Always a home for trolls
The “It’s ok to be white” vote:
The Australian Senate almost passed a motion affirming that “it’s OK to be white”. This probably sounds innocuous enough to the casual or incurious observer — and that’s exactly what the white supremacists who devised the slogan intended.
Well you’d have to be awfully casual or incurious to think statements that it’s ok to be [insert dominant group here] are innocuous. This one is a product of – you’ll never guess – 4chan.
The idea of using “it’s OK to be white” as part of a far right political project emerged around a year ago on the message board 4chan.
Always a home for trolls, over time certain boards on 4chan and its cousin 8chan have become nerve centres for far right activism.
The notion cooked up by one of the site’s anonymous users was that a postering campaign featuring the ostensibly inoffensive slogan would “trigger” leftists and journalists, who would immediately understand its racist intent.
Circular, isn’t it. Racist provocateurs come up with racist slogan saying that people who oppose racism would find it distasteful. Well duh. So what’s the point of spattering the world with stuff that people who oppose racism or sexism or xenophobia would find distasteful? Why, to demonstrate how foolish and wrong people who oppose racism or sexism or xenophobia are. I guess? Or just because it’s funny? But what’s funny about it?
No, see, it’s to draw everyone else, all the sensible people who don’t care about racism or sexism or xenophobia, into right-wing rage-addiction.
But it turned out to be too obvious.
[A]s the ADL points out, the slogan has been used by white supremacists for decades, and it was immediately identifiable as a racist meme.
White power bands were using it for song titles as far back as 2001, and it was appearing on white supremacist fliers as long ago as 2005.
That’s no surprise – “it’s OK to be white” perfectly expresses the sense of white victimhood that pervades white supremacist movements that see any demand for racial justice as an attack on white identity.
The slogan neatly encapsulates the imaginary universe of “reverse racism”, wherein critiques of white supremacy and structural racism are turned inside out, and used as evidence of anti-white racism. It captures the mindset that accuses those opposed to racism of being, themselves, racist.
Also, it was too popular with the upfront literal racists as opposed to trolls and Milo-types.
“It’s OK to be white” followed a path that many awful ideas have taken in the Trump era — from the cesspits of the alt right internet, through an increasingly confident far right street movement, and on through the self-aggrandising provocateurs who occupy increasingly prominent positions in conservative media.
Finally it got to Pauline Hanson. Then, unbelievably, it came to a vote in the Australian Senate.
Notwithstanding the white supremacist origins of the slogan, and the sentiment of white victimhood that underpins it, that body almost passed a motion supporting it.
The fact that this happened with the support of government ministers — including the Indigenous affairs minister — is beyond disheartening.
Sounds all too familiar.
H/t learie
Pauline Hanson has been our biggest national embarrassment since the nineties, when she showed off her moron credentials by suggesting Australia simply print more money to solve budgetary issues. Oh and then she told asians to go back where they came from. And yes, she’s white.
It IS OK to be white.
I have no problem with being white, as the song says I was “born this way”.
What is not OK is to be a white racist shit.
What I have a problem with is my 10 year old grand daughter who has quite happily played with the children of my African and Arabic neighbors, suddenly telling me she doesn’t like “gravy people”. When I asked her what she meant, she said “black people”. When I asked her where she got that saying from, “kids at school”. We had a very deep discussion, especially reminding her how she would feel if she was out with her mothers and someone called them “fatty” or “dyke”. She said she would be hurt. I think the message sank in, but we need to be ever vigilant to stop others poisoning the minds of our children.
A little while later she noticed children playing in the park across the road. She went to join in, and it didn’t seem to enter her mind that they were African.
Job done? No, it is a work in progress.
Roj, I doubt it’s ever done. I’m so glad your daughter has a grandparent (and presumably parents) who care enough to actually instil values. Hopefully one less future bigot for my nieces and nephews to deal with.
Holms: she USED to be, now we’ve got 30 people in the government voting up her motions! What happened to the days when everyone in Parliament shunned her? Now they’re coming out saying “yep, good idea Pauline!”
I heard an excuse from a Conservative Senator, he claimed his wasn’t paying attention at the time. So he just went with the herd, oops. These same pricks are prepared to pander to the Zionist lobby by considering moving the Australian embassy to Jerrusalem. The reason? So that they, perhaps, can curry favor with Jewish voters.
A billion Muslims are outraged.
RJW: Matthias Cormann tried to say the senators were acting on a faulty memo that told them to vote with her. ORLY? They couldn’t figure it out for themselves? Disgusting and disgraceful.
As for the moving the embassy, yep, Typhoid Morrison thinks it will appeal to the Jewish voters in Wentworth. Again, Trump’s behaviour emboldens other racist conservatives.
Ophelia: really impressed by the detail and background in this post.
Thanks for pointing it out to us, learie.