不可能的使命?拜登政府种族平等政策评估

Mission Impossible?Biden Administration’s Racial Equality Policy Review

面对特朗普政府时期美国种族主义的显著回潮,拜登执政后以竞选时期的全政府方法为基础,出台一系列促进种族平等的政策。但由于竞选承诺兑现有限、公众认知相对消极,拜登政府种族平等政策效果不佳。更重要的是,拜登促进种族平等的政策空间和认知环境都在持续恶化:一方面,新冠肺炎疫情持续极大地压缩了拜登总统的政策空间,疫情不仅使针对亚裔和非洲裔的个体性种族主义持续增长,更加剧了既已存在的系统性种族主义;另一方面,围绕批判种族理论的全国性争论及共和党推动的抵抗运动,加上2020年全国人口普查新方法的使用,使美国种族主义回潮的认知基础得到进一步巩固。可以认为,美国种族主义的当代回潮仍将持续,拜登政府促进种族平等的政策整体上是项“不可能的使命”。

Faced with the significant resurgence of racism in the United States during the Trump administration,Biden has launched a series of policies to promote racial equality based on the whole-of-government approach adopted during the election campaign.However,due to the limited fulfillment of campaign promises and the relatively negative public perception,the Biden administration’s racial equality policies have been less effective.What’s more,both the policy space and cognitive condition for President Biden to promote racial equality continue to deteriorate.On the one hand,the ongoing COVID-19 greatly compress the policy room of President Biden,which has not only fueled the growth of individual racism against Asian-Americans and AfricanAmericans,but also exacerbated the existing systemic racism.On the another hand,the national debate over critical race theory and the Republican-driven resistance movement,coupled with the use of new methodology for the2020 National Census,have further consolidated the cognitive basis for the resurgence of America’s racism.It can be considered that the contemporary resurgence of racism in the United States will continue,and the Biden administration’s policy of promoting racial equality is an"impossible mission"as a whole.