Part of why the red scare and "it's a distraction" reactions to Trump and Putin are so personally disturbing to me is that this unholy alliance between the US and Russia has been my nightmare for a long time because of my own #EmptyThePews story.
I grew up in a cult that sat right at the intersection of US Evangelicalism and Russian Orthodoxy.
The Russian church was attractive to American fundamentalists in part because of its active engagement with social issues - in other words, united by the so-called culture wars.
The Russian church was attractive to American fundamentalists in part because of its active engagement with social issues - in other words, united by the so-called culture wars.
A specific take on Russian Orthodox sin and piety was attractive to an American cult led by homophobic gay men who wanted to change their own behavior and wanted to police the behavior of those around them, too.
People I grew up around were terrified of communism returning to Russia. But I left that community terrified of the Russian Orthodox church coming to power again.
And sure enough, under Putin's regime the church is ascendent.
And sure enough, under Putin's regime the church is ascendent.
I realized during Pussy Riot's trial for performing in an Orthodox church that my peers in the US had no context for the outsized power of the church or complete lack of space for protest. (Similar to how Bolton apparently had no context for the idea of gun rights in Russia).
The Russian Orthodox church at least appears to hold the sort of power the Christian Right aspires to. It's a model of what they hope to create, a real world Giliad to emulate.
No, Helsinki isn't red scare nonsense and shouldn't be dismissed as such just cause some folks frame it that way. This is the global white nationalist alliance that's weaponized Christian fundamentalism in its rise to power. This is the nightmare the Christian Right has made.
I'll say that again - this is what the Christian Right was working towards. Even if every rank and file member didn't know that, their easy support for Trump despite him failing all their supposed morality tests shows their desire for a white nationalist patriarchy is paramount.
I have a very personal connection to the repression of these sociopolitically engaged religious groups. But that's also part of the background for anyone who's experienced the ex-gay movement, the anti-abortion movement, global white supremacy...
This is why the Christian Right has such an easy alliance with white nationalism, and this is what they've been working towards. It's the stuff of my childhood conspiracy theories because it is a global conspiracy.
Enough with pretending Russia is still communist or a distraction from white nationalists here in the US. It is actually for real all connected. And we have to oppose this global white nationalist movement everywhere and every way we can.
