3 chapters across the catalog
Prosecutor Christopher Darden is credited with creating the ubiquitous euphemism "the N-word" because he refused to utter the slur in court. The segment also features Lee Atwater explaining the "Southern Strategy," where overt racial slurs were replaced by abstract economic terms like "tax cuts" and "states' rights" to serve as dog whistles.
The discussion shifts to the central theme of the episode: the history and power of the black vote in America. Projections for the 2020 Democratic primaries suggest that one out of every four votes will be cast by black voters, marking a potential historical peak in influence. Moe argues that while black voters are often viewed as a monolith, there is a growing internal divide regarding political demands and the strategy of abstaining from voting.
The hosts challenge the standard "Southern Strategy" narrative, which claims the parties flipped identities in the 1960s. Adam Curry references the Lyndon Johnson tapes to argue that Johnson was a "super racist" rather than a genuine civil rights hero. They suggest that the trauma of the Kennedy assassination allowed for a historical rewrite of the Democratic Party's role in racial politics.
