05-18-2022, 04:54 PM
To Dismantle White Supremacy, Examine Christian Nationalism
In a chaotic and often incoherent presidential debate this week, one moment stood out.
When asked by moderator Chris Wallace if he would condemn white supremacists and militia groups, President Donald Trump hemmed and hawed and ultimately said, “Proud Boys, stand back and stand by.â€
The president distanced himself from his own statement the following day, claiming not to know who the Proud Boys were.
But the Proud Boys, a far-right group that has been labeled as a hate group for its misogynistic, white supremacist, anti-Semitic and anti-Muslim views, seized upon this directive immediately. They took the presidentâ€s words not as an order to defer to police, but rather as a command to be at the ready.
Furthermore, the presidentâ€s statement follows his pattern of equivocating on white supremacy and the violence inspired by it.
After deadly confrontations in Charlottesville, Virginia, in August 2017, when white nationalist groups marched through the streets brandishing swastikas and chanting “Jews will not replace us,†the president pivoted attention, asserting there were “very fine people on both sides.â€
The presidentâ€s failure to forcefully condemn violent white supremacists when pressed should be deeply troubling to all Americans, including people of faith.
While we as a country are reckoning with systemic racism, Christians are facing our own complicity in racial injustice – from slavery to segregation to police brutality and mass incarceration.
Though the presidentâ€s message is muddled at best, we must be clear: There is no room in our country for hate or violence inspired by racism and white supremacy.
But denouncing violent white nationalism is not enough. We must explore its root causes, including Christian nationalism.
Andrew Whitehead and Samuel Perry, authors of the recent book, Taking America Back for God: Christian Nationalism in the United States, define Christian nationalism as “a cultural framework that idealizes and advocates a fusion of Christianity with American civic life.â€
Christians from across the theological and ideological spectrum are coming together to raise awareness about Christian nationalism.
https://goodfaithmedia.org/to-dismantle-...tionalism/
In a chaotic and often incoherent presidential debate this week, one moment stood out.
When asked by moderator Chris Wallace if he would condemn white supremacists and militia groups, President Donald Trump hemmed and hawed and ultimately said, “Proud Boys, stand back and stand by.â€
The president distanced himself from his own statement the following day, claiming not to know who the Proud Boys were.
But the Proud Boys, a far-right group that has been labeled as a hate group for its misogynistic, white supremacist, anti-Semitic and anti-Muslim views, seized upon this directive immediately. They took the presidentâ€s words not as an order to defer to police, but rather as a command to be at the ready.
Furthermore, the presidentâ€s statement follows his pattern of equivocating on white supremacy and the violence inspired by it.
After deadly confrontations in Charlottesville, Virginia, in August 2017, when white nationalist groups marched through the streets brandishing swastikas and chanting “Jews will not replace us,†the president pivoted attention, asserting there were “very fine people on both sides.â€
The presidentâ€s failure to forcefully condemn violent white supremacists when pressed should be deeply troubling to all Americans, including people of faith.
While we as a country are reckoning with systemic racism, Christians are facing our own complicity in racial injustice – from slavery to segregation to police brutality and mass incarceration.
Though the presidentâ€s message is muddled at best, we must be clear: There is no room in our country for hate or violence inspired by racism and white supremacy.
But denouncing violent white nationalism is not enough. We must explore its root causes, including Christian nationalism.
Andrew Whitehead and Samuel Perry, authors of the recent book, Taking America Back for God: Christian Nationalism in the United States, define Christian nationalism as “a cultural framework that idealizes and advocates a fusion of Christianity with American civic life.â€
Christians from across the theological and ideological spectrum are coming together to raise awareness about Christian nationalism.
https://goodfaithmedia.org/to-dismantle-...tionalism/