Although the Communist Party USA currently has little power as an official political party, the broader Communist movement has significant influence in many aspects of American politics and society. (Gerald Flurry, The Roots of America’s Dangerous Turn Left, January 2016, p. 6.)In other words the Communist Party USA does not matter to him. But red baiting under McCarthy in the 1950s and Flurry today was never about condemning the Communists. Actions speak louder than words. It is about slurring American leftists with the crimes of Lenin and Stalin to silence unwanted voices and ideas.
Flurry then proceeds to do precisely that by red baiting the protesters at the University of Missouri.
The Manifesto concludes with some words that may sound eerily familiar to modern news watchers: “Let the ruling classes tremble at a Communist revolution. The proletarians have nothing to lose but their chains. They have a world to win.”Were those protesters ordered to launch this protest by the Communist Party? Of course not.
The reason this may sound familiar is that students at the University of Missouri chanted a paraphrase of the line about chains in November as they protested, forced the resignation of the university president, and cried out for the whole system to be overthrown. (Gerald Flurry, The Roots of America’s Dangerous Turn Left, January 2016, p. 7.)
What did those protesters have to do with the many terrible things that occurred under Lenin and Stalin? Nothing. They were not even born in those days.
But Flurry does not seem to like them very much so he is red baiting them in order to discredit them to his readers. He is trying to place the guilt of the terrible things that happened under Lenin and Stalin upon people who had nothing to do with those terrible events.
Afterwards Flurry red baits the Democratic Party by absurdly alleging that it has been taken over, not by Communists, but by people "almost identical" to Communists. He absurdly accuses the New Left of being "almost identical" to Communists. He insists that "key positions" in the Democratic Party are in the hands of these people "almost identical" to Communists.
The New Left was a powerful political movement that swept through the nation in the 1960s and 1970s. Agitators and educators worked to bring about changes in homosexual rights, abortion, gender roles, drugs and other issues. The movement was closely tied to the “hippie” movement, and it achieved many of its lawless goals. The New Left was almost identical to the Communist Party! The champions of the movement had stunning success in working their way into key positions in today’s Democratic Party! Look at the radical left today. Is it any different from communism? (Gerald Flurry, The Roots of America’s Dangerous Turn Left, January 2016, p. 7.)And so Gerald Flurry has just red baited the Democratic Party. On the one hand he admits the Communist Party USA is in fact of little importance but then insists that Communist like people are in the Democratic Party. These words are an attack on the Democratic Party, not Communists as it may superficially appear.
Red baiting is not about condemning Communists. It is about slurring American leftists like the protesters in Missouri and the modern day Democratic Party with the crimes of Lenin and Stalin to silence them and coax readers to give no heed to the Democratic Party and the left in general.
If Flurry really believes that the Democratic Party is not good for America then he should renounce his tax exempt status and openly condemn the Democratic Party for what they do, not for being left wing.
But it is morally repulsive for him to slur the Democratic Party with the crimes of Lenin and Stalin to demonize the Democratic Party. It is a terrible rhetorical trick that historically did so much harm to America during the era of McCarthyism.
It is a terrible thing that Gerald Flurry should dare to revive the fears and paranoia of the bygone days of McCarthyism. No good can come from this.
No comments:
Post a Comment