The University of Southern California canceled its gubernatorial debate 24 hours before it was to start. Why? The six candidates who qualified under polling and fundraising metrics were — gasp! — all white. Democrat candidates of color immediately accused USC of excluding "candidates of color."

Mind you, their platforms — on housing, crime, homelessness, taxes, etc. — are virtually indistinguishable. Is there a difference between a black, Hispanic or Asian American candidate who wants to raise taxes on the rich versus a white candidate who wants to do the same thing? Is there a difference between a black, Hispanic or Asian American candidate who trashes President Donald Trump versus a white candidate who does it?

The Democrats' obsession with race ignores the overwhelming evidence that race is a nonfactor in contemporary America. The left-wing Brookings Institution's new report, "Interracial Cooperation in the United States," found that 90% of respondents called race a nonfactor in their business decisions and 83% said likewise when it came to choosing friends. But California Democrat gubernatorial candidates believe voters want candidates who look like them.

But when minority politicians stray from the issues deemed important by the left, watch out below. Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass), in 2019, said "We don't need any more black faces that don't want to be a black voice. We don't need any more brown faces that don't want to be a brown voice." So much for President Barack Obama's 2016 Howard University commencement address, where he said, "... there's no one way to be black."

When I ran in California's 2021 gubernatorial recall election, Los Angeles Times columnist Erika D. Smith, a black woman, called me "the black face of white supremacy," presumably for believing racism is no longer a major issue; for opposing race-based policies; for supporting lower taxes and less regulation; and for embracing strong families and personal responsibility. I say "presumably" because she declined my invitation to come on my radio show to explain the slur she used.

As for race being no longer a major issue, this requires qualification. It very much still is for the left. The Los Angeles Times' Smith called the election of Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass "a big deal" because Bass is black and female, a first for the city. Bass wrote, "Representation matters." Had I been elected governor, I would have been the first black governor in state history. But for Smith, it was NOT a big deal.

A few years ago, a leaked audio clip captured three Hispanic Los Angeles City Council members and a Hispanic labor leader making vile remarks about the black adopted son of a gay white Los Angeles council member. One called the child "a little monkey" who needed a "beatdown." They made antisemitic and homophobic comments while plotting ways to redistrict the city to dilute black political power in favor of more political power for Hispanics. This sounded like a KKK meeting.

As usual, these Democrats, as well as the Democrat gubernatorial candidates, say nothing about America's most consequential domestic issue: the epidemic of children born without a father in the home married to the mother. This breakdown, particularly acute in the black community, drives poverty, school failure and crime far more powerfully than the racial grievances these politicians complain about.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data show roughly 70% of black children are born to unmarried mothers, compared to about 54% for Hispanics, 27% for non-Hispanic Whites and 12% for Asians. Overall, 40% of U.S. births in 2023 were outside of marriage.

Children raised without a married father in the home are far more likely to live in poverty. They face significantly higher risks of dropping out of high school and committing crime. Father absence predicts these outcomes better than race or income alone. Yet Democrats, who control most urban policies, rarely talk about broken or nonexistent family structure.

Democrats have run major urban school districts for generations. On the National Assessment of Educational Progress, Black eighth-graders consistently post proficiency rates in the low teens for both math and reading. The Democratic Party opposes school choice while the politicians place their own children in private schools.

But Democrats focus their energy on matters like debates that lack minority candidates, even though they think the same as white candidates. The children caught in the "diversity" crossfire deserve far better.

Larry Elder is a bestselling author and nationally syndicated radio talk-show host. To find out more about Larry Elder, or become an "Elderado," visit www.LarryElder.com. Follow Larry on X @larryelder. To read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate webpage at www.creators.com.

Photo credit: Humberto Portillo at Unsplash