While Decent White People Were Sleeping, The Bigots Stole America

Author John Pavlovitz 

Published 16 February, 2020

It’s morning in America. 

A lot happened while we were sleeping. 

This is not the America we thought existed back in November of 2008—likely the last time many of us were fully awake. 

Back then, we basked in the warm glow of the reality of a black President and we grew comfortable, nestling down into a complacency that only the blind spots of privilege and false information provide. 

The joy of that moment became a slow-acting emotional sedative that slowly squeezed out the urgency from us; one that gradually dulled our senses, that day by day numbed our minds into imagining we had arrived together at Martin’s glorious mountaintop. If we had taken the time to ask vulnerable people, they’d have told us not to fall asleep. 

Believing that the aspirational “we shall overcomes” that once rang out, were now a fixed and unchangeable present, we settled cozily into that place where the heart rate slows and the limbs and eyelids grow heavy—and where without realizing it, slumber suddenly overtakes you: 

one blink awake, the next blink asleep. 

And for eight years we sleepwalked through the world, physically here and moving through daylight but not fully present, not totally seeing—caught between the actual and the unreal world, between the real nightmare and the imagined dream. Yes, we still talked and marched and campaigned and worked, but we did so slightly sedated in the haze of bad stories, willful ignorance, and wishful thinking. 

Meanwhile, the bigots woke up. 

Shaken violently from sleep in November 2008, by the reality of what decades of fear and terrible theology taught them was the absolute worst place they could find themselves—they began to mount a fierce counterattack. 

They created news outlets and social media platforms designed to filter out everything except that which would fully trigger terror within the hearts of their intended targets and would-be allies: 

fantastical stories of a pervasive and coordinated Gay Agenda coming to convert their children; 

of violent, heavily armed, brown-skinned drug gangs overrunning our borders; 

of godless, abortion-mad progressives having indiscriminate sex without fear or care; 

of Muslim terrorist hordes infiltrating our neighborhoods and bodegas; 

of America-hating Democrats coming for their jobs and flags and prayers and guns. 

And we were still sleepwalking… 

They leveraged thousands of Christian pulpits, where every seven days they’d wildly stoke the fires of people’s phobias and fears, weaponize the Scriptures against gays and migrants and Muslims, pervert the expansive Gospel of Jesus into rabid nationalism—and sermon by sermon, enlist them all into service as passionate soldiers in the Army of the straight, white, American, male Lord. 

And we were still sleepwalking… 

Then, to inculcate the terror fully, they propped up a sideshow carnival barker as their chosen one; a barren, empty husk of a man with no discernible moral convictions beyond wealth accumulation—who they could use as a flesh and blood avatar to embody and perpetuate themselves. 

They fashioned a vile, blustery orange idol to rally the fearful and the angry and the callous hearts around; one who would daily dig into the stinking muck to find a deeper bottom—and in the sleep-induced state we were in we thought it was a joke. We laughed ourselves back into a dreamworld where everything would be fine and where decency would prevail and where the system would work; so much so that one hundred million of us slept all the way through an election cycle. 

And here we are. 

I wonder if we’re fully awake now. 

I wonder if we’re ready to cast off the cobwebs of our complacency and enter fully into the bloody fray in front of us. 

I wonder if we’re willing to rouse ourselves into lucidity and step into the jagged trenches of the fight of our lives and for the disparate swath of humanity who we’ve let down. 

I wonder if we’re prepared to face our culpability and admit our failures and make amends with our time and our resources and our votes. 

Or maybe we’ll just find another way to anesthetize. Maybe we’ll self-medicate on social media and reality TV and two-for-one happy hour specials and puppy photos on social media, and again retreat into the comfortable places and once more grow so sleepy that we’ll nestle back into slumber. 

I wonder if there’s still time to undo the present nightmare. 

The only way we’ll have a chance to know is if we wake up and stay awake. 

It’s morning in America. 

There’s mourning in America. 

