Name, Mane and Plain: Political Language with Meaning

The Mane Problem

Ok, let’s start with mane. It is a sensitive topic to speak about someone’s hair and coiffure. There are ethnic and racial roots (pun intended) to one’s hair. And, hair can reflect illness and chemotherapy, among other not so good or pleasant things. Our mane or lack thereof is not a laughing matter.

Yet, both Trump and Vance have struggled with and we have commented upon their hair. It’s an easy laugh. Trump has the orange now whitish comb-over and Vance just got a three-stooges hair cut where the top looks a bit like a toupee. Both have hair do’s that have led to ridicule and jokes that then extend to their beliefs under their hair. (Yes, those beliefs are, in my estimatation, worse than a bad hair day; they are bad at and beneath the surface.)

For most of us, our hair should not be the subject of teasing (pun intended for those in the know). Whether one’s hair is curly or kinky or white or blue or if one is bald, it shouldn’t matter. And it is certainly not a reflection of one’s wisdom or character or capacity to lead. Let’s leave Trump and Vance’s hair alone and focus instead on what’s under that hair.

I remember years ago when my then very long dark locks were brittle and dry. Conditioner wasn’t something I knew about back then and my mother wasn’t in the know as she had her hair styled weekly and never washed it in-between. My then boyfriend’s sister used to tease him about the facial rash he’d get from kissing me and fondling my knotty hair. Oh was I mad at her …. I wish I remembered her name. Clearly, with the passage of time, I fixed this hair problem with silky smooth hair (but apparently not my resentment).

Hair becomes political. Let hair just be.

The Name Problem

Now, commenting upon, misspelling and mispronouncing names is of a similar and perhaps even deeper order. Our name houses our identity. We often did not choose it; it was bestowed upon us. (Yes, some folks change their first and/last name. My childhood best friend now calls herself Swan, not her birth name to be clear.) It bespeaks our heritage, our culture, our race, our ethnicity. Like our mane, our name speaks volumes (pun intended).

Yet, too many folks are cavalier about names. Beverley (yes, three “e’s”) Johns just wrote a fantastic op-ed about people misspelling her name or teasing her about its unusual spelling. And, she points out that for children, as we start the school year, names matter. Our students know if we butcher their names. And far too many people have experienced bias and untoward assumptions and discrimination based on their name. Jobs lost; homes not bought or rented. The data support this travesty; for example, the same applicant (with same resume) who changed his/her name to a non-ethnic name could and did get an interview for a job.

Now, my name is Karen and don’t get me started on the horrible misguided Karen memes. I have wanted to change how I spell my name (Caryn or Karine); now I often use “K” when I sign emails. It irks me. I’ve spilled lots of ink on this topic.

But, in the bitter world of politics, we see the power of names and the assumptions embodied by names. Ponder Barack Obama’s first name and the meanness to which he was subjected with respect to it. (Trump was fixated on Obama’s middle initial “H,” trying to link him to a terrorist with the same “H” last name.) To be sure, Obama teased about names at the recent DNC since the new Democratic candidate has a first name that has perplexed many. Indeed, whether by design or ignorance, Trump repeatedly mispronounces his opponent’s name — Kamala.

The Kamala mispronunciations led to a clever DNC demonstration of her name by two kids (her nieces as I recall). I just saw a tee shirt that said in big bold letters and I quote:

, la

as in the “comma” symbol and “la.” A friend just warmly called her La, as in the person where hope resides.

Surely, Trump could get Kamala’s name right if he wanted to get it right — which he doesn’t. He wants to message that she is out of the mainstream with a non-mainstream name. Just as a side note, Trump’s son has a name that messages and I am sure he gets teased: Barron. Was that an intentional re-spelling of Baron, as in part of a phantom autocracy/kingdom Trump seeks to create?

Names become political. Don’t just let it be.

The Plain Problem

Plain and simple, America has a problem. We cannot stop being rude and mean. We lack civility. Now the DNC explored unity and freedom and while there were political barbs over the course of the DNC, civility was maintained. Literal tears (think Gus Walz) and joy were on full display – it was genuine too.

As we approach the campaign and the debates between the candidates, I worry about the name calling and the bitter retorts and the below the proverbial belt jabs. I am sure that whatever Trump and Vance dish out, Kamala and Tim can and will retort with zingers and one-liners that sting.

(Update: Oh, perhaps Trump will chicken out of his debates….so then we have a one-person debate which could be renamed a “solo high dive platform.” We know the amazing Olympic feats from these heights. That withdrawal would be bad (and telling), depriving us of the comparison opportunity.)

But, I hope we do better than that debate barbs. Our children need to hear real debate on the merits, debates that reveal priorities and values. Name calling (or misnaming) have no place. Hair barbs aren’t called for either. What we should see is a serious focus on issues. And I get that that doesn’t improve tv ratings.

Running for President and being President, debating an opponent — these are not reality TV shows. These are real events with consequence. We can ascribe our cultural incivility to many things but surely candidate and leader meanness and negativity and bias and pomposity and arrogance and lawbreaking are not helping. We can do better. We must do better. That takes more than hope; it takes action.

We can’t let the status quo ante be.