Playing the race card is an idiomatic phrase, referring to an allegation often raised against a person who the accuser feels has unnecessarily brought the issue of race or racism into a debate so as to obfuscate a matter of debate. It is a metaphorical reference to card games in which a trump card may be used to gain an advantage. The allegation tends to stir up controversy. See also wedge issue. An idiom is an expression (i. ... For other uses, see Race (disambiguation). ... An African-American man drinks out of the colored only water cooler at a racially segregated streetcar terminal in the United States in 1939. ... Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... In card games, trumps frequently figure in trick-taking games such as bridge, euchre, and spades. ... Wedge issue is a social or political issue, often of a divisive or otherwise controversial nature, which is used by one political group to split apart or create a wedge in the support base of an opposing political group, with a view to enticing voters to give their support to...

The phrase is used in two contexts; In the first, and more common context, it refers to someone allegedly falsely accusing another person of being a racist in order to gain some sort of advantage. An example of this use of the term occurred during the O.J. Simpson criminal trial when the prosecution accused the defense of playing the race card in trying to present Mark Fuhrman as a racist and thus not a reliable witness against Simpson. Another example would be Georgia Representative Cynthia McKinney's assertion that she was the victim of "racial profiling" when stopped by Capitol Police while attempting to avoid showing identification at a security checkpoint. O.J. Simpsons mugshot Orenthal James Simpson (born July 9, 1947 in San Francisco, California), publicly known by the initials O.J., and nicknamed The Juice, is a Hall of Fame former college and professional football player and film actor. ... Mark Fuhrman (born February 5, 1952) was a detective in the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) who found the bloody glove that linked O. J. Simpson to the murder of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson. ...

In the second context, it refers to someone exploiting the fear of another race for political or some other advantage. The use of the southern strategy by a political candidate is said by some to be a version of playing the race card, such as when former senator Jesse Helms, during his 1990 North Carolina Senate campaign ran an ad showing a black man taking a white man's job, intended as a criticism of the idea of racial quotas. The ad was interpreted by many people as trying to play to racist fears among white voters of black people taking their jobs. In American politics, the Southern strategy refers to the focus of the Republican party on winning U.S. Presidential elections by securing the electoral votes of the U.S. Southern states. ... Jesse Helms Jesse Alexander Helms, Jr. ... Racial quotas in employment and education are numerical requirements for hiring, promoting, admitting and/or graduating members of a particular racial group. ...

There is no limit to possible constructions, and similar phrases have also been used, such as "Playing the religion card", or "Playing the anti-Semite card" (or in German: Auschwitzkeule).

Other uses

1. The race card is also the list of horses and races at a horse racing meeting. See also: Red card.
2. Race Card is also a song by Ice Cube that serves as the theme for the reality show Black. White.