The traditional left has the biggest beef with identity politics — although they might not have completely figured this out yet.
Complaining about “woke” “social justice” movements centered on racial, gender, and other identities has long been every conservative’s favorite sport. Ben Shapiro does it virtually every day. The heterodox writer James Lindsay has literally drawn up an entire line of flash cards breaking down the various contemporary left-wing meanings for terms like “racism.” President Donald Trump — who once famously retweeted Lindsay — recently signed an executive order banning within the federal workforce the teachings of many forms of critical race theory, which assigns praise or blame to members of a particular race solely because they are of that race.
...However, if anyone truly clashes with modern wokeness, it is the traditional class-focused left. The idea that race, gender, trans vs. “cis” gender status, sexual orientation, and many other things represent unique identities which, one, can only be understood by those possessing them and, two, provide legitimate bases for political activism constitutes the tallest (was that “heightist?”) possible barrier to the creation of a unified and organized working class.
...Occupy Chicago, possibly the largest gathering of Guy Fawkes-mask wearing radicals outside Manhattan’s Zucotti Park, fell apart largely because of the endless bifurcation of members’ agendas. Whenever a task force of leading members was proposed to discuss some almost-consensus working-class issue like support for an increased minimum wage, the call would immediately come for a women’s task force. Then, what about a Black women’s task force? A Black gay women’s task force?
...Democrats will and should challenge populist GOP candidates for the working-class vote, and certainly have some major issues on their side (what was that health care plan again, Donald?). However, as the economy of the future continues to grow and alternatives to the mainstream media become more widely available, winning it will require championing those themes that unite a huge and critical chunk of our society, rather than those that divide it.