Throwing Down the MAGA Hat is Not Enough
ex-MAGAs cannot merely brush aside the significant harm they've caused
I’m in full support if many of the MAGA and Maple MAGA crowds choose to throw down their red hats and renounce the pedophile-in-chief and his associates. Acknowledging it was a huge — huge — mistake to support Donald Trump and his administration is a good first step.
However.
This is not a simple “forgive and forget” situation. Significant harms have been, and continue to be, caused by those on the far-right. Once you get over trying to claim you were brainwashed or in a cult and burn your hat, or whatever ritual you want to perform to put those horrors behind you (“you” being the MAGA crowd in general who are now coming to terms with having long supported a racist POS pedophile), there is a hell of a lot more work to be done.
I’m referring especially to those conservatives who engaged in racist, xenophobic, homophobic, transphobic, and otherwise hateful rhetoric. Those who attended MAGA rallies, pro-Trump counter-protests, shared hate speech online, and harassed people on the “woke left”, especially those from marginalized communities. I’m thinking of people who have made or shared content that perpetuated outright lies in support of Trump’s ongoing reign of terror.
Some of these alt-right folks who are just now realizing the colossal error of their ways are now trying to D.A.R.V.O. their way out of this. DARVO stands for Deny, Attack, and Reverse Victim and Offender, and refers to the way perpetrators will attempt to avoid responsibility and instead characterize themselves as an injured party, despite having been the aggressor.
Dear ex-MAGAts
Rather than standing up and saying “I screwed up big-time, I caused massive harm, and I am so very sorry”, many now-former MAGAts are claiming they were duped, brainwashed even. Yes, you were lied to, and you fell for it. You’re not responsible for other people’s lies, but you sure as hell are responsible for the behaviour you engaged in as a result. And let’s not bullshit each other, you were more than happy to be fooled for a very long time. Those lies affirmed your racist, xenophobic, homophobic, transphobic, and hateful beliefs. Your fellow alt-right enthusiasts made you feel “normal” and welcome, like you belonged. You’re not a bad person, you’re just standing up for what you believe is right, the people calling you bigots just don’t understand.
Let’s remember, what you believed was “right” was: cutting off social supports for sick, disabled, elderly, and impoverished communities. Kidnapping innocent people off the streets and unlawfully detaining them, often just because they were Brown or spoke with an accent, or were merely in the wrong place at the wrong time. Murdering people in cold blood in broad daylight because they disagree with the above and were trying to protect their neighbours.
Shutting down the Department of Education. Cutting any and all access to gender-affirming care. Denying access to abortions and other healthcare because you have personal views in opposition. Letting people die due to pregnancy complications because you are personally against abortions. Charging exorbitant tariffs to any country who dare disagree with the supreme pedophile of the U.S., causing many Americans extreme financial hardship.
I could go on, but I think I’ve made my point.
It’s not good enough for you to lay down your red hats and start spewing sob stories in an attempt to garner sympathy. True remorse means taking accountability for your actions and the extreme harms you and your like-minded über-conservatives have caused, and it means taking steps to try to make amends as best you possibly can. Unfortunately we cannot erase what has already happened, but it is not okay for you to simply let yourself off the hook and try to sweep your horrendous behaviour under the rug.
Centering yourself is not reparation
Lastly, it is not okay for now-former MAGAs (and Maple MAGAs) to claim you’re heartbroken over the children who were hurt and abused by DJT, Epstein, and all of their child-molesting, pedophile associates while still supporting other policies of this administration. Those of us who aren’t bigots looking for a bandwagon to jump on have been calling out these hideous monsters for what they are for years, but you didn’t want to listen. You refused to believe us, and much worse, you refused to believe the victims until the evidence was so overwhelming that you could no longer ignore it.
For example, I’ve seen some of these anti-pedophile yet pro-Trump-policy conservatives (rightfully) crying over the terrors endured by the abuse victims, while continuing to support I.C.E. and its operations. You cannot claim to care about children if you only care about white kids — that’s retaining your racist ideologies while selectively renouncing other crimes.
If you’re going to do this, do it right. Apologize for the immense harms you have caused. Take accountability. Instead of going online and trying to turn this into a “new” movement, in which you continue to centre yourself rather than the actual victims, sit down and be quiet. This isn’t a new way to gain more views and attention, and rally people to your half-hearted cause. Stop making this about you. Read, listen, learn, and reflect. Then act in ways that begin to address some of the harms you’ve caused, work to make amends however you can. That is what true remorse looks like. Not re-centering yourself while ignoring the damage you’ve left behind.
Once you’ve done this, perhaps you’ll join the rest of us in fighting against, rather than for, this tangerine tyrant. That can’t and won’t happen until you stop centering yourself long enough to engage in self-reflection and reparations.
© Jillian Enright, Neurodiversity MB
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References
Harsey, S., & Freyd, J. J. (2020). Deny, Attack, and Reverse Victim and Offender (DARVO): What Is the Influence on Perceived Perpetrator and Victim Credibility? Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment & Trauma, 29(8), 897–916. https://doi.org/10.1080/10926771.2020.1774695
Harsey, S. J., Zurbriggen, E. L., & Freyd, J. J. (2017). Perpetrator Responses to Victim Confrontation: DARVO and Victim Self-Blame. Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment & Trauma, 26(6), 644–663. https://doi.org/10.1080/10926771.2017.1320777