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I know Bill Maher is a bit of a one-trick pony, but it's not Christianity at the root of QAnon/MAGA—it's white supremacy.
Black Americans are more religiously devout (and Christian) overall than white Americans—but they aren't storming capitols or bombing abortion clinics. https://twitter.com/Brasilmagic/status/1357910772135972864
Black Americans are more religiously devout (and Christian) overall than white Americans—but they aren't storming capitols or bombing abortion clinics. https://twitter.com/Brasilmagic/status/1357910772135972864
White supremacy has long used Christianity as a public-facing cover (defending slavery, segregation, homophobia, etc), but it wasn't driving those things; it was used as a tool to defend privilege.
Religion was also used as a tool to support abolition, civil rights, et al.
Religion was also used as a tool to support abolition, civil rights, et al.
Am I saying there are no good criticisms of religion? No. But don't say "Christianity" when you really just mean "white evangelical Christians," or when you really mean, "white supremacy."
Because Christianity ≠ conservative white evangelicals. You're erasing *a lot* of folks.
Because Christianity ≠ conservative white evangelicals. You're erasing *a lot* of folks.
I think one of the reasons this bothers me so much is that, having grown up in & surrounded white evangelical Christian culture, I believed white evangelicalism WAS Christianity—there was no other.
And it's convenient for Bill Maher to help evangelicals reinforce that lie.
And it's convenient for Bill Maher to help evangelicals reinforce that lie.
In a weird way, people like Bill Maher have a symbiotic relationship with white Christian nationalists; they help him reinforce his idea that Christians are kooky/awful; he helps them reinforce the idea that they're the True^TM Christians, under attack from the "pagan" culture.
In reality, white evangelicals make up about 15% of the population—slightly less than white mainline protestants from more liberal denominations and about the same as Americans claiming atheism/agnosticism/no religion. https://www.pewforum.org/2015/05/12/americas-changing-religious-landscape/
By portraying the tiny sliver of American Christianity that is white evangelicalism as the default definition of "Christian," people like Bill Maher continue giving them outsize cultural power while writing off larger, more social justice-oriented forms of Christianity.
As an young evangelical in 2009, I remember being absolutely shook when I got on an elevator with a Black woman, who told someone that while she always votes for Democrats, she's not really voting for Democrats.
"I just vote Christian," she said.
I was utterly befuddled.
"I just vote Christian," she said.
I was utterly befuddled.
White evangelical culture had made it inconceivable to me that someone could "vote Christian" and that mean "vote for Democrats."
Turned out, she meant, "Vote for health care for the poor, for better pay for workers, better treatment of minorities," etc.
Turned out, she meant, "Vote for health care for the poor, for better pay for workers, better treatment of minorities," etc.
But white evangelicalism didn't teach me that policies designed to help the poor and downtrodden were "Christian politics." Voting against abortion, against gay marriage & against efforts to essentially dismantle white Christian privilege were what voting "Christian" meant.
But it wasn't just white evangelicals teaching me that the only "Christian" way to vote was the white evangelical way; people like Bill Maher, in his zeal to make faith (not deep rooted American white supremacy) the culprit pushed the same message; so did the mainstream media.
Millions of Black voters nationwide also "vote their faith," as do millions of liberal white Christians (whose faith things like fighting for immigrant rights).
But the MSM almost never talks about them as "faith/values" voters. That's almost always for white evangelicals. Why?
But the MSM almost never talks about them as "faith/values" voters. That's almost always for white evangelicals. Why?
This part, though: https://twitter.com/kbsquared4/status/1358145727202025472
Black Christians and liberal white mainline protestant Christians are just two of the groups written out of the story by this narrative; consider also, as another example, the millions of Latino and Hispanic Christians who come from a Catholic social justice tradition.
