And some of the methods of today’s fascism, such as creating lists to circulate/target for harassment, violence, and institutional punishment, were used on Black people for just trying to live or exercise basic rights, for trying to do stuff some leftists today wouldn't find politically interesting.
When I see this, I wonder if people realize that Jim Crow racism in the American south was a type home-grown fascism. It was not (just) a superficially genteel system of social deference. Refusing to defer was often met with incredible violence designed to terrorize the entire Black community.
“Her mother suggested that they pray for those people. So Jordan prayed, but she also made a zip gun that could send zinging volleys of rubber bands at the culprits.”
And if you study the history of police training and professionalization, that was often part of an attempt to deflect criticism and protest and to legitimize policing. I know you already know this.
The thing that more progressives and leftists could come to terms with is a lot of people inflicting state violence are, literally, just doing their jobs.
Because certainly there's no reason why this history might be terrifyingly relevant right now, here's a link to preorder @stschrader1.bsky.social's "Blue Power" on how police in the US organized to exempt themselves from democratic oversight and control: redemmas.org/titles/48838...
I’ve been critical of the normalization of the phrase “hate crimes” and its use by social justice folks for several reasons, one being that the framing of something as “hate“ is often used to target minorities and to punish people for challenging structural violence.
SCOOP: Apple Quietly Made ICE Agents a Protected Class
Internal emails show tech giant used anti-hate-speech rules meant for minorities to block an app documenting immigration enforcement. migrantinsider.com/p/scoop-appl...
I'm honored to share the winners of the 5th Keeley Schenwar Memorial Essay Prize, given in memory of my sister. Both essays this year reflect on the stark, inherent violence of prison, and convey a key message for our time: Where there is injustice, there is resistance. truthout.org/articles/ann...
Getting more people to call this fascism… I get it. And as more do, what do we do with this increased consciousness?
Thinking of Ruth Wilson Gilmore noting, "At stake is not only how we fight to win, but also how prepared we are for victories. Prepare to win means be ready for the morning after."
When Black people have bad politics, a lot of nonBlack people use the moment to take liberties in talking about Black identity, Black culture, and Black politics. Instead of just critiquing the bad politics.
Lefties often suggest being an intellectual is a higher calling with a special role in society. This treats knowledge production as precious and not as work, and doesn’t consider people who do certain labor or jobs as part of the working class in terms of one’s relation to the means of production.
