Elections of Hate and Historical Recurrence by Yoel Feinberg

Elections of Hates

After taking years of history class, I am sure we are all familiar with the idea of historical recurrence, or the idea that history repeats itself. Recently we learned about the election of 1828, with representatives Jackson against John Adams. During this election, there was the birth of a new campaign strategy which involved denouncing the legitimacy of the opposing candidate. John Adams knew, like many others, that Jackson came from a poor background, and he saw that as an opportunity to prove that Jackson was not worthy to receive the high-status position of president. The election between John Adams and Jackson is known for being unbelievably dirty. During the 1828 election Adams claimed in public news sources that Jackson’s mother came to America with the British, and that she was a common prostitute who married a mulatto man (multi-racial, mixed color). This strategy of hate can be seen as following the rule of historical recurrence.

During modern day elections, factors such as social media expansion make public speaking the priority of candidates. In the election of Trump against Hillary, the one happening in the present, there is a large spread of hate, due to both the candidates denouncing one another and social media making strong claims. An example of this is how democrats call Trump an unpredictable racist who is not capable of having normal hair. Examples of delegitimizing Hillary are sexist remarks and the idea that she is not trustworthy. As this election strategy has proven useful when it is used moderately and slyly by the candidates (rather than Adams blatantly attacking Jackson publicly), I am sure that the future elections of the United States can expect the continuance of this historical recurrence.

sources:
class discussions and understanding of the election