MSNBC contributor Paola Ramos faced criticism after she said Latino voters are attaching themselves more to conservative ideologies because of a “cultural identity crisis.”
Ramos, who formerly worked as the deputy director of Hispanic press for Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign, appeared Monday on MSNBC’s “Deadline: White House.”
Regarding new data released from the Pew Research Center showing that former President Donald Trump made gains among Latino voters in 2020 compared to 2016, Ramos asked, “How? How after four years of Donald Trump?”
She continued, “Right? After hearing about the wall, after seeing family separation, after seeing hate crimes rise, after hearing the words ‘go back to your country,’ how is it possible that Donald Trump did 10 points better with Latinos in 2020 than he did in 2016?”
She went on to say that she thinks there is a story behind the 10-point increase, adding that it goes beyond politics and strategy.
“There is a cultural identity crisis that we are undergoing as a community that is completely splitting and dividing Latinos,” Ramos said.
“In this crisis, you have on the one hand, Latinos that believe that in order to achieve the American Dream, you have to get as close as possible to whiteness, and that is something that Trump gave them permission to do,” Ramos added. “On the other hand, you have Latinos that believe that in order to achieve the American Dream, you have to get as far as possible from whiteness. And that is a dilemma that I don’t think we have seen clearly.”
She said that she has to change how she thinks about Latinos, instead focusing on how they see themselves in the U.S. She did not acknowledge the socialist rhetoric that has risen from members of the progressive Left that, as Fox News pointed out, some analysts have noted might be the reason that some Latino voters distanced themselves from the Democratic Party.
Later on in the interview, Ramos added, “I think the big question Democrats now have to figure out is can we — do we go after those lost Latino Trump supporters and can we do that while at the same time going for the more progressive, diverse Latino voters? In this moment, I am not so sure you can do both things because they are completely at moral odds.”
Ramos added on Twitter,” Per [Pew], Trump won 38% of the Latino vote— that’s a 10 point increase from ‘16. Politics alone doesn’t explain it. I believe Trump tapped into a cultural identity crisis we’re undergoing—& we need to pay attention.”
Per @pew, Trump won 38% of the Latino vote— that’s a 10 point increase from ‘16. Politics alone doesn’t explain it. I believe Trump tapped into a cultural identity crisis we’re undergoing—& we need to pay attention. Thanks @AliciaMenendez for having me❤️ https://t.co/xgv5aawWI4
— Paola Ramos (@paoramos) July 6, 2021
As Fox News reported, many members of the media, some of whom are Latinos, pushed back against Ramos’ implication that Latinos should only vote Democrat.
“It’s not so much an identity crisis as it is the rejection of an artificial identity that is built upon politics,” tweeted Jorge Bonilla, director of MRC Latino, a Spanish-language conservative watchdog group launched by the Media Research Center.
Perhaps people got tired of being told by @jorgeramosnews that immigration was the end-all to their identity pic.twitter.com/Z5wwJqzieM
— Jorge Bonilla (@BonillaJL) July 6, 2021
Daniel Garza, president of the Libre Initiative, responded to Bonilla, writing, “Exactly. Latinos are not just our ideology. We are our parent’s sons & daughters, we’re our shared culture, language, historical legacy, our faith, our diverse American experience, our education, race & ethnicity, our immigrant experience, y mucho mas. Respect our differences[.]”
Exactly. Latinos are not just our ideology. We are our parent’s sons & daughters, we’re our shared culture, language, historical legacy, our faith, our diverse American experience, our education, race & ethnicity, our immigrant experience, y mucho mas. Respect our differences
— Daniel Garza (@danielggarza) July 6, 2021
Conservative media strategist Giancarlo Sopo added, “Progressives have a tendency to view politics through the prism of power inequities that produce social disparities. This framework just doesn’t work with many Hispanics. I’m obviously generalizing, but we tend to view ourselves as examples of the American Dream, not victims.”
Progressives have a tendency to view politics through the prism of power inequities that produce social disparities. This framework just doesn't work with many Hispanics. I'm obviously generalizing, but we tend to view ourselves as examples of the American Dream, not victims.
— Giancarlo Sopo (@GiancarloSopo) July 6, 2021
The Pew Research Center report on the 2020 electorate stated, “Trump made gains among Hispanic voters. Even as Biden held on to a majority of Hispanic voters in 2020, Trump made gains among this group overall.”
It added, “There was a wide educational divide among Hispanic voters: Trump did substantially better with those without a college degree than college-educated Hispanic voters (41% vs. 30%).”
Pew noted, “While Biden took a 59% majority of the Hispanic vote, Trump (with 38%) gained significantly over the level of support Republican candidates for the House received in 2018 (25%). To be sure, Hispanic voters are not a monolith; there is substantial diversity within the Hispanic electorate.”