As annoying (or heck, seething even) it is to admit this, Donald Trump’s presidency has been a significant sociological event with a direct impact on politics at large, while also radicalizing a severe portion of the population. I find no joy in crediting Trump with anything positive or negative. It’d honestly be for the best if we just forgot about his involvement in world affairs entirely. However, even after the man has stepped down from his position as the President of the USA, his effects linger on among thousands of individuals across the world. Sure, maybe taxes were a tad bit better (emphasis on the tad), but what we got in exchange was the further privatization of healthcare and the emboldening of white supremacists in America. Moreover, similar groups have managed to surface elsewhere, with Germany being a recent example. Anti-vaxxers in the country have been consistently rallying around the symbol that Trump represents to them: a voice that enables their damaging behavior.
Much akin to the Capitol Riots, these groups attempted to storm the parliament building, with banners imploring Trump to “Make Germany Great Again” (ugh) being flown with pride. All because someone refuses to get a shot that’ll make them less of a threat to others. What have white people found oppressive this time, you ask? Allow me to reach for this random word generator; oh, here we go! It’s…wearing a mask in public since that’s equivalent to the novel 1984. Huh. Yeah, sure, that tracks: go home minorities being subjected to police brutality, profiling, lynching, and all other forms of oppression major and minor. You just don’t get it.
While my words may come off as belittling towards white individuals, that isn’t what I’m shooting for here. Plenty of Republicans are from minority groups, and plenty of white people have major areas of overlap with other disenfranchised circles. The point is that despite such similarities, it really can be easier to be white in the USA and Europe than it can be anything else. Ahmaud Arbery’s death is still fresh to many of us, and the relevant law agencies spent three months covering for his killers. It took massive rallying over social media and protests across the streets to bring true justice. The sort that Emmet Till and Breonna Taylor didn’t get.
Platforms such as Telegram and Facebook have become increasingly dangerous because they allow for a massive amount of coordinated violence to be planned unnoticed. The US Capitol Riots were mostly planned over Facebook, and all Meta did in response was blame other, smaller social media platforms. The recent Germany riots were majorly planned over Telegram: a platform that actively preaches its privacy guidelines. Honestly, the last one still makes sense, what with the privacy gimmick and all. Facebook, and Meta at large, have no such qualms or hang-ups and yet still fail at the most basic of moderation.
H/T: DD
Read next: Fake Followers And Social Media, How Authentic Are The World’s Biggest Influencers?
by Arooj Ahmed via Digital Information World
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