Every political figure has a group of overzealous followers who push the envelope and cross the fine line between morality and immorality. The methods that these followers use to show support for their candidate often undermine the credibility and integrity of the individual they support. To those hateful few from all political parties, let it be known that I — that we — condemn you for your expressions of prejudice, bigotry and outright hate.
It must be understood, however, that this is a few. Most people are reasonable, kindhearted individuals, no matter their political allegiance. Issues arise when we lose sight of this and let bias begin to show its head with the creation and persistence of narratives that turn “few” into “many” into “all.”
In last week’s edition of The Daily Reveille, a group of University faculty took out a full page advertisement decrying the “increase in verbal and physical threats” since the election. Data from an article by the Southern Poverty Law Center was provided that largely — not exclusively — regurgitated a slew of unverified first-person narratives. It should be known that the SPLC — by its own admission — is “not really set up” to cover far-left extremism, as if it simply doesn’t exist.
Preluding the data referenced, the SPLC article identified the arson of Hopewell Baptist Church in Greenville, Mississippi, that had been vandalized with “Vote Trump” graffiti, as “a harbinger of what has become a national outbreak of hate, as white supremacists celebrate Donald Trump’s victory.”
The church, which is situated in a community that is 78 percent black, was allegedly set ablaze by longtime parishioner Andrew McClinton, a 45-year-old black male who has since been arrested and charged.
Perhaps the faculty would have been better served by using verified accounts instead of quantitative research from a biased source that not only takes word of mouth at face value, but also projects guilt toward innocent parties.
Further, the SPLC has a history of self-censoring results that dispute its narrative, as it did in its report titled “The Trump Effect: The Impact of the 2016 Presidential Election on Our Nation’s Schools.” In that report, the organization neglected to include at least 2,000 incidents of hate directed toward white students in what former civil rights attorney Hans Bader claimed the SPLC saw as an “inconvenient truth.”
The faux hate at Hopewell was added to the ever-growing list of Trump-inspired hate crime hoaxes. It is fitting, nonetheless, that the quintessential example provided in the advertisement by the aforementioned faculty is nothing more than “fake news.”
In his first post-election press conference last week, Trump validated that term as he railed against leftist news organizations CNN and Buzzfeed following their disclosure of a discredited and possibly libelous report on his purported ties to Russia.
As a symbolic representative of Republican frustration, our president-elect is defeating the liberal media at their own game. The tone of his press conferences pre-election was predominantly defensive, and if last week was any indication, they are now going to be offensive displays of conservative firepower that send shock waves through the progressive echo chamber.
He actively circumvents openly biased media, disallowing them to control the flow of information, and instead relies on social media to speak directly to the people. This gloves-off approach is seen as necessary to ensure integrity and accountability in the wake of the recent assault on “fake news.”
Diplomacy and political correctness appear to have fallen by the wayside in what is one of the several major reasons conservatives look forward to the Trump presidency.
Among them is the withdrawal from disastrous free trade deals such as NAFTA and TPP that encourage the upheaval of American jobs to countries with a lower standard wage. Nationally, optimism is abound as Softbank, FoxConn and IBM have already made their intentions to employ tens of thousands of American workers known.
Undoubtedly, the enforcement — not the continued relaxation — of our immigration policies and the actual rule of law will be a priority for the incoming administration. Consequently, the construction of a wall on our southern border and revitalized law enforcement agencies will spearhead this initiative, as will the strategic federal defunding of “sanctuary cities” that safeguard criminal aliens from justice.
Continuing, strict vetting procedures will be set for refugees coming from war-torn countries, and there will be an outright acknowledgement of the Islamic State group as a legitimate terror organization, not a “JV team” like President Barack Obama once claimed until they swept through Syria and admittedly surprised him. CIA Director John Brennan confirmed intelligence reports that the Islamic State group is attempting to infiltrate the U.S. refugee program and that the number of their fighters is greater than what Al-Qaeda had at its pinnacle.
The prevailing theme is the safety and prosperity of America, and Americans first.
This Friday, Trump will raise his right hand and assume office as the forty-fifth U.S. President in front of an estimated 900,000 people at the National Mall.
A collection of homegrown marching bands and drumlines will shower him with song and marquee performers like Toby Keith will perform in his honor throughout the week. Moreover, he will only attend three official inaugural balls in stark contrast to presidents in years past.
Less flash, more substance.
For America.
Christopher Godail is a 27-year-old interdisciplinary studies junior from Kenner, Louisiana.