Excellent column. The fact that the US was the model of racism that the Nazis admired and based their own Nuremberg Laws on is an historical fact that needs full recognition. The US was the international model of racism for well over a century. This is important because racism continues to be the single most important and fundamental defining quality of US politics today. The election of Trump broke down solidly along racial lines. Since 1964, the Republicans have played the "race card" to win elections. In 1968, Nixon brought in the "southern strategy" which the GOP has used since. The "war on drugs", which resulted in the mass incarceration of black men, was deliberately designed to do just that. If Jim Crow was fading away, the US right had to find new ways to keep African Americans from voting and to devastate their communities. Today, gerrymandering and voter suppression laws serve the same function. Racism remains at the core of US politics.