I wrote a post a few days ago about the uselessness of trying to reason with those on the Right. One point I made touched on how those on the Right continue to choose a boogeyman -- someone they can tell lies about to inflame their base, and rally them into a unified group.
Right now, those boogeymen include trans people, immigrants, and feminists. Twenty years ago, it was gay people, feminists, and immigrants. Before that, it was black people, feminists, and immigrants.
The target changes (sometimes -- I think the Right has been hating on feminists since 1900), but the tactics do not. Neither do the lies. Neither does the willingness of their base to believe those lies.
This is because those lies let the base believe that their bigotry and privilege are justified. We need to hate this group X, you see, because group X is dangerous, is corrupting our children, destroying our families, weakening our country. Actually, hating group X is actually love. (I wouldn't hit you if I didn't love you so much.)
Anyway, here's a thread that looks at some of that history.
History rarely repeats itself, but it often rhymes.
— Owen Jones 🌹 (@OwenJones84) March 26, 2022
The parallels between the backlash against trans rights and gay rights are astonishing.
This is Anita Bryant, chart topping singer, orange juice promoter - and the face of the anti-gay rights movement in the US in the 1970s. pic.twitter.com/LIjKLMWe1P
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