<
https://theconversation.com/san-diego-mosque-attack-racist-interpretations-of-european-history-are-inspiring-extremists-283492>
"On Monday, May 18, two assailants, a 17 and an 18 year old, attacked the
Islamic Center of San Diego, the site of both a mosque and school, killing
three adults. The assailants were wearing Nazi SS insignia, and had the words
“race war” written on their weapons.
The attack underscores European history’s centrality to the global far right’s
discourse and ideology. It was the latest deadly manifestation of the
weaponisation of European history to justify violence in America in the
present.
But this is not just a US problem. Europe’s history was also explicitly
referenced in the manifesto of the 2019 Christchurch shooter in New Zealand.
The Christchurch attack was itself inspired by Anders Breivek’s 2011 attack in
Norway, which was primarily motivated by a violent white nationalist worldview.
These attackers all drew inspiration from Adolf Hitler and the SS to justify
both antisemitic and Islamophobic violence. But within the white nationalist
imaginary, European history begins much earlier. It extends to visions of a
pure white race in the Greek and Roman eras, and to idolisation of historical
figures such as Charles Martel, the Frankish leader who defeated a Muslim army
in Tours in 732.
It also leans heavily on the imagery of the European Crusades to retake the
Holy Land, which began in the 12th century. The Knights Templar – the
Crusade-era order of Christian warrior monks – has captured far-right popular
imagination in Europe and the US, especially among the alt-right.
Political actors across the spectrum invoke the past to grant legitimacy in the
present and suggest inevitability in the future. But for far-right leaders,
European history is especially easy to weaponise. It provides a ready-made set
of memes, metaphors, images and tropes that legitimise hate speech – and hate
crimes – in the name of protecting Christian Europeans from the perceived
threat of Jewish and Muslim invaders."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
