Politicians of old wanted to persuade the public by capturing hearts and minds, but today’s pols find more value in capturing our tongues. They want all Americans to take the most paranoid position on how dangerous our majority-white nation is for its non-white citizens.
Since the 2017 Charlottesville chaos involving a clash between a faction of neo-Nazis and protesters, notable Democrats (including President Joe Biden) have mimicked a broken record as they repeat the phrase that pays: White supremacy is the greatest threat to our nation.
But the Democratic mission of defeating white supremacy quickly moved from decrying a fringe minority’s actions to demanding oversight of the speech of the majority, which is exactly the goal of Democratic Texas Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee’s new bill, the Leading Against White Supremacy Act.
The bill aims, it says, to “prevent and prosecute white supremacy inspired hate crime and conspiracy to commit white supremacy inspired hate crime.” The addition of conspiracy means that people who use supposed hate speech online could face criminal charges under the legislation even if no one takes action taken based on their speech.
One clause states the charge of conspiracy would apply to someone who “published material advancing white supremacy, white supremacist ideology, antagonism based on ‘replacement theory,’ or hate speech that vilifies or is otherwise directed against any non-White person or group.”
With the Department of Justice potentially granted the authority to investigate and mitigate any sort of conspiracy of white supremacy, we must ask the most obvious question: What is white supremacy? It’s a viral phrase that has quickly infected our political lexicon while allowing each host to change the definition as he or she sees fit — but a definition that applies to everything ultimately means nothing.
“White supremacy” is a term that universally fits like a glove onto your opposition, and if the accusations fit, you mustn’t quit. Even if Republicans like New York Rep. Elise Stefanik decry white supremacy in the aftermath of the Buffalo supermarket massacre by lambasting the shooter’s actions as “pure evil,” Democrats will remain vigilant in declaring Stefanik and others in their political opposition inspired the rare heinous nature of a sick individual.
Democratic politicians love this term’s fluidity because it provides a perfect rhetorical weapon they can constantly direct at Republican voters and politicians. And a bill of this nature gives the federal government authority to prosecute dissidents and political opponents with the accusation of conspiracy to inspire.
Democrats have moved from wanting to criminalize speech inciting violence to that “inspiring” violence because incitement has a higher standard of proof. Inspiring violence is indirect and unprovable, and Democrats want the American public to attribute equal malice to the people allegedly inspiring and the ones committing the violence.
Identity politics’ end game has always been empowering the government with the façade of protecting vulnerable demographics by dissolving the rights of all Americans. This bill is not about preventing another racially motivated atrocity but instead about further weaponizing federal law enforcement for the benefit of the DC political establishment.
This has always been about capturing our tongues so we don’t challenge their power, and they are willing to use tragedies like the Buffalo mass shooting and Charlottesville as reasons we should sacrifice our speech, to supposedly prevent another dreadful event from occurring — much like one failed shoe bomber is the reason we forever will have to remove our shoes before going on a plane.
Politicians work with the media to highlight certain atrocities over others to push the narrative that garners the most empathy and societal helplessness, giving the government carte blanche to behave as tyrannical saviors who restrict our rights for our own good.
It’s the reason Biden immediately went to Buffalo after a white mass shooter attacked a predominately black supermarket — yet couldn’t find the time to visit the victims and their families, who were predominantly white, of the black assailant of the Waukesha, Wis., parade massacre; some tragedies are more equal than others.
If Democrats’ long-term strategy succeeds, Americans will lose some of their rights and be easier targets of political persecution — and minorities, especially black people, will be the scapegoats for the actions of zealous, corrupt government actors.
White supremacy isn’t the greatest threat to our nation; a corrupt federal government is.
Adam B. Coleman is the author of “Black Victim to Black Victor” and founder of Wrong Speak Publishing. Follow him on Substack: adambcoleman.substack.com
