It's not nearly as simple as you're making it out to be; this is not a scenario where the Democrats are constantly relying on identity politics and the Republicans, who would normally never ascribe to the notion, are simply reacting to it.
It was the Southern states - that eventually came to form today's Republican Party - that pioneered identity politics and used it to justify and defend the enslavement of Black Americans. Don't take my word for it; I will quote the Vice President of the Confederate States, Alexander Stephens using an excerpt from his Cornerstone Speech.
"But not to be tedious in enumerating the numerous changes for the better, allow me to allude to one other though last, not least. The new constitution has put at rest, forever, all the agitating questions relating to our peculiar institution, African slavery as it exists amongst us – the proper status of the negro in our form of civilization. This was the immediate cause of the late rupture and present revolution. Jefferson in his forecast, had anticipated this, as the “rock upon which the old Union would split.” He was right. What was conjecture with him, is now a realized fact. But whether he fully comprehended the great truth upon which that rock stood and stands, may be doubted. The prevailing ideas entertained by him and most of the leading statesmen at the time of the formation of the old constitution, were that the enslavement of the African was in violation of the laws of nature; that it was wrong in principle, socially, morally, and politically. It was an evil they knew not well how to deal with, but the general opinion of the men of that day was that, somehow or other in the order of Providence, the institution would be evanescent and pass away. This idea, though not incorporated in the constitution, was the prevailing idea at that time. The constitution, it is true, secured every essential guarantee to the institution while it should last, and hence no argument can be justly urged against the constitutional guarantees thus secured, because of the common sentiment of the day. Those ideas, however, were fundamentally wrong. They rested upon the assumption of the equality of races. This was an error. It was a sandy foundation, and the government built upon it fell when the “storm came and the wind blew."
Our new government is founded upon exactly the opposite idea; its foundations are laid, its corner-stone rests, upon the great truth that the negro is not equal to the white man; that slavery subordination to the superior race is his natural and normal condition. This, our new government, is the first, in the history of the world, based upon this great physical, philosophical, and moral truth. This truth has been slow in the process of its development, like all other truths in the various departments of science. It has been so even amongst us. Many who hear me, perhaps, can recollect well, that this truth was not generally admitted, even within their day. The errors of the past generation still clung to many as late as twenty years ago. Those at the North, who still cling to these errors, with a zeal above knowledge, we justly denominate fanatics. All fanaticism springs from an aberration of the mind from a defect in reasoning. It is a species of insanity. One of the most striking characteristics of insanity, in many instances, is forming correct conclusions from fancied or erroneous premises; so with the anti-slavery fanatics. Their conclusions are right if their premises were. They assume that the negro is equal, and hence conclude that he is entitled to equal privileges and rights with the white man. If their premises were correct, their conclusions would be logical and just but their premise being wrong, their whole argument fails. . . ."
https://teachingamericanhistory.org/library/document/cornerstone-speech/
I would say that this is Identity Politics 101. It was not started by today's modern Democrats.
Let it be known that the descendants of these Confederates, who of course mythologize their forefathers and cast them as principled rebels against a tyrannical North, opposed integration and Black voting so much that they left the formerly Southern Democratic Party and joined the Republicans in the 60s. The only reason I bring that up is that the entire platform of the current day far-right consists of corporate shilling, tax cuts, debt/deficit reduction (except when spent on needless war and corporate tax cuts) and weaponized identity politics designed at stripping away the freedoms of anyone that isn't in their camp.
Especially Black people.
You have it exactly backwards - far right-wing voters in America pioneered and fought an entire war based on identity politics, and then proceeded to oppose any and all forward progress for Black and other marginalized people strictly on the basis of identity politics. Everyone else merely responded accordingly, which is why we're seeing anti-police brutality protests in the country today. It is a response to the identity politics practiced by police wherein they believe that they are the law and that everyone - especially Black people - must either comply or die.
You mentioned that if you experienced racism, that you'd complain to the higher-ups. Black people have done exactly the same thing, and do you know what we get told? We're told that our experiences are not legitimate, or that we're complaining in the wrong way, or at the wrong time, or we're disrespecting the flag/anthem/military.
Imagine that you made your video about Highborn's razors completely whiffing on certain characters, showed your video to NRS and they tell you that you're simply imagining it - your move actually doesn't whiff at all, and that if you just work hard and stay in school, that you'd have the same chance at winning your matches that the characters that you whiff on do. You'd rightly be incensed - at the very least, you wouldn't use the character anymore. And if you were mad enough, you might even drop the game as a form of protest.
Black people feel the exact same way.
kotaku.com
