,
7 tweets,
2 min read
Read on Twitter
1. The Rashomon effect is when the same event is experienced differently by the people involved. The #CovingtonCatholic incident exemplifies this. That's not to say that Nick Sandmann is being 100% honest in his version of events - the look on his face is recognizable enough.
2. What is clear is that Black Israelites harassed the boys. If you're familiar with Black Israelites, you know this rings true. When the boys responded and the situation escalated, Nathan Phillips situated himself in between the groups to engage in a chant to calm the situation.
3. The boys didn't know what Nathan was doing - and they interpreted it as confrontational. They were already on edge from the Black Israelites. They behaved aggressively in response. On social media we saw the MAGA hats and a white kid sneering maliciously at a native elder.
4. I once had a neighbor who had a shaved head and a swastika tattooed on his neck. One morning he asked me why I didn't like him - did I have a problem with him. I explained that I did and why. It was amazing to me that he felt unfairly judged.
5. A swastika on the neck conveys a whole lot of information about your political and social beliefs. Unfortunately, we are in such a strange era that a political campaign hat telegraphs the same type of information - at least a lot of feel that it does.
6. Take the Black Israelites out of it. They are a strange fringe group. But those MAGA boys immediately saw the indigenous people as a threat. Clearly, some of that group saw the MAGA kids as a threat. Political tribalism is heavily steeped in racial tribalism in these times.
7. Let's face it. Publicly wearing a MAGA hat sends a message. It is a silent slur, no different than the spoken slurs those boys experienced from the Black Israelites. This is what the Trump era has wrought. And it will not be easily diffused.
