.today, February 9, 2026 capture, archive.ph/wip/VKJ2D.

160      had not experienced racism in the ten years he’d lived in Spain  Elena Berberana, “The Cameroonian Who Supports Vox: ‘Black Brothers, the Progressives of PSOE and Podemos Are Using You,’” Libre Mercado, March 13, 2019, www.libremercado.com/2019-03-13/el-camerunes-que-apoya-a-vox-hermanos-negros-los-progres-del-psoe-y-podemos-os-utilizan-1276634659, via Google Translate.

160      opposed curriculum . . . to include more history on . . .  Greg Childress, “Black Democrats Take Issue with Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson’s Claim That There Is No ‘Systemic Racism,’” NC Newsline, January 29, 2021, ncnewsline.com/briefs/black-democrats-take-issue-with-lt-gov-mark-robinsons-claim-that-there-is-no-systemic-racism.

160      “system of government that we have . . .”  Mark Robinson quoted in Childress, “Black Democrats Take Issue with Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson’s Claim That There Is No ‘Systemic Racism,’” ncnewsline.com/briefs/black-democrats-take-issue-with-lt-gov-mark-robinsons-claim-that-there-is-no-systemic-racism.

160      despite his track record, which included quoting Adolf Hitler  Nikki McCann Ramírez and Ryan Bort, “N.C. GOP Nominee Mark Robinson’s Most Reprehensible Comments,” Rolling Stone, March 9, 2024, www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/north-carolina-gop-mark-robinson-worst-comments-1234984155.

160      “sick of seeing and hearing people STILL talk about Nazis . . .”  Mark Robinson quoted in Andrea Cooper, “Meet Mark Robinson, Allegedly Antisemitic Republican Frontrunner in North Carolina Governor’s race,” Jerusalem Post, September 7, 2023, www.jpost.com/diaspora/antisemitism/article-757927.

161       “I’m a black NAZI!”  Mark Robinson [username: minisoldr] quoted in Andrew Kaczynski and Em Steck, “‘I’m a Black NAZI!’: NC GOP Nominee for Governor Made Dozens of Disturbing Comments on Porn Forum,” CNN, September 19, 2024, www.cnn.com/2024/09/19/politics/kfile-mark-robinson-black-nazi-pro-slavery-porn-forum.

161       “Mein Kampf is a good read”  Robinson [username: minisoldr] quoted in Hannah Knowles and Amy Gardner, “Porn site user linked to Mark Robinson also praised Hitler’s Mein Kampf,” Washington Post, updated September 20, 2024, www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/09/20/mark-robinson-mein-kampf-porn-posts.

161       “Slavery is not bad. Some people need to be slaves . . .”  Robinson [minisoldr] quoted in Kaczynski and Steck, “‘I’m a Black NAZI!’: NC GOP Nominee for Governor Made Dozens of Disturbing Comments on Porn Forum,” www.cnn.com/2024/09/19/politics/kfile-mark-robinson-black-nazi-pro-slavery-porn-forum.

161       compared himself to Clarence Thomas  Jenni Fink, “Mark Robinson Compares Himself to Clarence Thomas: ‘High-Tech Lynching,’” Newsweek, September 19, 2024, www.newsweek.com/mark-robinson-north-carolina-dropping-out-clarence-thomas-1956580.

161       credibly accused of sexual harassment in 1991 To watch Anita Hill’s opening statement before the Senate Judiciary Committee, see C-SPAN, “October 11, 1991: Anita Hill Full Opening Statement (C-SPAN),” YouTube, September 21, 2018, www.youtube.com/watch?v=-QbVKSvm274.

161       “a high-tech lynching”  CNN, “Flashback: Clarence Thomas responds to Anita Hill,” YouTube, April 13, 2016, youtu.be/ZURHD5BU1o8?si=s5eJ3udS4byAcTw8, 3:14–3:15.

161       “Well, it looks like Mark Robinson is, too”  Mark Robinson said, “Clarence Thomas famously once said he was the victim of a high-tech lynching. Well,  it looks like Mark Robinson is, too” Mark Robinson, X, September 19, 2024, 2:54PM, x.com/markrobinsonNC/status/1836841409388642512, 0:55–1:02.

000     selected nine persons to form a commission investigating  “Black Lives Matter: ‘Much More That We Need to Do’ to Tackle Racism—PM,” BBC News, June 15, 2020, www.bbc.com/news/uk-53045349.

161       as chair of the Runnymede Trust, a racial justice think tank  “Dr Samir Shah CBE,” GOV.UK, accessed January 24, 2025, www.gov.uk/government/people/samir-shah.

161       A space scientist  “Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock MBE,” GOV.UK, accessed January 24, 2025, www.gov.uk/government/people/maggie-aderin-pocock.

161       A businessman “Aftab Chughtai MBE,” GOV.UK, accessed January 24, 2025, www.gov.uk/government/people/aftab-chughtai.

161       A retired police superintendent  “Keith Fraser,” GOV.UK, accessed January 24, 2025, www.gov.uk/government/people/keith-fraser.

161       An education professional  “Naureen Khalid,” GOV.UK, accessed January 24, 2025, www.gov.uk/government/people/naureen-khalid.

161       An economist  “Dr Dambisa Moyo,” GOV.UK, accessed January 24, 2025, www.gov.uk/government/people/dambisa-moyo.

161       A journalist  “Mercy Muroki,” GOV.UK, accessed January 24, 2025, www.gov.uk/government/people/mercy-muroki; and Gemma Jones, “Former GB News Presenter Details ‘Regret’ of Joining Show in Brutal Dig,” Daily Express, November 1, 2024, www.express.co.uk/showbiz/tv-radio/1970300/GB-News-presenter-Mercy-Muroki-regret.

161       The lone White person on the commission was . . . more than thirty schools  “Martyn Oliver,” GOV.UK, accessed January 24, 2025, www.gov.uk/government/people/martyn-oliver.

161       added two more members “Blondel Cluff CBE,” GOV.UK, accessed August 29, 2025, www.gov.uk/government/people/blondel-cluff; and “Kunle Olulode,” GOV.UK, accessed August 29, 2025, www.gov.uk/government/people/kunle-olulode.

161       as a union organizer and an advocate  “Kunle Olulode,” GOV.UK; and Nosheen Iqbal, “Downing Street Rewrote ‘Independent’ Report on Race, Experts Claim,” The Guardian, April 11, 2021, www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/apr/11/downing-street-rewrote-independent-report-on-race-experts-claim.

161       appointed Tony Sewell  Kate Devlin, “Boris Johnson Appoints Man Who Described Evidence of Institutional Racism as ‘Flimsy as Head of New Race Commission,” The Independent, July 16, 2020, www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/boris-johnson-race-commission-tony-sewell-racism-protests-a9622301.html.

161–162 a Black education consultant “Dr Tony Sewell CBE,” GOV.UK, accessed August 29, 2025, www.gov.uk/government/people/tony-sewell.

162      “Put simply we no longer see a Britain . . .”  Tony Sewell, “Foreword from the Chair,” in Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities, Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities: The Report, March 2021, assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6062ddb1d3bf7f5ce1060aa4/20210331_-_CRED_Report_-_FINAL_-_Web_Accessible.pdf, 8.

162      “The impediments and disparities do exist . . .”  Sewell, “Foreword from the Chair,” assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6062ddb1d3bf7f5ce1060aa4/20210331_-_CRED_Report_-_FINAL_-_Web_Accessible.pdf, 8.

162      “The evidence shows that geography, family influence . . .”  Sewell, “Foreword from the Chair,” assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6062ddb1d3bf7f5ce1060aa4/20210331_-_CRED_Report_-_FINAL_-_Web_Accessible.pdf, 8.

162      organized a counterdemonstration in Lisbon  Catarina Demony, “Far Right Takes to Lisbon Streets to Deny Racism Is a Problem,” Reuters, June 27, 2020, www.reuters.com/article/us-portugal-protests-racism-farright-idUSKBN23Y0S5.

162      “Portugal is not racist!”  Quoted in Demony, “Far Right Takes to Lisbon Streets to Deny Racism Is a Problem,” www.reuters.com/article/us-portugal-protests-racism-farright-idUSKBN23Y0S5.

162      “Racism is rare in Brazil”  Jair Bolsonaro quoted in “Racism ‘Rare’ in Brazil, Says Far Right Bolsonaro,” Radio France Internationale (RFI), May 8, 2019, www.rfi.fr/en/contenu/20190508-racism-rare-brazil-says-far-right-bolsonaro.

162      “It is past time for America to discard the left-wing myth of systemic racism”  Mike Pence quoted in Chris Cameron, “In a Speech to a New Hampshire G.O.P. Group, Pence Calls Systemic Racism a ‘Left-Wing Myth,’” New York Times, June 3, 2021, www.nytimes.com/2021/06/03/us/politics/pence-trump-systemic-racism.html.

162      Nine out of ten . . . “that racism is being taken seriously enough in Finland” “Yle Survey Reveals Political Divides on Racism Acceptability in Finland,” Yle, July 25, 2023, yle.fi/a/74-20042373.

162      more Black people in Finland report  Adam Oliver Smith, “Africans in Finland Face Highest Amount of Discrimination in EU,” Helsinki Times, November 28, 2018, www.helsinkitimes.fi/finland/finland-news/domestic/15989-africans-in-finland-face-highest-amount-of-discrimination-in-eu.html.