A frightening new poll has found that 9 percent of Americans believe it’s “acceptable” to hold white supremacists or neo-Nazi views — the equivalent of nearly 30 million people.
The survey, which was conducted by the Washington Post and ABC News, showed that of those 9 percent, a third “strongly agreed” with the statement, “Do you think it’s acceptable or unacceptable to hold neo-Nazi or white supremacist views?”
Overall, 10 percent of respondents described themselves as supporters of the “alt-right” movement, an attempted rebranding of the white supremacist movement, while 41 percent said they had no opinion on the matter. The survey found that 42 percent thought that Trump had put white supremacists and neo-Nazis “on equal standing with those who opposed them”.
The poll, which was conducted in the wake of the protests in Charlottesville, also showed that 56 percent of respondents disapproved of Trump’s response to the violence that took place that weekend, while 28 percent approved.
The Unite the Right rally in Virginia brought a slew of international condemnation, but there had been a steady uptick in far-right violence even before Charlottesville.
In February, 51-year-old Kansas resident Adam Purinton allegedly killed Indian tech engineer Srinivas Kuchibhotla; Purinton had allegedly used racial […]
I don’t like to use the word “hate,” so let’s say that I “disagree strongly” with any point of view that claims one group is superior to another based on criterion such as race, religion, age, gender, sexuality, career, economic status, and other often-used points of discrimination. That’s my opinion, and I do what I can to help make our society one of more just and equal opportunity. What troubles me is that in a democracy, everyone has a right to their own opinion and to express their own opinion, even ones I find disgusting. Even though I’m disgusted and horrified by the “alt right,” I feel like we need to allow them the same rights on which we rely… but at the same time, be sure to enforce hate speech laws.
Democracy is difficult, because we have to live with people we disagree with. Imagine how much easier life must be in Iran, Yemen, and Qatar, countries in which a single dominant belief has become the law of the land, and dissent is immediately and violently crushed. This may be a goal of the “alt right:” to create a fundamentalist Christian legal system in America. Jeff Sessions may be well poised to institute a Christian Sharia.
Until then, we are a democracy and allow a voice to minorities. All minorities. Even ones that believe that vanilla is somehow better than chocolate, that a latte is somehow better than a mocha, that tofu is somehow better than a steak, or that white people are somehow better than brown people. We don’t have to agree with any of this. These opinions are not the problem. It’s when these opinions influence people’s actions that problems occur, and there are laws in place regarding these actions. Many anti-discrimination laws are not strict enough, many of them are not enforced often enough, and too few potentially impacted people have recourse. The broken system perpetuates itself, because all too often the people in positions of power are among those abusing the system.
It would be fair to say that white people have been harassing people of color in North America for 500 years. The Civil Rights Act has only been around for fifty years. Societies and cultures take much longer to change than laws, so we shouldn’t lose hope. People are evolving, and change is coming.
Sometimes a terminally ill patient will experience a brief period of relief and clarity before passing away. Perhaps this is what we are seeing now in the “alt right.”