Stochastic Terrorism: The GOP Demonization of Liberals, Blacks and LGBTQ

When you demonize people, threats of violence and actual violence naturally follow

There were good people on both sides is what then President Donald Trump said about the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville in 2017. Heather Heyer, peacefully protesting against those Neo-Nazis, was killed. Good people on both sides. One of those sides was carrying around Nazi flags and chanting “Jews will not replace us.”

Trump has long since moved beyond such relatively measured and mild statements, though, about good people on both sides.

When he was indicted by Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg, he called the DA (who is Black) an “animal.” Actually, he called him a “Soros-backed animal.” George Soros is a Jewish banker, by the way.

Trump has referred to the “left” as “lunatics.” To be precise, Trump said Bragg “is just carrying out the plans of the radical left lunatics. Our country is being destroyed, as they tell us to be peaceful!”

Trump referred to New York Attorney General Letitia James, who is Black, as “Racist A.G. Letitia ‘Peekaboo’ James.” Doesn’t take a genius to recognize that “peekaboo” rhymes with a racist slur.

In a post regarding Georgia DA Fani Willis, Trump noted they should instead be going after those who rigged the election. To be precise, he said, “They only went after those that fought to find the riggers!” Promptly thereafter, racist forums all over the internet took off with “riggers” having fun with the rhyme of that one.

Except that they weren’t just having some racist laughs and fun. They were using the term “riggers” to call for violence.

Abigail Jo Shry was arrested for threatening the life of Judge Tanya Chutkan, who is overseeing the Jack Smith case against Donald Trump. Ms. Shry called Judge Chutkan to say, “If Trump doesn’t get elected in 2024, we are coming to kill you. So, tread lightly, bitch.”

Fani Willis, the Georgia DA, received an email with the subject line “Fani Willis = Corrupt N*****.” The email stated, “You are going to fail, you Jim Crow Democrat whore.”

It is not just Trump, however, with his words, his social media posts and dog whistles inspiring and stirring up haters to ramp up their own hate.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., said in an interview for 60 minutes that Democrats are a party of pedophiles. She said Democrats support “children being sexualized, having transgender surgeries. Sexualizing children is what pedophiles do to children.”

Christopher Rufo (the originator of the movement to ban “CRT” from schools) also took on the topic of Drag Queen story time at libraries, claiming to have done “extensive research” on them. He had appeared on Tucker Carlson’s show and said, “A lot of parents are wondering why is an adult male putting on women’s clothing and dancing and talking about sexual themes with other people’s children.” Rufo went on to say, “They want … a sexual connection between adult and child, which has, of course, long been the kind of final taboo of the sexual revolution.”

From an article in the Guardian:

In Connecticut, a rightwing online group posted the name and home address of a public school superintendent whom they labeled a “groomer” due to the alleged presence of a transgender student in one of the schools she oversaw. The forum called for the school official’s execution.

Words and threats. All just words and threats.

Until it is more than that.

People are murdered

Laura Ann Carleton, deceased at age 66. She was shot because she was an ally of the LGBTQ community and she refused to remove a rainbow Pride flag from outside her store.

Angela Carr, deceased at age 52. Anolt Laguerre, Jr., deceased at age 19. Jerrald De’Shaun Gallion, deceased at age 29. They were shot simply because they happened to be Black.

“You can’t blame me,” says the stochastic terrorist

Have you heard the term “stochastic terrorism?”

It is a simple concept that is complex to explain, but I found a good definition on Dictionary.com.

Stochastic terrorism is the public demonization of a person or group resulting in the incitement of a violent act, which is statistically probable but whose specifics cannot be predicted.

The casual reader who never heard of stochastic terrorism might find that a little opaque. So, here is another definition that cuts to the point I am making here:

Stochastic terrorism is defined as isolated acts of violence or terrorism committed by random, typically “lone wolf” extremists, but triggered by political demagoguery.

Now do you understand?

Do you understand, Republican Party?

No, I don’t suppose you do.

Let me try one last time, and I will quote from an article in Scientific American so you cannot say I’m just spouting MSNBC propaganda. This article by Bryn Nelson states:

Dehumanizing and vilifying a person or group of people can provoke what scholars and law enforcement officials call stochastic terrorism, in which ideologically driven hate speech increases the likelihood that people will violently and unpredictably attack the targets of vicious claims.

Now do you understand, Republicans? Maybe? Well, maybe not.

As Mihai Andrei noted in his article “What stochastic terrorism is and why the US may see more of it” (which I highly encourage everyone to read):

… media agitators incite attacks by random “nuts” — and even as the “nuts” get caught, the stochastic terrorist is given more prime time. The stochastic terrorist may not even realize what he or she is doing (like a drunk driver) …”

Lots of Republicans are drunk driving on words of hate and vilification. Trump made it okay. Other Republicans are now running with it, saying liberal Black people are the modern KKK (Blacks are the real racists). Gays are pedophiles. Liberals are baby killers.

So, here we are, where 30% of Republican voters think that “things have gotten so far off track, true American patriots may have to resort to violence in order to save our country.”

Many already have resorted to violence.

Republicans, I can only say this: In your efforts to demonize others, you are the only real demons I have ever known.