New Bottle, Same Old Wine: The GOP and Race in the Age of Obama

The election of Barack Obama has brought race relations and racism to the forefront of America's consciousness, particularly among Republicans who have recently attempted to woo minority voters into their ranks. However, we argue and provide evidence that suggests that many Republicans are still consciously and unconsciously prejudiced toward Blacks and other disadvantaged minorities. This may explain Republicans' failure to make substantial policy changes to support minority groups, particularly Blacks. Instead, the GOP appears to be superficially promoting diversity by "propping up" unique minority group candidates who strongly endorse conservative policies in the Republican Party and attempting to minimize the impact of numerous racially offensive and insensitive remarks made by prominent Republicans since Obama's election. In sum, the GOP still has to make a more concerted policy-based effort to show that they are an organization that is accepting of minorities and their concerns.