The MAGA Way: Loving Guns But Fearing Poetry

The conversion of the siloed American right into the Taliban is nearly complete.

My thesis encompassing the used-to-be-considered extremist set is that this is the part where stochastic terrorism starts to get real. Oh, sure, all these individual acts seem like small change, but the hate they generate is becoming a fact of life for too many Americans.

It doesn’t take door-to-door organizing to drum up fear –a key ingredient in building an authoritarian state– when all-too-often outrageous individual acts can garner unquestioning media coverage portraying extremists as representative of a larger movement.

Today’s first example of this garbage concerns the removal of accomplished poet Amanda Gorman’s The Hill We Climb from the library in a grade school in Miami Lakes, Florida. 

The school district covered its tracks in response to the publicity by saying the book still can be found in a section of the library for older students, but the stink from the intention remains. Somebody celebrated as an exceptional author and activist ended up in the crosshairs of one parent, whose motivation was clearly racist. 

Here's a copy of the complaint –complete with misattribution to Oprah:

Poet Gorman’s name became a household word after reading "The Hill We Climb" at the inauguration of President Joe Biden, an event viewed by 38 million people in the U.S.

Her history reads like something that used to be celebrated...  Overcoming a childhood speech impediment… the first youth poet to open the literary season for the Library of Congress… while at Harvard (graduating cum laude), Gorman became the first person to be named National Youth Poet Laureate…composed an original poem recited at Super Bowl LV's pregame ceremony in 2021…the list of achievements and superlatives goes on and on.

A (as in one) parent complained that the poem referenced critical race theory, “indirect hate messages,” gender ideology and indoctrination, the Miami Herald reports.

These are the words from pages 12 & 13 of The Hill We Climb drawing the complaint:

Poet Gorman responded on social media to the news from Florida, saying she was gutted.

One parent’s objection is an okay threshold in Florida, which leads the country in book bans and legislative actions aimed at suppressing any thought not in line with white supremacy and the patriarchy. 

Now the complainant's association with extremist organizations has been uncovered by researchers with Miami Against Fascism, who took the time to look through her social media postings–something other news organizations skipped over.

Let’s see… There are connections/associations with The Proud Boys, Moms for Liberty,  active with Christian nationalist group CCDF, sharing social media posts about the “Protocols of the Learned Elders of Zion,” and reposting QAnon conspiracy content accusing Madonna of child trafficking.

The legal landscape in the Sunshine State includes “constitutional carry” (no permit required for concealed weapons), laws concerning migrants so harsh that entire construction crews have vanished, “Parental Rights” legislation restricting classroom curriculum, and the lowest threshold in the U.S. for imposing a death sentence.

Book banning/suppression is only one prong in the right’s attack on democracy.

A Washington Post analysis of book banning challenges nationwide shows the majority of those complaints were filed by just eleven people. 

The justification for such actions given by right wing types is that they are responding to attacks on religion, which apparently considered dangerous in books mentioning sexuality, LGBTQ+ related issues, and civil rights history.

As the author of a Daily Kos essay on this analysis stated:

• In the age of the Internet, the anachronistic challenging of books is not only symptomatic of bigotry, but also of sheer ignorance about how knowledge is distributed. 1950s anti-modernism is back, and in some cases extends the reach of dominionists who would reinstate Jim Crow law.

Another front for these theocracy-minded patriots is attacking companies for being inclusive of LGBTQ+ customers in their marketing and merchandising. And it’s working.

Anheuser Busch re-arranged its marketing following complaints about a specifically focused promotion/ad campaign that was inclusive of a trans person. Supposedly, sales of Bud Light fell.

Target is in the news today following videos circulated online of persons damaging and/or making disparaging remarks about merchandise on sale to recognize Pride month. The company says it’s removing some items following threats made to store employees, a statement that's entirely credible given what others on the right’s naughty list have gone through… But still, when is enough enough?

Locally, KUSI joined in the fray, suggesting that baby gear with rainbows on it was aimed at sexualizing infants. Of course, they will deny any connection with acts of violence or hate crimes following their “just asking questions” coverage.

California Governor Gavin Newsom didn’t hold back in response to Target’s tepid response:

• CEO of Target Brian Cornell selling out the LGBTQ+ community to extremists is a real profile in courage.

• This isn’t just a couple stores in the South. There is a systematic attack on the gay community happening across the country.

• Wake up America.

• This doesn’t stop here. You’re black? You’re Asian? You’re Jewish? You’re a woman?

• You’re next.

Snippets From the News You Should See

How Twitter became a haven for climate misinformation Via Public Notice. An interview with Michael Mann, a climate scientist and distinguished professor of environmental science at the University of Pennsylvania. He’s been outspoken about how fossil fuel interests — a group that includes the Russians and Saudis — are getting a hand from Elon Musk in drowning out the voices of climate scientists.

Relevant Quote about Elon Musk:

•  He took over Twitter so he could weaponize it. He’s promoting the right-wing, MAGA agenda. And you can’t neglect the fact that it was done with financing from Saudi Arabia and Russia.

• They’re the most egregious petro states on the face of the planet. Saudi Arabia and Russia got their money’s worth. What was once a medium for spreading democratizing messages and advocacy for environmental sustainability and climate action has now been weaponized as a cudgel against those things. That’s very convenient for Russia and Saudi Arabia, who for years have been engaged in nefarious activities online, including using social media for their fossil fuel agenda.

• With Musk’s purchase of Twitter — financed by them — they’ve achieved their ultimate goal. They’ve weaponized the primary social medium in the world for their fossil fuel, climate denial political agenda. 

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Driver who crashed near White House told officials he was prepared to kill Biden and 'seize power' Via NBC News

• When Secret Service agents asked Kandula about a flag with a swastika he removed from a backpack, he allegedly said he’d bought it online because Nazis “have a great history,” according to the court document.

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“Fox host Greg Gutfeld applauds high school teacher charged with engaging in unlawful sexual intercourse with 16-year-old student,” Via Media Matters. The headline says it all.

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Asylum Panic Comes for Schools; Here’s Some Perspective Via Voice of San Diego. There is no basis in fact for the scare story promoted by… KUSI… with an interview of Mark Powell, former County Board of Education member (NOT SD Unified).

Quote from San Diego Unified School Board member Richard Barrera, who might actually know what he’s talking about:

• “We’re seeing kids and families who can’t afford to live in San Diego leave, and that’s creating declining enrollment in our district. And so, we welcome having kids come to be educated in our schools,” Barrera said. 

• But beyond the practical elements of a response, Barrera said the rhetoric surrounding a hypothetical influx of migrant students is simply creating a sense of fear and panic. In his mind, it’s not being done out of genuine worry for schools, but to whip up anti-immigration sentiment. 

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Lead image via Milwaukee Independent