Fear and Voting in America

A lone white woman walks down an empty city block in the middle of the night clutching her purse. It’s pitch black, and the only sounds that can be heard are the clacking of her sensible heels, the sound of implied danger, and Richard Nixon’s voice. He delivers terrifying crime statistics and a call to action. This woman, her body, and her livelihood are under threat.

“Crimes of violence in the United States have almost doubled in recent years,” Nixon says. “Today, a violent crime is committed every 60 seconds. A robbery every two-and-a-half minutes. A mugging every six minutes. A murder every 43 minutes … And it will get worse unless we take the offensive. Freedom from fear is a basic right of every American. We must restore it.”

The commercial fades to black. A slogan appears on the screen: “This Time Vote Like Your Whole World Depended on It.”

Nixon’s 1968 presidential campaign bears a striking resemblance to the 2016 presidential race:...
http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/07/fear-and-voting-in-america/490631/?utm_source=feed