Was a vote for Donald Trump a racist vote?

Donald Trump has stated he “disavows“ groups such as the KKK and David Duke. That certainly isn’t as far as other politicians go in repudiating racism.

Disavowing something simply means you are not associated with them. It would be fair (and logical) to say I disavow the Democratic party because I am registered as an independent, but it doesn’t mean I don’t agree with them on some issues and have not supported or voted for them in various elections.

There is a large difference between saying you disavow something and you abhor it.

The reason that racists feel emboldened by Donald Trump and his rhetoric is that his agenda lines up with their agenda. He has disavowed these groups (stated he is not affiliated with them) but this doesn’t mean he isn’t working towards their agenda. There were many reasons people voted for Donald Trump, but each individual group will take heart in their agenda not being rejected by voters.

Voting for Donald Trump was a vote for racism. Enabling racism was a part of his platform and racists were a large part of his coalition.