What comes after condemnation?
I asked the question a week ago Saturday night “what would our leaders on the right DO about the rise of white supremacy?” And after vociferous condemnation, little has been proposed and even less has happened – on either side. We woke up to a headline last Wednesday morning that Chuck Todd tried to interview 70 Republicans last night and zero stepped up. This absence was interpreted as a statement about the President’s isolation, but it is a greater statement about the lack of leadership from 70 Republicans who are weren’t even willing to condemn white supremacy on camera.
And even still, Charlottesville and the whole broader conversation feels like it’s slipping from view especially with a new troop surge in Afghanistan. No matter the latest distraction or what President Trump might dangerously suggest, white supremacists are not legitimate participants in public or political life. Their ideas are not a valid part of the political spectrum, and their language must not be given further voice. The focus of our energy must be anyone who endorses their hatred, legitimizes their ideas, supports their ongoing operations, or allows them to fester by staying silent while enjoying their support. And while we isolate these ideas and undermine any political legitimacy that President Trump has helped them attain, we must just as actively work on deradicalizing people caught up on the edges of these groups who haven’t adopted or internalized their hatred.
Yes, politicians like President Trump who signal and wink and tacitly accept the support of these groups must be continuously and loudly condemned, but this condemnation must translate into something beyond moralizing rhetoric. Our leaders on the right must stand up and take responsibility for driving this hatred out of our culture — starting with their party. If we want companies — from GoDaddy to Walmart — to continue to withdraw material support, in any and all forms, from groups that traffic in hate, we cannot rely only on the good judgment of CEOs but must use all of the non-violent tools at our disposal to create serious and sustained pressure. And we need our leaders to use the existing rules and laws at their disposal to ensure these companies change their behavior. We should hear our Senators and Congressmen talking about rescinded 501c3 statuses of hate groups and using anti-terrorism laws to seize assets of these groups and create regulatory penalties for companies materially supporting them. We should hear the Justice Department’s talking about RICO. There is work to do that is not being done by the 70 Republicans who refused to be interviewed — along with the rest of their party. Right now we hear them safely condemning morally reprehensible behavior but hear little else and see them doing even less. Our laws should support our values, and our leaders must put their power behind their rhetoric. Now.
And yes – if we’re serious about what comes next after pushing these ideologies back out of public life, our leaders on the left must stand up now as well. We should hear calls for deradicalization projects and the elevation of groups like Life After Hate. We must recognize and immediately correct our failure to provide a compelling, empathic alternative for people who are anxious about their communities and uncertain about the future. People who are NOT white supremacists turning toward extremism out of desperation is our fault but is a symptom of our failure. People marching in Charlottesville and elsewhere with Nazi symbols and white supremacist agendas are not good people who deserve to be heard. The First Amendment does not protect their threats. But there remains a community who is as disgusted by their extremism as the rest of us but who find some comfort in the misguided empathy their worldview offers. These Americans must be re-engaged and inspired to turn toward productive paths and participation.
