We
know the routine. When White American Conservatives feel their privileged social order is
threatened they become angry. They started a Civil War when slavery was no
longer accepted in a free country. They opposed the civil rights movement and school
integration. The very same racism and resentment from the past lingers today and
fuels the KKK, white supremacists and neo-Nazis.
You
wouldn’t know it from their howling accusations about “Leftist suppression of
free speech” in higher education, but far Right white hate groups have been
increasing their recruitment activities on college campuses across the country.
For some reason Conservatives had no problem when Liberty University de-recognized
its campus Democratic club, saying the national party’s platform went against
the school’s "moral principles". But Trump is fine, amirite?
As
a political weapon, Conservatives have seized the authority to unilaterally define
terms of our political and policy debates. They root their dogma in one-sided definitions
such as “liberal media”, “death taxes”, “death
panels”, “right to work”, and now even “liberal and leftist” Americans.
Their
decades long campaign to smear and demonize the word “liberal” has come back to
bite them. Liberals resisted, and reclaimed the word for themselves.
Far
Right Conservative Dennis Prager has taken the authority upon himself to separate
and redefine “liberals” apart from “leftists”, in order to divide and conquer. Spoiler alert: "Leftists hate America, oppose capitalism, oppose border security, and promote a progressive agenda". The far Right immediately accepted his definitions as absolute. It is the way
of all authoritarian followers.
Leftists/Liberals
don’t have to redefine words to define American white Conservatives. Instead, we
let the historical record define them. In the past, white Americans, no matter
how poor, enjoyed a higher social status than minorities. As civil rights and equality
expanded, they felt they were the ones becoming marginalized. For the privileged,
equality is viewed as oppression.
This
meant they had to oppose the advocates of racial equality, minority voter
rights, women’s rights, social justice, and democracy.
Angry
White American Conservatives were originally Tories
loyal to the Crown and then racist
slave owners who started a war of treason.
Later Angry White American Conservatives were/are...
...opposed
to Blacks having the right to vote.
...opposed
to women having the right to vote.
...opposed
to child labor laws.
...opposed
to labor safety laws.
...opposed
to FDR and Social Security.
...opposed
to interracial marriage.
...opposed
to the civil rights movement.
...opposed
to school integration.
...opposed
to Medicare.
...opposed
to Medicaid.
...opposed
to all public healthcare apart from the V.A.
...opposed
to public schools and teachers’ rights to negotiate pay and work conditions.
...opposed
to public universities and faculty.
...opposed
to labor rights and unions.
...opposed
to women’s reproductive rights.
...opposed
to scientific consensus on greenhouse gasses.
...opposed
to a free press critical of Nixon, Reagan, the Bush Dynasty, and Trump.
...opposed
to regulating banks and Wall Street.
...opposed
to minorities' access to voter registration and polls.
...opposed
to environmental regulations
...opposed
to LGBTQ equality.
...opposed
to democracy itself by vote suppression, gerrymandering, and seizing disproportionate
representation in the Senate and Congress.
There
are small minorities of White American Conservatives who differed to some
degree on some of these issues. Some still believe in personal character and speak out against the Party of Trump.
But the Angry White Conservatives largely remain loyal to the Party of Trump and still hold to these positions.
While
the far Right needs to invent meanings of words to define those who disagree
with them, we let their own actions and words define them.
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