Rise and shine. 

~~~ 

I am an American. The question is, are you?

My experience at the 2014 Texas GOP convention

Posted on June 11, 2014
By Heba Said

My heart palpitated with the unnerved feeling I had just from the thought of attending a Republican convention as a veiled Muslim woman.

It is not news that Republicans don’t seem to like Muslims. As close as the city of Keller, and as recently as last week, Trustee Jo Lynn Haussmann wrote on her Facebook page “SOUTH LAKE - Do you realize because SO FEW voters took the time and responsibility to VOTE in the municipal elections - YOU NOW HAVE A ‘MUSLIM’ on the City Council!!! What A SHAME!!!!!” 

The comments have since been deleted and referred to Southlake councilman Shahid Shafi. 

With influences such as Pamela Gellar and Pat Robertson, it is no wonder that Republicans are so easily associated with Anti-Islam sentiments, the instigation of Islamophobia and outright hatred toward Muslims.

After two days at the convention, the only emotions I could describe were anger and disappointment.

I attended the convention as a reporter hoping to tell readers about the panel discussions I attended, but I discovered a cult-like hatred that is simply disgusting.

As I walked through the halls, people stopped in their tracks and frowned and shook their heads at me. Panelists threw the word “Islamist” around as if it were perfectly OK, and one man even asked if I felt alone at a meeting. I was referred to as “you people” and “y’all Muslims” more times than I can count. The worst part was the way delegates looked at me, as if I were something to fear when I approached them.

The Muslim voter was disregarded completely in discussions on how to tackle politically engaging religious minority groups. So as a reporter, I asked, how the Republican party plans to reach out to the eighth largest Muslim population in the United States. The sheer lack of regard for that population was appalling. 

After discussing with one candidate whether there were Muslim outreach plans, I almost didn’t feel like I was allowed to be American, as if what he said stripped me from my American identity. He asked me where I was from. When I responded, “Texas,” he asked me where I was really from, as if there were no way it could possibly be from Texas.

Ted Cruz attended the event and took photos with his supporters. As I waited for him to return from a phone call so that I could grab some photos to tweet out, a police officer nearby came up to me and said hello. I responded hello. A normal interaction, I guess. Shortly after, I found five police officers behind me, hands on holsters watching me intently. Armed with a press badge and an iPhone, I turned to them held up my media credentials and asked if I could help them with something, as my heart tried to escape my chest. They did not respond but broke up into groups of two and continued watching me. If I was the biggest threat at that convention, then I must be seriously underestimating myself.

I cannot believe how a piece of cloth made from cotton and polyester can instill so many misconceptions in people.

I am still angered by the experience. I have the constitutional right to be a Muslim, and no one, not even Ted Cruz or five police officers, has the right to make me feel inferior. They definitely do not have any right to hate not just Muslims, but any race, creed or population. My vote may not be on your agenda, but my vote counts as much as anybody’s who votes in this country.

To the man who followed me into the IHOP bathroom after calling me a terrorist, to the woman who said she would see me in Hell at the grocery store, to the girl who pulled my hijab off my head during a fire drill in ninth grade, and to the hundreds of people who have asked me where I’m really from — I am an American. The question is, are you? 

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Humanism

...or the reasons I find the hatefulness of the modern Republican Party so abhorrent

Probably the best way to begin this thesis is to describe the ontological viewpoint known as humanism… or more accurately, secular humanism. This general philosophy represents how I choose to live my life. 

Recognizing that any definition of particular philosophies must be broad and that no definition can be all-inclusive or unilaterally applied, secular humanism generally represents the notion that humans are basically good in nature… and that accepting responsibility for the collective human condition is something individual humans can do, and in my opinion ought to do. 

The humanist accepts that it is a more pleasant world when we lend a helping hand to the disadvantaged and backstop each other in the event of unexpected events. Human efficiency improves when we work together as a team. The more productive members of the team are those who don't have to worry so much about the next meal or what they might do in the event of catastrophic illness.

Humanism is comparable to libertarianism in some ways. Both philosophies stress individual rights and responsibilities ... but unlike libertarianism the classic humanist attempts to be unselfish, focusing on human dignity and trying to understand human failings. When confronted with fraud, duplicity or other aberrant behavior the humanist will more often take a stand for human rights even while disagreeing with individual behavior that can be dealt with within the framework of established law. 

Humanists try to reject fear and chauvinism along with the incumbent hatred and bigotry that seems so prevalent in the fearful. In humanism the greater emphasis is the collective whole, with selfish individualism taking a back seat. 

In general the humanist tends to understand the responsibility humans ought to feel toward other humans and recognize the imperative of nurturing, protecting and caring for the other individuals and the tribe as a whole... when that is possible. 

Humanists generally recognize that as a species we are stronger when we band together to sustain and protect certain weaker or disadvantaged members. It seems apparent that our lives are generally better with the comforting knowledge that our fellow humans are ready and willing to reach out with a helping hand if we find ourselves in need, rather than living with the fear that if the worst should happen we could find ourselves on the street or with hungry children.

Humans are fallible and imperfect and the humanist is no different, but for the most part the humanist knows that turning a blind eye to the disadvantaged or letting any part of the whole suffer means that the specie will experience some degree of failure. The humanist finds this unacceptable. 

The humanist tends to be more accepting of new ideas and unfamiliar concepts, not fearing or hating others simply because they are somehow different. Discovery is important, and in general the humanist tends to look at life more as the journey than the destination.

