I wrote a piece on Reagan today that captures some of my thoughts about what I think he meant for African Americans in general, and for working class folks as well. I'm not half as hard on him as I probably should've been. During the eighties for example, the most visibly identifiable group of potential criminals in America weren't black men, they were Reagan appointees. At the time I think he had more appointees indicted or convicted than any other President before him, including Nixon.
But there is one thing that I take from him.
It's hard to believe now, but during the sixties when Reagan came to power in California, conservatives were all planning as if the left would win. As if it were a done deal. They acted like losers...largely because they were losers.
Everyone except Reagan.
When people say Reagan brought morning back to America, they should more accurately be saying that Reagan brought morning back to CONSERVATIVES. Alone among his peers, Reagan believed victory was not only possible, it was PROBABLE. And he worked to make that happen through a series of PR interventions that were brilliant in their execution. Especially because even now most Americans don't support conservative policy proposals (with the probable exception of gutting Affirmative Action), this is something that the more progressive folks among us should take to heart.
From my standpoint, victory is assured.