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Why Republicans Are Like This
A theory on the addiction of far-Right politics, and how we might heal it.
Every now and then, I come across a headline that makes me slam my forehead into my desk and groan. Like this one: “Sarah Huckabee Sanders bans [the term] ‘Latinx’ on first day as Arkansas governor.”
On a rational level, I understand this as a marketing ploy aimed at shoring up emotional commitment to the American Right’s beloved culture war. On a deeper level, though, I’m at a loss. A part of me just cannot comprehend the stupidity. I can’t wrap my head around the immaturity. I can’t make sense of the pettiness.
I feel that way about Republicans a lot. If you do too, this essay is for you.
1. Republicans are people.
There is a human tendency (rampantly reinforced by our culture and punitive “justice” system) to imagine people are wholly and intrinsically either good or bad. If someone does something we think is bad, we tend to think of the whole person as bad. We use language to reinforce this thinking. A person becomes “a criminal,” “a murderer,” “a rapist,” “an abuser,” “a racist,” “a sexist,” and so on. We equate the action with the essence of the person.
