Responding to Joe Pelley’s comment.
My article called out the normalization of white rage in the corporate media. Am I ashamed of this? Not one bit. I said exactly what I wanted to say. I was laughing when I saw you list all of those quotes from me, as if I was trying to hide the word “white.” No, I was criticizing the media for hiding it. That was the whole point of the article.
I’m going to indulge some of your points in case there are any other readers who, when thinking through these points, want to engage in good-faith dialogue.
(1) To say “white” or “Black” or “Asian” is not to be racist. This is the most ridiculous idea that rhetoric about “colorblindness” has produced in our society. In fact, my point is that the “objective” and “colorblind” rhetoric of the media depends on the idea that “white” is so normal it doesn’t need to be mentioned.
(2) The rallies are overwhelmingly white. That’s a fact. Any thinking person would have to ask why. And when I see groups like the Proud Boys behind it, I know exactly why. They are white supremacists and far-right groups. Such groups tend to attract white people.
(3) Don’t reduce the Black Panther Party to a gun rights group. Read more about them — they are a lot closer to me than to you. They went to different government building with rifles because they were protesting racist police brutality and systematic racism in the US, past and present. That was a fraction of what they actually did.
But if you want to talk about the results of the Black Panther Party exercising their constitutional rights, what was it? The state completely destroyed them. They have been demonized for it. Absolutely opposite to the way that right-wing, white people with guns get treated.
The example does not contradict my article but proves the point. If you are Black or Muslim or Native and you are shown to be militant — with or without guns — you are painted negatively. The racial bias is not in my eyes, but in the media and this society.
(4) I didn’t say a word about the right to protest. Not a thing. But the minute you criticize the politics of a protest, the right wing whines that their rights are being attacked. No, your rights are completely safe! You can carry on, with or without guns, as you please. Especially when you’re mostly a white crowd.
Do I question the right to carry an assault weapon freely in public? You bet. Did I think it was ridiculous when I once had to get rid of a stick my placard was on at a protest while others could bring guns theret? Yeah, I did. But that’s not the discussion here.
At the end of your response, after acting like you’re engaged in some sort of thoughtful and thorough discussion, you start swearing at me. You should have started and ended with that. It’s all you wanted to say in the first place.
