Earlier quoted context omitted.
At least when it comes to BLM vs Capitol there are three very important differences that far outweigh the surface level similarities: 1. Power - what happened at the Capitol was conducted by people who have enjoyed broad political power, whereas the BLM protests were about the people who have been unjustly under the thumb (or knee) of those in power. 2. Message - the BLM protests were about very real and well documen…
>1. Power - what happened at the Capitol was conducted by people who have enjoyed broad political power, whereas the BLM protests were about the people who have been unjustly under the thumb (or knee) of those in power. I don't think this is true at all. There is a lot of resentment out there from poor whites who have been getting the short end of many sticks lately. They may be better off than poor blacks on average…
It sounds like we generally agree but I also don’t think I did a good job of stating my point about power imbalance. The stated purpose of the gathering at the Capitol was to take power away from other people who voted. It was a demonstration in support of disenfranchisement, in so far as people were there to ‘stop the steal’. And it was done with the support and incitement of the most powerful person in America. BLM has never been about taking peoples rights away, and that’s a huge difference.
It’s also come out that a lot of the people there weren’t exactly poor, we’ve seen lawyers and business owners and cops and a whole bunch of middle class people, flying in and staying at the Hyatt etc. This makes sense, it cost money to get to DC, and the poorest wouldn’t be able to make the trip, and it shows in voter demographics too. I absolutely believe that some of the unrest and dissatisfaction on the right is due to the real economic anxiety arguments that you point out, but I think there’s also something deeper down that is much darker than that - a loss of privileged status that certain voters are experiencing due to changes occurring in America.
This is happening along gender, race, age, education, and economic lines simultaneously. 40+ year old whites that make up the majority of the right grew up with social expectations and experiences that have changed a lot. You used to be able to get a HS or maybe college degree and have a well paying job right there waiting. You used to be able to buy a house. You used to watch TV and see people that look like you. You used to interact with the opposite sex in a particular way. You used to be perfectly healthy. Now you’re older, you’re navigating different gender dynamics, more voices and cultures are coming up and different people are on tv, and you’re now dealing with health issues. Your job, where you used to get paid well and find worth, is not doing that anymore. Your sense of purpose, self-worth, and place in the world is challenged.
Some of this status loss is necessary as America moves forward on gender and race. Some is just the indignity of aging. Some is economic. Put together this loss of status is creating resentment, which is being used by media and demagogues to sow division and feelings of victimhood.
Where on the spectrum these people were of ‘totally manipulated and brainwashed’ vs ‘just here because I’m worried about status loss’ vs ‘conscious support for disenfranchisement and anti-democratic power grabs’, their actions and the implications of those actions at the Capitol were nonetheless something altogether different than past protests & riots.