According to Wikipedia, In politics, a dog whistle is the alleged use of coded or suggestive language in political messaging to garner support from a particular group without provoking opposition. The concept is named after ultrasonic dog whistles, which are audible to dogs but not humans. Dog whistles use language that appears normal to the majority but is speculated to communicate specific things to intended audiences. They are generally used to convey messages on issues likely to provoke controversy without attracting negative attention.

In his acceptance speech in 2016, Donald Trump declared, “I am the law-and-order President” – a statement that was a dog whistle to many in his base that he would indeed work for white people and to protect privilege. It was bold, it was clear, and over the next four years it proved to be true. The term “dog whistle,” put in the spotlight after the assassination of Dr. King, remains relevant today and signifies to some groups that there will be special attention paid to white and white-cultured individuals to uphold the foundations of supremacy. This term and many others have been used over time to confront violence that has bubbled up from below in response to injustice. It’s a convenient “legal” way to conceal bias and racism. It has over time become a covert way to be racist and support systematic racism with impunity. 

We already know that two of the largest expenses in running a business or organization are land and employees. If it were legal to get free land and no-cost labor, most if not all businesses would be profitable. This was exactly the law when Europeans landed in North America. There were so-called “legal” ways to take land from indigenous people and enslave black people. This led to the accumulation of massive wealth in the United States, so much so that land acquired during that time is still accumulating wealth for the same companies and people today. 

On June 19^th, 1865, all black people received word that slavery was ended some two years after it was announced by Lincoln. This ended overt slavery but ushered in Jim Crow and the term “separate but equal.” This was the beginning of dog whistle politics. It allowed legal bias and racism to exist under the guise of “separate but equal”. This led to many other egregious laws, like social security excluding domestic workers, and the GI Bill excluding black soldiers from getting loans for housing. After the laws and discrimination were resisted, we again saw the emergence of dog whistles like redlining and blockbusting. 

We see and experience dog whistles more than ever in our current political arenas as covert messaging. Reagan used the term “Cadillac-driving,” then there is critical race theory, illegal immigrants (referring to Mexican but not Canadian), America first, and using the word socialism. These are examples of ways to cover up one’s real agenda without saying it’s about race and culture. 

This has proven to create an economy that works for whites and is a struggle to maneuver for black and brown folks. The way to close the wealth gap is to be able to listen for dog whistles within banking, real estate, philanthropy, and education so that they can be brought to light and challenged effectively. Just about every economic indicator shows racial bias over time. One of the key factors in accumulating wealth is time, and over time one group has accumulated wealth and other groups have been divested. When overt bias and racism end because of so-called “violent resistance” then those in power resort to dog whistles. The good news is many of us can now hear the whistles and identify them. Keep listening.