The White Identitarians Are Having a Moment
Now that DEI and anti-racism are in retreat, they’re moving on to a more ambitious goal.
TL;DR
- Jeremy Carl, a Trump administration nominee, struggled to define "white identity" during his confirmation hearing, offering examples like "Scotch-Irish military culture," "white churches," "foodways," and "music."
- Carl's views are part of a growing movement on the right that frames white people as victims in the American narrative, seeking to organize them into an "aggrieved coalition."
- The article suggests that the shift in progressive ideology from Martin Luther King Jr.'s color-blind ideal to embracing "racial self-assertion" for minority groups has contributed to the rise of white identity politics.
- The "Great Replacement" theory, which posits that white people are endangered in multiethnic societies, has gained traction and is embraced by some political figures and media personalities.
- Proponents of white identity politics, like Carl, argue that diversity is harmful and that immigration is being used to diminish the status of white Americans.
- Critics like Eric Kaufmann and Justin Lee point to "asymmetrical multiculturalism" – where ethnicity is valued for minorities but denigrated for majorities – as a core issue.
- The article discusses a lawsuit against The New York Times, alleging discrimination against a white male applicant due to diversity hiring goals, as an example of potential discrimination against white people.
- While acknowledging the problem of discrimination against white people, the article critiques Carl's proposed solution of pursuing "zero-sum politics" and extracting "pain" from opponents, comparing it unfavorably to Martin Luther King Jr.'s methods.
- The movement is criticized for mimicking "woke" identity politics and for promoting a posture of victimhood, which is seen as "beneath one's dignity."
- The article concludes that white identitarianism is a dead end, arguing that its short-term victories will be pyrrhic and that true progress lies in solidarity based on common dignity, not racial strife.