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KPN

(15,587 posts)
Sat Jul 20, 2019, 12:04 PM Jul 2019

Can Trump's Hard-Core Fans Be Deradicalized?


When the president spews racism or violence, true believers respond with more. Experts say it resembles something like a cult or totalitarianism.

President Donald Trump’s rally in Greenville, North Carolina, this week made scholars of fascism sit bolt upright. ... Trump has long stoked bigoted grievances among his followers, but the Greenville rally saw him act as a more overt radicalizer than ever before. And with a portion of Trump’s fanbase now openly clamoring for the physical removal of several prominent Democrats of color, experts are questioning whether the country can repair the damage—even if Trump loses in 2020.

-- snip --

It’s possible very little will bother his most devoted fans, Janja Lalich, a professor studying cults and totalitarian leadership, said. “There’s this intense devotion and the inability to question or criticize or doubt. ... They seem to be in a state of what we call cognitive dissonance, where what they believe doesn’t match reality. People in that state tend to cling to their beliefs over reality. They dig themselves even deeper. I think the things we see at the rallies, where people get into these cheers and adore everything he says, is very typical of what we see in run-of-the-mill cults. There’s what we might call blind obedience or blind followership.”

-- snip --

Mary Beth Altier, an assistant professor at New York University specializing in radicalization, cautioned that some Trump supporters might act out should his rallies stop. “While people saying these things is awful and they may radicalize other people, if we quash their ability to say them, my research shows they may become more violent because they can’t express those grievances. It’s a catch-22,” she said.

And even if Trump leaves office, it’s no guarantee that Trumpism will end. “I think it’s only going to intensify,” Neiwert said, citing fears that Trump would not lead a peaceful transition.

It’s a concern Lalich shares. “I think he can still remain their leader. He doesn’t need to have office,” she said. “He’s already threatened that it’s going to be rigged and that his people will rise up. I think that’s not going to change very much because he has reawakened such hatred in this country.”

[link:https://www.thedailybeast.com/can-trumps-hard-core-fans-be-deradicalized?ref=scroll|

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Wonderful!
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Can Trump's Hard-Core Fans Be Deradicalized? (Original Post) KPN Jul 2019 OP
Maybe under something like China's Uighur model. Applegate Jul 2019 #1
Is cult deprogramming still a thing.... Thomas Hurt Jul 2019 #2
Not by next November... lame54 Jul 2019 #3
No way Brother Buzz Jul 2019 #4
No. They can't. rownesheck Jul 2019 #5
"I hear he's starting his own country! And I know the guy who owns the bridge to it! struggle4progress Jul 2019 #6

rownesheck

(2,343 posts)
5. No. They can't.
Sat Jul 20, 2019, 02:23 PM
Jul 2019

But, I propose we give them Nebraska and they can live under the rule of their orange jesus there. Then they can build their wall around the state to keep us normal people out. I'm sure the normal people who currently reside there will be happy to move in order to make this plan a reality. Problem solved!

struggle4progress

(118,041 posts)
6. "I hear he's starting his own country! And I know the guy who owns the bridge to it!
Sat Jul 20, 2019, 03:43 PM
Jul 2019

You want to buy a bridge, cheap?"

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