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People on this app are having this discussion around the question, "what is a woman?"

But for those of us who are actually interested in some of the social changes around sex and gender we are experiencing in this country, this is the wrong question.

1/ The question should really be: "Why are people now willing to honor a person's request to be treated as a woman?"

Approaching trans issues as if the key lies in some scientific declaration of what a man or a woman is truly misses the point.

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Now we're getting somewhere!

If we think about this past simply saying "a human with a penis" and explore gender expression, then historically men's gender expressions have been more restrictive than women's.

These restrictions have been a problem for non-conforming men.

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https://twitter.com/libbyemmons/status/1664963096459239424

If anyone is interesed, a popular concept one can use to think about this is "hegemonic masculinity."

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oxfordreference.com/display/10.109…

The sentiment here is fine (yes, protect the next generation from harm).

But I agree with many others who see this as using children to push back against the visibility of trans persons.

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https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1664614843297439744

Such that one can say I am not a transphobe, I am really just interested in protecting children.

This is similar to how Asians are used in the pushback against Affirmative Action.

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Excellent research in sociology's top journal that helps us understand declining vaccination rates worldwide.

It appeals to me because it is theory-driven and takes a sociological perspective - looking at the impact of culture and institutions.

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drive.google.com/file/d/1rXNuSB… There were several hypotheses posed, but these are the main two -

"Hypothesis 1a: As a culture of individualism
strengthens, vaccination rates will decline."

"Hypothesis 2a: As lack of confidence in core liberal institutions increases, vaccination
rates will decline."

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Anti-wokeism started amongst disaffected intellectuals who were unaware (or unwilling to accept) that the political terrain in the West had shifted such that their views were no longer considered progressive or liberal.

1/ Their initial response was to frame the discourse within their spaces such that they depicted themselves as the ones upholding the liberal standard, and the many causes that animated progressives were *illiberal.*

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The movement is not "based around defending Black career criminals."

The movement is about the decades of disproportionate police brutality and mistreatment visited upon black people.

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https://twitter.com/wil_da_beast630/status/1662230207296675840

You can complain about the people who've become symbols of that movement, but it does a great disservice to many people in the black community who have direct experiences with problematic policing to suggest it is about "defending Black career criminals."

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My tweets automatically delete after 30 days. So I might just be repeating this every month or so:

People who currently identify with or agree with "anti-woke" discourse talking points are the New Right.

1/ It is not that their views will necessarily conform to traditional conservative ideas.

Instead, their current views will become what we see as mainstream conservativism.

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I am not a big fan of the otherizing language here...but the general thesis is correct.

The behaviors of the MAGA/Christian Nationalist right - behaviors that seemed unfathomable a few decades ago - are grounded in a sense of precarity.

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https://twitter.com/BenjaminPDixon/status/1661713684794572805

When people feel secure in their sense of identity and position, they are more tolerant and liberal.

When that sense is threatened, people act out. They believe things they otherwise wouldn't believe, and support people and policies they otherwise wouldn't support.

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Anti-wokism has coalesced into a clear set of values, beliefs, and actions.

Whatever individual members of that movement wanted or believed, it's most vocal leaders have demonstrated what the anti-woke playbook will be going forward.

Let me explain that playbook.

1/ The rhetorical tools used - meritocracy, colorblindness, viewpoint diversity, and "for the children" - seem laudable enough.

However, once one peels back the curtain, we see this rhetoric is only ever deployed against certain groups.

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As people continue to misunderstand the social phenomena we are currently experiencing in our country and continue to misattribute the cause, let me yell out into the wilderness.

Maybe someone will hear.

1/ There is NO cohesive ideology called "wokism" shared by a distinct tribe called "wokes."

Instead, several generations of people who privilege quality of life and self-expression - especially for historically marginalized groups - are maturing into positions of influence.

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I dislike tribalism because it *inevitably* leads to moral and intellectual dishonesty.

I am not being hyperbolic. If you generate arguments based on your team and not based on principle, you *will* be dishonest.

1/ I first realized this pet peeve of mine some months ago when I had a falling out with progressives who I perceived were playing team sports.

I could see the hypocrisy, and it seriously rubbed me the wrong way.

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I have been repeating myself lately. But it is not for want of ideas. It is because I have been working with what I believe to be a rather generative theory, one that explains the social and cultural changes some have called "wokism" in society.

1/ The theory is a simple one.

At least two generations of Americans have grown up in a world different than Baby Boomers, the "Me" generation, and Gen Xers.

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A great irony for many white conservatives with grievances - especially working-class white conservatives, is that the tools for mitigating their immiseration have already been developed by academics looking to mitigate the immiseration of disadvantaged groups past.

1/ Scholars have used the notion of systemic racism to understand the continuing inequalities between black and white in society.

We have seen white working-class people lose ground over the past several decades. This cannot be explained by...

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thoughtco.com/systemic-racis…

I'm writing an op-ed for Newsweek about LibsofTikTok. It was going slow...but I had an angle staring me right in the face.

My former colleague endured death threats and had to leave their position partly because of @libsoftiktok and #chayaraichik.

1/ Taking videos out of context and providing commentary to frame interpretation is a type of deception. There is a reason why that person was talking about MAPs. You may not agree, but it is irresponsible to not inform your audience of that reason.

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This is a thread about mendacity and how it ruins discourse around many culture war issues. I believe that if people voiced their concerns about social and cultural changes more honestly, we can come to better solutions.

1/ For example, @realchrisrufo did not need to lie about how racial issues are taught in schools.

We all remember this.

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