History has taught us that humans are quite capable of explaining phenomena with rational thought and employing the scientific method, so humanism is skeptical of supernaturalism, avoiding magical or mystical explanations for problems we haven’t yet solved with science. The humanist knows that a natural or physical answer will come in time.

Humanists recognize the existence of certain venues and alternatives that at times and under certain conditions suffice in caring for our disadvantaged members yet remain willing to use all available means... including the fallible systems of state governance... to leverage the greatest effort to sustain our neighbors who might otherwise fall victim to extensive illness, hunger or disability. 

The humanist realizes full well that greedy, lazy and opportunistic people will take advantage of benefits they neither need nor deserve. Because of this the humanist will support rules or laws that prohibit or prosecute such bad behavior… so long as there is assurance that arbitrary or broad brush laws will not allow the truly needy to lose the help intended for them. A humanist would find this accidental denial more offensive than allowing the undeserving to get away with a crime. 

All of the above is simply a preface for a bit of a rant against hateful GOP/tea party tropes on how much welfare, food stamps, and other “entitlements” are sucking from society. In general the humanist doesn’t pay attention to the fear mongering because humanists understand that there are far more truly needy individuals and families depending on these programs than who unjustly take advantage of them, and that the cost is minimal. 

I got started on this line of thought when the following graphic landed in my Facebook feed. 

I'm sure the person posting this simply thought it was funny, but the implication that his tax money goes to welfare and that the people receiving assistance are “lazy bastards” is far from funny. To take an entire segment of American society and arbitrarily accuse them of being lazy and bastards is simply hateful. 

We have all heard the stories of leaches unfairly bleeding the system, but the fact remains that an overwhelming number of those accepting assistance are simply down on their luck. The greatest number are children. The humanist in me cares less about a few leaches bleeding some small amount from my tax dollars than I care about helping the ones in need. 

The notion that tax money is "supporting" anyone seems a bit of an overstatement, since the allowable benefits are so small. I did a little research to see just how much of my tax money actually went to welfare, and what the documented rate of abuse might be. 

The first data I discovered tells us that SNAP fraud is at an all-time low, estimated at just 3% of the total allotment. So the waste and abuse meme is simply a myth. 

Further research provided data on how much of our individual tax bill actually goes to welfare. The amount that SNAP costs when spread over the entire population is only slightly more than the average wage earner spends in a week just for lunch and coffee. 

If you are like me... pretty much just an average working stiff... you probably paid somewhere between 18% and 22% of your 2012 income in federal taxes. For me that was about $1,200. 

Under current law about eight cents of each of my tax dollars is designated to some non-military welfare fund. In other words I contributed just under $100 toward those hated “entitlement” programs. Programs that are helping underprivileged and disadvantaged members of our human tribe… giving them a chance to sustain themselves until they can gain a foothold and start contributing back to the society that gave them a helping hand. 

As I have already admitted, I know there there are leaches sucking the government tit and taking advantage of my small largess, but as a humanist I’d far prefer to see a Cadillac driving slug in Wal-Mart buying cigarettes and potato chips with food stamps than I would see a down on her luck single mother or her child miss a meal and lose the chance to claw her way back to self sufficiency. 

I really wish that otherwise bright people would do a little background checking before posting these hateful memes or making such bigoted statements. It is almost as if they have minds already made and purposely avoid any data that might demonstrate their position flawed. Regrettable, especially when such drivel comes from someone I call friend. 

As a sidebar, for every cent of my taxes (yours too) going to welfare there are about five that go toward supporting us when we get older and retire. Another four cents goes to the Pentagon’s budget. If you want a photo of what your taxes support I can send you one of an old fart in Bermuda shorts, Hawaiian shirt and Panama hat standing in front of a B-1 bomber. That could be you or me if we are fortunate enough to survive that long, and I certainly don't want to see a part of my retirement that I have paid into and supported all these years disappear simply because a few people refuse to check the facts and choose to remain ignorant.

The breakdown for how tax dollars are spent is roughly this: 

• 24 cents to military, defense and veterans programs

• 16 cents to Social Security

• 16 cents to Medicare

• About 10 cents to interest on the debt

• About 8 cents to the classic “welfare” programs, including food stamps

• 6 cents to public health and disease prevention

• 4 cents for infrastructure, transportation, highways and bridges

• 3 cents for unemployment assistance and job retraining (the fellow who posted the above graphic should know a little about this part)

• About 3 cents for education

• 2 cents for natural resources

• 2 cents for federal pensions and the general running of government

• 2 cents to “foreign aid”

• About a penny for disaster aid

• About a penny to the court system and federal prisons

• Less than a penny to commerce and housing

• Less than a penny to science and research

• Less than a penny to agriculture 

So instead of chiseling poor people out of the few dollars they get from the social programs, why don’t we chop the eight cents off of the Pentagon’s budget. We ought to be able to accomplish that since we already outspend the next eight big spending countries combined. If we were to slice a third of the defense budget we’d still outspend the next five combined.

The point to all of this is that people aping these hateful memes should pause a bit and check facts before blindly accepting them to be factual. Almost all of these are rooted in bald-faced lies and distortions and are composed by people with fear and hate in their hearts. Almost all of them are forwarded by people who have a belief and do not want that belief challenged... so they don't check them.

If you are so easily manipulated that you don’t mind blindly forwarding hateful lies, you live in a very small world indeed. 

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