From rhetoric to violence and back. When will this endless cycle of hate stop?
As our nation grapples with yet another mass shooting we must look closely at why this hate-fueled violence is contaminating our society.
The social media postings of the alleged shooter provide a chilling, but unfortunately expected, answer.
They show an adherence to the antisemitic conspiracy theory that Jews are trying to destroy the white race through immigration 鈥� which they believe is "white genocide."
The alleged shooter, Robert Bowers, reaffirmed his belief in this absurd conspiracy while receiving medical treatment after slaughtering 11 people and injuring others including four police officers. He said he 鈥渨anted all Jews to die鈥� and also that 鈥淸Jews] were committing genocide to his people.鈥�
In the case of this mass killing at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh 鈥� believed to be the deadliest attack on the Jewish community in the history of the United States 鈥� the alleged murderer is, once again, emerging as a man who was deeply steeped in the racist and antisemetic conspiracy theories that run rampant on unchecked social media platforms such as Gab.
These conspiracy theories are perpetuated and elevated by the increasing amount of hateful rhetoric flying from the mouths, or keyboards, of a growing cast of characters, up to and including, President Trump.
The antisemitic 鈥渨hite genocide鈥� conspiracy has been smuggled into wide circulation with terms like 鈥済lobalists鈥� and the constant vilification of George Soros. This includes a popular lie that Soros 鈥� a Holocaust survivor 鈥� was a Nazi. And just this past week several commentators on the mainstream right have insinuated Soros鈥� involvement in the migrant caravan.
This irrational fear that 鈥渢he other鈥� 鈥� minorities and people of color 鈥� will take the country away from whites is the through line connecting a spate of violence targeted at houses of worship across different religions in just the past six years.
In 2015, it was 鈥渇ear鈥� of blacks that led to the murder of nine African Americans at Charleston鈥檚 Mother Emmanuel Church. In 2012, it was 鈥渇ear鈥� of Muslims that spurred the killing of six at a temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin.
But this violence doesn鈥檛 just come down to fear of 鈥渢he other.鈥� It is organized hate and targeted hateful rhetoric 鈥� online and in the real world 鈥� that moved the plots forward.
The mass shooting in Wisconsin was carried out by a long-time member of the Hammerskins, a hardcore racist skinhead group. The massacre at the church in Charleston was at the hands of a young man who imbibed in and whose views were incubated on hate group websites.
Sadly, the slaughter of 11 innocent people hasn鈥檛 halted this vile rhetoric 鈥� in fact, it has stoked it.
The events of this past week, even before this weekend鈥檚 heartbreaking tragedy, highlight this trend in disturbing discourse.
Photo credit: AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar
