Article: White Christian Nationalists

[notsopicky]

www.cnn.com/2022/07/24/us/white-christian-nationalism-blake-cec/index.html

Interesting explanation of the language they use, what the religious figures & symbolism mean, how this worldview translates to action. 

Highlights: 

Gorski points to examples of the 19th century abolitionist, Frederick Douglass, and the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. Both were devout Christians who expressed admiration for America and its founding documents. But their patriotism also meant that "they challenged the nation to live up to its highest principles, to become a place of freedom, equality, justice and inclusion," he says.

For evidence that the United States was founded as a secular nation, look no further than the 1797 Treaty of Tripoli, an agreement the US negotiated with a country in present-day Libya to end the practice of pirates attacking American ships. It was ratified unanimously by a Senate still half-filled with signers of the Constitution and declared, "the Government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on Christian religion."

Gorski, author of "The Flag and the Cross," says he found in his research a strong correlation between White Christian nationalism and support for gerrymandering—an electoral process where politicians manipulate district lines to favor one party or, some critics say, race over another. He found similar support among White Christian nationalists for the Electoral College, which gives disproportionate political power to many rural, largely White areas of the country. When White Christian nationalists claim an election was stolen, they are reflecting the belief that some votes don't count, he says. "It's the idea that we are the people, and our vote should count, and you're not the people, and... you don't really deserve to have a voice," Gorski says. "It doesn't matter what the voting machines say, because we know that all real Americans voted for Donald Trump."

Gorski says White Christian nationalism represents a grave threat to democracy because it defines "we the people" in a way that excludes many Americans. "The United States cannot be both a truly multiracial democracy -- a people of people and a nation of nations -- and a white Christian nation at the same time," Gorski wrote in "The Flag and the Cross." "This is why white Christian nationalism has become a serious threat to American democracy, perhaps the most serious threat it now faces.

[notsopicky]

and then Marjorie Taylor Greene says this: www.huffpost.com/entry/marjorie-taylor-greene-christian-nationalism-republican-party_n_62dd70bde4b081f3a9007344

The quiet part out loud, indeed. 

And this part: Greene has made similar comments before, saying of Christian nationalism on a podcast last week: “I think that’s an identity that we need to embrace, because those are the policies that serve every single American, no matter how they vote.”...

NO THEY FUCKING DON'T.

[notsopicky]

Related: Airing now on CNN: Deep in the Pockets of Texas. The Wilks' brothers & a guy named Dunn--a lot of their influence is religiously motivated; they dump millions in personal & PAC donations to push their ideology into law/policy.

I swear, I want to throw things. How the hell do we get out of this clusterf&^%?

[quesyrah]

I read that article and was particularly struck by the Treaty of Tripoli that specifically states the United States is not a Christian nation.

[Michelle]

Jul 25, 2022 11:07:34 GMT -5 quesyrah said:

I read that article and was particularly struck by the Treaty of Tripoli that specifically states the United States is not a Christian nation.

This was new information for me. 

[basilosaurus]

And of course marge 3 names doubles down on being a nationalist and christian. Saying biblical laws are the right laws for everyone because (her) god designed them.

[NewOrleans]

the Ron Johnson quote 😐

Thanks for this read. I’m adding the books.

Be interested in causes here: “For the first time in the US last year, membership in communities of worship fell below 50%. Belief in God is at an all-time low, according to a recent Gallup poll”

[neverfstop]

I feel like there's a white Christian nationalist article out about every other month now...

[sonrisa]

Jul 24, 2022 18:34:25 GMT -5 notsopicky said:

and then Marjorie Taylor Greene says this: www.huffpost.com/entry/marjorie-taylor-greene-christian-nationalism-republican-party_n_62dd70bde4b081f3a9007344

The quiet part out loud, indeed. 

And this part: Greene has made similar comments before, saying of Christian nationalism on a podcast last week: “I think that’s an identity that we need to embrace, because those are the policies that serve every single American, no matter how they vote.”...

NO THEY FUCKING DON'T.

Silly you (and me). Thinking "every single American" means all citizens rather than just the people who agree with her.

[notsopicky]

Touche, sonrisa. Totally correct--especially with this quote from the original article.

When White Christian nationalists claim an election was stolen, they are reflecting the belief that some votes don't count, he says. "It's the idea that we are the people, and our vote should count, and you're not the people, and... you don't really deserve to have a voice," Gorski says. "It doesn't matter what the voting machines say, because we know that all real Americans voted for Donald Trump."